Planning and the control of action

Planning has been found to have a powerful effect on human actions (e.g., Gollwitzer & Sheeran, 2006 ). But how do people plan? In this chapter we first introduce implementation intentions (e.g., Gollwitzer, 1999 ) as an efficient way of planning. Implementation intentions refer to specific plans in which individuals and groups can specify when, where, and how they intend to act using an if-then format (e.g., “If I come home from work on Fridays, then I will immediately put on my jogging shoes and go for a 30-minute run!”). After we examine how they support goal pursuit, we differentiate between spontaneous and strategic planning—two ways in which if–then plans can be made on the basis of goal-related knowledge. With respect to spontaneous planning, we highlight the importance of the accessibility of goal-related knowledge. We introduce goal systems theory (Kruglanski, Shah, Fishbach, Friedman, Chun, & Sleeth-Keppler, 2002 ) as a conceptual framework because it addresses the question of how goals can increase the accessibility of knowledge about when, where, and how to pursue the goal. To illustrate how the accessibility of goal-related knowledge facilitates goal attainment, we discuss a set of recent studies. They show that individuals spontaneously grasp goal-relevant information in the form of implementation intentions (Marquardt, Tröger, Wieber, & Gollwitzer, 2016 ; see also Marquardt, 2011 ) even if it is incidentally provided in their environment and that they use this knowledge to improve their goal attainment without being prompted to do so

Organostibonsäureester. II [1]: Darstellung und Eigenschaften von Methanstibonsäureestern. Struktur von Di-μ-methoxy-bis[dibromo-methoxy-methyl-antimon(V)]

Dimere alkoxyverbrückte Verbindungen des Typs [CH$_3$SbX$_2$(OR)(μ-OR)]$_2$ (X = Cl, Br; R = CH$_3$, C$_2$H$_5$) können durch Oxidation von CH$_3$Sb(OR)$_2$ mit Br$_2$ oder S0$_2$Cl$_2$ in CH$_2$Cl$_2$ unterhalb -60°C als lichtempfindliche kristalline Feststoffe erhalten werden. Die Struktur der Verbindung [CH$_3$SbBr$_2$(OCH$_3$)(μ-OCH$_3$)]$_2$ konnte mittels Röntgenstrukturanalyse bestimmt werden. Umsetzungen mit Natriumalkoholaten in den entsprechenden Alkoholen bei 0°C führen zu dimeren Tetraalkoxymethylstiboranen. Austauschreaktionen von Tetramethoxymethylstiboran mit Ethanol ergeben das Ethoxyderivat und mit Diolen symmetrische spirocyclische Methanstibonsäureester.Dimeric alkoxy-bridged compounds of the type [CH$_3$SbX$_2$(OR)(μ-OR)]$_2$ (X = Cl, Br; R = CH$_3$, C$_2$H$_5$) are prepared by oxidation of CH$_3$Sb(OR)$_2$ with Br$_2$ or S0$_2$Cl$_2$ in CH$_2$Cl$_2$ below -60°C as light sensitive erystals. The structure of [CH$_3$SbBr$_2$(OCH$_3$)(μ-OCH$_3$)]$_2$ was determined by X-Ray analysis. By reaction with sodium alkoxides in the corresponding alcohol at 0°C dimeric tetraalkoxymethylstiboranes are obtained. Exchange reactions of tetramethoxymethylstiborane with ethanol give the ethoxy derivative and with diols symmetrie spirocyclic esters of methanestibonic acid

Vom Wollen zum Handeln : wie Sie Ihre Ziele in die Tat umsetzen

Man hat sich fest vorgenommen, mehr Sport zu treiben; trotzdem sitzt man vor dem Fernseher, anstatt im Park zu joggen. Warum setzen wir dieses und andere wichtige Ziele nicht in die Tat um? Und was kann man tun, um seine Ziele besser zu erreichen? In diesem Artikel diskutieren wir drei Hindernisse auf dem Weg zum Ziel und stellen einen einfachen, gut erforschten Motivations-Kniff vor, um sie zu überwinden. So zeigen wir, wie Sie im Alltag Ihre Ziele erreichen können

Planning and performance in small groups : collective implementation intentions enhance group goal striving

There are two key motivators to perform well in a group: making a contribution that (a) is crucial for the group (indispensability) and that (b) the other group members recognize (identifiability). We argue that indispensability promotes setting collective ("We") goals whereas identifiability induces individual ("I") goals. Although both goals may enhance performance, they should align with different strategies. Whereas pursuing collective goals should involve more cooperation, pursuing individual goals should involve less cooperation. Two experiments support this reasoning and show that planning out collective goals with collective implementation intentions (cIIs or "We-plans") relies on cooperation but planning out individual goals with individual implementation intentions (IIs or "I-plans") does not. In Experiment 1, three-member groups first formed a collective or an individual goal and then performed a first round of a physical persistence task. Groups then either formed a respective implementation intention (cII or II) or a control plan and then performed a second round of the task. Although groups with cIIs and IIs performed better on a physical persistence task than respective control groups, only cII groups interacted more cooperatively during task performance. To confirm the causal role of these interaction processes, Experiment 2 used the same persistence task and manipulated whether groups could communicate: When communication was hindered, groups with cIIs but not groups with IIs performed worse. Communication thus qualifies as a process making cIIs effective. The present research offers a psychology of action account to small group performance

