Too impulsive for implementation intentions? Evidence that impulsivity moderates the effectiveness of an implementation intention intervention

Abstract

Objective: The reported research explored whether impulsivity moderated the effectiveness of an implementation intention prompt to increase fruit and vegetable consumption. Design: The study employed a prospective experimental design. At Time 1, participants completed a measure of impulsivity. At Time 2, participants in the experimental condition formed implementation intentions to increase their fruit and vegetable intake by two extra portions daily over the following 7 days. Participants in the control condition performed an equivalent neutral task. At Time 3, participants reported their fruit and vegetable consumption over the preceding 7 days. Results: The impulsivity dimension urgency moderated the effectiveness of the implementation intention intervention. Implementation intention formation only prompted fruit and vegetable consumption amongst those with low levels of urgency. Implementation intention formation did not increase consumption amongst those high in urgency. Conclusion: The findings suggest that implementation intention interventions may fail to promote goal attainment for those high in impulsivity.