Many different techniques can be used to change behavior in therapy. Reasonable goal setting is a well-known technique that most people have used at some point. A recent review looked at tests of goal setting effectiveness in a variety of different fields to see if goal setting really works, what types of goals work best, and if goal setting works for everyone.
Does reasonable Setting Goal Modify Behavior in therapy?
Goal setting works to change many different behaviors (including recycling, athletic performance, educational goals, and health), even when used exclusively without other behavior change techniques.
What is surprising is that goal setting doesn't necessarily work better when combined with other behavior change techniques that it is commonly combined with. For example, adding feedback (that is, telling people their current position or progress toward the goal) in a goal-setting-based intervention does not increase its effectiveness. More importantly, getting people to explicitly commit to the goal or even asking them just how committed they are to the goal decreases the effectiveness of goal setting.
The use of reasonable goal-setting improved the effectiveness of therapy. Interventions that included monitoring someone's performance without giving them feedback (for example, recording how many servings of fruits and vegetables a person eats with their meal) are more effective if goal setting is added as well.
There are many different factors to consider when setting and evaluating goals, some of which are widely known (e.g., SMART goals), while others may not be widely considered.
What can improve the effectiveness of goal setting in changing behavior?
There is a myth that setting an easy-to-reach goal is most effective for things like losing weight. However, behavior change improves if difficult goals are set. Difficult goals are those that are expected to be achieved only by a low proportion of people; these are more effective in changing behavior than moderate goals (those expected to be achieved by 15-50% of people) or easy goals (that is, those expected to be achieved by more than half of people).
Talking to people about the goal is a good way to successfully improve behavior change. Goals are more likely to be achieved or progress towards them if the goal is set publicly (i.e. if you have face-to-face contact with someone when setting the goal or if you tell someone about your goal, For example, telling colleagues at work that you plan to quit smoking). In fact, writing down goals and putting them in a public place is also a recommendation in sports psychology.
Working in a group toward a goal also leads to more successful behavior change. Setting a bigger goal at the level of family, workgroup or sports team or even a group of friends is more effective than having each person set a goal individually.
Certain factors don't matter when setting a goal
Goals that focus on behavior (for example, weight loss programs often have people set a goal focused on behavior, such as eating only 1,200 calories per day) are just as effective as goals that focus on the results (for example, a goal of losing a certain amount of weight each week). Goals that aim to improve your performance relative to your current position (for example, walking 5,000 more steps per day) are just as effective as those based on an absolute external standard (for example, walking 10,000 steps per day).
Goals that are self-set, set by someone else, or set up collaboratively are just as effective. It's also okay to set more than one goal at a time or to set the same goal repeatedly over a while; there is no difference in effectiveness.
Goal setting works to change many different behaviors (including recycling, athletic performance, educational goals, and health), even when used exclusively without other behavior change techniques.
What is surprising is that goal setting doesn't necessarily work better when combined with other behavior change techniques that it is commonly combined with. For example, adding feedback (that is, telling people their current position or progress toward the goal) in a goal-setting-based intervention does not increase its effectiveness. More importantly, getting people to explicitly commit to the goal or even asking them just how committed they are to the goal decreases the effectiveness of goal setting.
The use of reasonable goal-setting improved the effectiveness of therapy. Interventions that included monitoring someone's performance without giving them feedback (for example, recording how many servings of fruits and vegetables a person eats with their meal) are more effective if goal setting is added as well.
There are many different factors to consider when setting and evaluating goals, some of which are widely known (e.g., SMART goals), while others may not be widely considered.
What can improve the effectiveness of goal setting in changing behavior?
There is a myth that setting an easy-to-reach goal is most effective for things like losing weight. However, behavior change improves if difficult goals are set. Difficult goals are those that are expected to be achieved only by a low proportion of people; these are more effective in changing behavior than moderate goals (those expected to be achieved by 15-50% of people) or easy goals (that is, those expected to be achieved by more than half of people).
Talking to people about the goal is a good way to successfully improve behavior change. Goals are more likely to be achieved or progress towards them if the goal is set publicly (i.e. if you have face-to-face contact with someone when setting the goal or if you tell someone about your goal, For example, telling colleagues at work that you plan to quit smoking). In fact, writing down goals and putting them in a public place is also a recommendation in sports psychology.
Working in a group toward a goal also leads to more successful behavior change. Setting a bigger goal at the level of family, workgroup or sports team or even a group of friends is more effective than having each person set a goal individually.
Certain factors don't matter when setting a goal
Goals that focus on behavior (for example, weight loss programs often have people set a goal focused on behavior, such as eating only 1,200 calories per day) are just as effective as goals that focus on the results (for example, a goal of losing a certain amount of weight each week). Goals that aim to improve your performance relative to your current position (for example, walking 5,000 more steps per day) are just as effective as those based on an absolute external standard (for example, walking 10,000 steps per day).
Goals that are self-set, set by someone else, or set up collaboratively are just as effective. It's also okay to set more than one goal at a time or to set the same goal repeatedly over a while; there is no difference in effectiveness.
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