Supporting Sustainable Food Consumption: Mental Contrasting with Implementation Intentions (MCII) Aligns Intentions and Behavior

With growing awareness that sustainable consumption is important for quality of life on earth, many individuals intend to act more sustainably. In this regard, interest in reducing meat consumption is on the rise. However, people often do not translate intentions into actual behavior change. To address this intention-behavior gap, we tested the self-regulation strategy of mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII). Here, people identify and imagine a desired future and current obstacles standing in its way. They address the obstacles with if-then plans specifying when, where, and how to act differently. In a 5-week randomized controlled experimental study, we compared an information C MCII intervention with an information-only control intervention. As hypothesized, only MCII participants’ intention of reducing their meat consumption was predictive of their actual reduction, while no correspondence between intention and behavior change was found for control participants. Participants with a moderate to strong intention to reduce their meat consumption reduced it more in the MCII than in the control condition. Thus, MCII helped to narrow the intention-behavior gap and supported behavior change for those holding moderate and strong respective intentions

Strategic self-regulation in groups : collective implementation intentions help cooperate when cooperation is called for

Groups need contributions that are personally costly to their members. Such cooperation is only adaptive when others cooperate as well, as unconditional cooperation may incur high costs to the individual. We argue that individuals can use We-if-then plans (collective implementation intentions, cIIs) to regulate their group-directed behavior strategically, helping them to cooperate selectively with group members in the situation planned for. In line with this prediction, a cII to consider group earnings increased cooperative decisions in a prisoners' dilemma game when playing against another group member but not when playing against a stranger (i.e., non-group member). Moreover, cIIs to cooperate in the prisoners' dilemma game did not increase cooperation in a structurally similar investment game that participants had not planned for. We discuss the role of collective planning in solving social dilemmas

Management in times of crisis : can collective plans prepare teams to make and implement good decisions?

Purpose: Crises such as the Coronavirus pandemic pose extraordinary challenges to the decision making in management teams. Teams need to integrate available information quickly to make informed decisions on the spot and update their decisions as new information becomes available. Moreover, making good decisions is hard as it requires sacrifices for the common good, and finally, implementing the decisions made is not easy as it requires persistence in the face of strong counterproductive social pressures. Design/methodology/approach: We provide a “psychology of action” perspective on making team-based management decisions in crisis by introducing collective implementation intentions (We-if-then plans) as a theory-based intervention tool to improve decision processes. We discuss our program of research on forming and acting on We-if-then plans in ad hoc teams facing challenging situations. Findings: Teams with We-if-then plans consistently made more informed decisions when information was socially or temporally distributed, when decision makers had to make sacrifices for the common good, and when strong social pressures opposed acting on their decisions. Preliminary experimental evidence indicates that assigning simple We-if-then plans had similar positive effects as providing a leader to steer team processes. Originality/value: Our analysis of self-regulated team decisions helps understand and improve how management teams can make and act on good decisions in crises such as the Coronavirus pandemic

How can we master the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic? : The role of planning at social levels

Mastering global challenges such as the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic requires implementing effective responses at various social levels. Leadership teams (governmental, industrial) need to integrate available information to introduce effective regulation and update their decisions as new information becomes available. Groups (families, peers, teams) need to act persistently, even when these actions oppose members’ individual short-term interests. Moreover, individuals need to stay calm and act diligently, while dealing with emotions of threat and resisting counterproductive social influence. Our research programme on implementation intentions at social levels suggests that collective if-then plans facilitate goal attainment for teams, groups, and individuals in social contexts. We therefore analyse how if-then planning can help master global human challenges such as the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic

If-then plans help regulate automatic peer influence on impulse buying

This study aims to take a dual-process perspective and argues that peer influence on increasing impulse buying may also operate automatically. If-then plans, which can automate action control, may, thus, help regulate peer influence. This research extends existing literature explicating the deliberate influence of social norms. Study 1 (N = 120) obtained causal evidence that forming an implementation intention (i.e. an if-then plan designed to automate action control) reduces peer impact on impulse buying in a laboratory experiment with young adults (students) selecting food items. Study 2 (N = 686) obtained correlational evidence for the role of norms, automaticity and implementation intentions in impulse buying using a large sample of high-school adolescents working on a vignette about clothes-shopping. If-then plans reduced impulse purchases in the laboratory (Study 1). Both reported deliberation on peer norms and the reported automaticity of shopping with peers predicted impulse buying but an implementation intention to be thriftily reduced these links (Study 2). This research highlights the role of automatic social processes in problematic consumer behaviour. Promising field studies and neuropsychological experiments are discussed. Young consumers can gain control over automatic peer influence by using if-then plans, thereby reducing impulse buying. This research helps understand new precursors of impulse buying in understudied European samples of young consumers