Working for the best or bracing for the worst? Approach and avoidance motivation in planning

Even though planning is generally helpful in goal pursuit, people do not always choose to plan. The inclination to plan might depend on whether we focus on what we seek to approach or what we seek to avoid. In two pre-registered experiments, we tested the relative effect of approach versus avoidance motivation on willingness to plan (total N=1349). With outcome framing as the experimental manipulation, participants were randomly assigned to either an approach or an avoidance condition, and then indicated their willingness to plan their study activities before an upcoming exam. Contrary to predictions, the results showed no significant difference in willingness to plan depending on condition in either experiment. There was mixed support for the importance of anticipated affect and perceived distance as process mechanisms: While Experiment 1 showed that participants who experienced the day of the exam as closer in time were more willing to plan their study preparations (regardless of condition), we found no mediational effects through perceived distance or anticipated affect. In Experiment 2, anticipated affect intensity mediated the association between motivation and willingness to plan, where participants induced to approach motivation predicted greater intensity of anticipated affect upon achieving their goals, and thus were more willing to plan than participants induced to avoidance motivation. However, such mediation effects without a main effect remain ambiguous and should be interpreted with caution. Seen as a whole, the results suggest that the effect of different motivation types on the willingness to plan may be different than previously thought: They may not influence this aspect of goal striving.

Working for the Best or Bracing for the Worst? Approach and Avoidance Motivation in Planning

Even though planning is generally helpful in goal pursuit, people do not always choose to plan. The inclination to plan might depend on whether we focus on what we seek to approach or what we seek to avoid. In two pre-registered experiments, we tested the relative effect of approach versus avoidance motivation on willingness to plan (total N=1349). With outcome framing as the experimental manipulation, participants were randomly assigned to either an approach or an avoidance condition, and then indicated their willingness to plan their study activities before an upcoming exam. Contrary to predictions, the results showed no significant difference in willingness to plan depending on condition in either experiment. There was mixed support for the importance of anticipated affect and perceived distance as process mechanisms: While Experiment 1 showed that participants who experienced the day of the exam as closer in time were more willing to plan their study preparations (regardless of condition), we found no mediational effects through perceived distance or anticipated affect. In Experiment 2, anticipated affect intensity mediated the association between motivation and willingness to plan, where participants induced to approach motivation predicted greater intensity of anticipated affect upon achieving their goals, and thus were more willing to plan, than participants induced to avoidance motivation. However, such mediational effects without a main effect remain ambiguous and should be interpreted with caution. Seen as a whole, the results suggest that the effect of different motivation types on the willingness to plan may be different than previously thought: They may not influence this aspect of goal striving.

Overview of Affective Determinants of Health Behavior

This chapter provides a brief introduction to the topic of affective determinants of health behavior. In doing so it analyzes each aspect of the book’s topic. It begins by outlining what is meant by “health behavior.” It then considers traditional views of the key determinants of such behaviors and the value of and need for integrating affective determinants within health behavior theories. Next, it offers a conceptualization of affective determinants in relation to health behaviors, including distinctions between/among (1) affect proper versus affect processing (the latter also known as affective judgments or cognitively mediated affect); (2) core affect versus moods and emotions; (3) integral versus incidental affect; and (4) anticipated affect, affective attitudes, implicit attitudes, and affective associations. It closes with a brief overview of measurement of affect in the context of health behavior research.

Experiential Attitude and Anticipated Affect

Recent research has explored the effects of two affective influences within models such as the theory of planned behavior and reasoned action approach: experiential attitude and anticipated affect. Both refer to perceptions of future affect, that is, cognitively mediated affect. Primary studies and meta-analytic reviews supporting the role of these two affective variables on health behavior are presented. The correlational data use prospective designs and control for other health cognitions and past behavior. The experimental data also explore whether the affective variables mediate the impact of the “affective intervention” on behavior. Strong support is found across studies for both experiential attitude and anticipated affect as important determinants of health behaviors even when controlling for other health cognitions and past behavior. The need for further experimental studies with objective measures of health behavior is noted. Further the testing of the combined effects of manipulating both affective variables is highlighted for further attention.