Effective self-regulation of goal attainment

By G. Oettingen, Gaby Hönig, Peter M. Gollwitzer. 2000

253 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Self-regulatory strategies of goal setting and goal striving are analyzed in three experiments. Experiment 1 uses fantasy realization theory (Oettingen, in: J. BrandstaK tter, R.M. Lerner (Eds.), Action and Self Development: „heory and Research through the ‚ife Span, Sage Publications Inc, Thousand Oaks, CA, 1999, pp. 315}342) to analyze the self-regulatory processes of turning free fantasies about a desired future into binding goals. School children 8}12 years of age who had to mentally elaborate a desired academic future as well as present reality standing in its way, formed stronger goal commitments than participants solely indulging in the desired future or merely dwelling on present reality (Experiment 1). E!ective implementation of set goals is addressed in the second and third experiments (Gollwitzer, Am. Psychol. 54 (1999) 493}503). Adolescents who had to furnish a set educational goal with relevant implementation intentions (specifying where, when, and how they would start goal pursuit) were comparatively more successful in meeting the goal (Experiment 2). Linking anticipated situations with goal-directed behaviors (i.e., if}then plans) rather than the mere thinking about good opportunities to act makes implementation intentions facilitate action initiation (Experiment 3). Successful goal attainment demands completing two di!erent tasks. People have to "rst turn their desires into binding goals, and second they have to attain the set goal. Both tasks bene"t from self-regulatory strategies. In this article we describe a series of experiments with children, adolescents, and young adults that investigate self-regulatory processes facilitating e!ective goal setting and successful goal striving. The experimental studies investigate (1) di!erent routes to goal setting depending on how

Subfields: Applied Psychology, Developmental and Educational Psychology, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/36107d838e2004aebfd53f1801338d6b9b0ebfc7

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Applied Psychology

  1. Peter M. Gollwitzer
  2. G. Oettingen
  3. Teemu Kautonen
  4. M. van Gelderen
  5. P. Sheeran
  6. Joakim Wincent
  7. Marina G. Biniari
  8. Angela L. Duckworth

In Developmental and Educational Psychology

  1. P. Sheeran
  2. Peter M. Gollwitzer
  3. G. Oettingen
  4. Heidi Grant
  5. Teemu Kautonen
  6. Joakim Wincent
  7. Jordan B. Peterson
  8. Angela L. Duckworth

In Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

  1. Peter M. Gollwitzer
  2. G. Oettingen
  3. P. Sheeran
  4. M. van Gelderen
  5. Teemu Kautonen
  6. Joakim Wincent
  7. Marina G. Biniari
  8. Angela L. Duckworth

Citations in the corpus