This article overviews literature on
motivation and
persistence to accomplish a
goal once goal activities have begun (i.e. the actional phase), with specific applications to the field of
marketing and
consumer behavior.
Motivation Goal Gradient Hypothesis Goal progress is a measure of advancement toward accomplishment of a
goal. Hull developed the goal gradient hypothesis when observing rats racing to receive a food reward (Hull, 1932). Using sensors to assess the rat's motion, Hull observed that the rats level of effort increased as the proximal distance to the food reward decreased. The goal gradient hypothesis has been used to predict human behavior when pursuing a goal. As applied to rewards or loyalty programs, consumers with endowed progress were shown to have a higher likelihood of reward redemption compared to those not endowed, and they completed the reward task more quickly than the non-endowed. They found evidence that providing an illusion of goal progress accelerates the rate of goal achievement (i.e. reduced intervisit times for a rewards program) and increases retention in the rewards program. They developed the goal-distance model that asserts that "investment" in goal pursuit is inversely proportional to the psychological distance between requirements received in pursuit of the reward and the total number of requirements needed to achieve the reward. This proposed
psychophysics model of goal pursuit purports that (1) when the initial state of a goal is the reference point, motivation levels
monotonically decrease as distance from the initial state increases and (2) when the end state of a goal is the reference point, motivation levels monotonically increase as distance to the end state decreases. Consequently, the former individuals, with aligned focus and approach, are more likely to accomplish the goal. As an example, in a study run with undergraduate students at
Columbia University, Spiegel et al. (2004) evaluated the regulatory focus, either promotion or prevention, of study participants. Participants were asked to complete a report writing task, and participants were requested to either complete the task using a vigilance perspective or an eagerness perspective. Fishbach, Eyal, and Finkelstein (2010) extended this concept to predict behavior during goal pursuit when positive and negative
feedback are received. They assert that individuals who are commitment focused are expected to pursue goal-congruent actions when receiving positive feedback, as this feedback serves as evidence of their commitment to the goal; whereas progress-focused individuals perceive the same positive feedback as evidence of sufficient progress toward goal attainment and may subsequently pursue actions incongruent with goal achievement. On the other hand, commitment-focused individuals would perceive negative feedback as evidence of their lack of commitment to the goal and would subsequently pursue actions incongruent with goal achievement; whereas the progress-focused individuals perceive negative feedback as an indication of their lack of goal progress and would subsequently pursue goal-congruent actions.
Reference Points Heath et al. (1999) describe goals as reference points. DPMs signal progress during goal pursuit. Their paradigm is an amalgam of Lewinian (see
Kurt Lewin) and Atkinsonian (see
John William Atkinson) theories coupled with other psychological theories. Fox and Hoffman (2002) leverage Lewinian concepts of tension and valence. Tension in goal pursuit arises when there is a discrepancy between one's current state and one's desired goal end state." Therefore, once progress in goal pursuit is perceived, individuals may persist in goal pursuit as to not waste the time and effort already expended while pursuing the goal. == See also ==