Commitment in advance, increased chance of completion. Scientific study.

M

morrison108

0
Hello,

I hope someone may be able to help me with a question.

I read GTD and Making it all work a while back, excellent books with some truly great thinking.

I believe it was David Allen that quotes some research done with students over the Christmas break and their increased tendency to complete if they made a commitment ahead of time to the paper that the study was based around.

I am trying to find the writing on this / the original study as it' something that I want to look at in more detail.

I haven't been able to find it in the books and I am wondering if actually it wasn't David Allen that was writing about this.

if anyone can shed any light on this I would be most grateful.

Many thanks,
 
Maybe from Willpower: Rediscovering Our Greatest Strength by Baumeister & Tierney

"researchers monitored college students taking part in a program to improve their skills at studying."
..." the students were randomly assigned among three planning conditions. One group was instructed to make daily plans for what, where, and when to study. Another made similar plans, only month by month instead of day by day. And a third group, the controls, did not make plans."
..."The monthly planning group did the best, in terms of improvements in study habits and attitudes."

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Willpower-Rediscovering-Our-Greatest-Strength/dp/1846143500

Hope this helps
Paul
 
Hi,

Thanks for that.

That wasn't actually the study, it was one where the students had to commit to a specific time to work on a paper over the Xmas holidays.

however, sounds like that might be worth a look anyway.

I'll check it out, thanks!

If anyone else has any idea if this is in either of the books please chime in.

I am really at a loss here!
 
PaulK said:
Maybe from Willpower: Rediscovering Our Greatest Strength by Baumeister & Tierney

"researchers monitored college students taking part in a program to improve their skills at studying."
..." the students were randomly assigned among three planning conditions. One group was instructed to make daily plans for what, where, and when to study. Another made similar plans, only month by month instead of day by day. And a third group, the controls, did not make plans."
..."The monthly planning group did the best, in terms of improvements in study habits and attitudes."

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Willpower-Re.../dp/1846143500

Hope this helps
Paul
Click to expand...

I have just finished reading that book Willpower by Baumeister & Tierney.

It is absolutely brilliant! And full of surprises. To me it is a "must read" for anyone interested in "task management" of any sort, let alone any form of "self-improvement".

J
 
morrison108 said:
Hi,

That wasn't actually the study, it was one where the students had to commit to a specific time to work on a paper over the Xmas holidays.

I am really at a loss here!
Click to expand...

Back in the mid 80's I took a project management course where, when asking for a commitment, they emphasized always asking for a specific date in addition to the standard commitment or promise, the reasoning being that in order to provide a date, one has to do some internal processing and fit the new task into the existing mental picture of the future, thus providing a little more certainty that the task will actually get done. In my experience, it works. That is, committing to a date actually alters the map of the future.

Not your student study, but I think the premise is the same.
 
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