Abstract
Mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII) is a self-regulation strategy that enhances goal attainment. This meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy of MCII for goal attainment and explored potential moderators. A total of 21 empirical studies with 24 independent effect sizes (15,907 participants) were included in the analysis. Results showed that MCII to be effective for goal attainment with a small to medium effect size (g = 0.336). The effect was mainly moderated by intervention style. Specifically, studies with interventions based on interactions between participants and experimenters (g = 0.465) had stronger effects than studies with interventions based on interactions between participants and documents (g = 0.277). The results revealed that MCII is a brief and effective strategy for goal attainment with a small to moderate effect; however, because of some publication bias, the actual effect sizes may be smaller. Due to small number of studies in this meta-analysis, additional studies are needed to determine the role of moderator variables.
Highlights
People face many obstacles in pursuit of their goals
Criteria for inclusion were as follows: (1) the study was empirical—review studies were excluded; (2) the available data were sufficient for calculating an effect size; (3) the study reported methods and results in English or Chinese; (4) the study was field intervention research—experiments conducted only in laboratories were excluded [unlike the meta-analysis by Gollwitzer and Sheeran (2006), which included field intervention studies, related studies, and laboratory studies]; and (5) the intervention was delivered in the context of an intervention and a control condition, and the difference between groups was whether Mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII) was implemented or not
The funnel plot of the effect of MCII on goal attainment showed strong asymmetry, with more studies on the right side than on the left, indicating that some studies with nonsignificant results or small effect sizes may have been missing from the left side, which could indicate publication bias
Summary
People face many obstacles in pursuit of their goals. Self-regulation interventions, using strategies such as mental contrasting and implementation intentions, have become popular in promoting successful goal attainment.Mental Contrasting and Its Effects on Goal AttainmentSeveral studies by Oettingen and colleagues found that thinking only about positive future outcomes decreases goal-relevant efforts, as well as the likelihood of goal achievement Mental Contrasting and Its Effects on Goal Attainment. After imagining a positive future, thinking about obstacles that impede the realization of wishes (i.e., mental contrasting) can transform people’s positive fantasies into binding goals, urging them to overcome obstacles in reality to attain their goals (Oettingen, 2000). Contrasting a desired future with impeding reality can activate expectations of success: when expectations of success are high, people fully commit and pursue their goals; when expectations of success are low, people postpone or abandon the fulfillment of their wishes (Oettingen, 2000, 2012). Effects of mental contrasting on goal pursuit are mediated by three non-conscious processes: cognition, energization, and response to feedback. In terms of cognitive mechanisms, mental contrasting can strengthen non-conscious mental associations between the future and reality (Kappes and Oettingen, 2014), help individuals
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