The Behavioural Science behind target setting
Imagine you’re leading a team that’s trying to reach a major milestone—perhaps a crucial product launch, a major cost reduction, or an organizational restructuring. You’ve set what seems like a solid goal, but progress seems slow. Team members are disengaged. You’re not getting the results you expected. Why isn’t the goal being achieved? What if I told you that the answer might lie in how the goal was set in the first place?
As business transformation leads, continuous improvement experts, and Chief Transformation Officers, you’re tasked with driving change—often under challenging circumstances. You’re familiar with the technicalities of setting business goals. But what about the science behind how people engage with those goals? This isn’t just about tracking numbers; it’s about understanding the psychological principles that influence human behavior when working toward those targets. What makes a goal motivating? Why do some targets fall flat, while others ignite passion and performance?
In this article, we’ll take a deep dive into the behavioral science of goal-setting, uncovering the core psychological principles that help individuals and teams achieve great things. This is a very large field – so we’ll be looking at just some of the findings from this science.
We’ll look at how setting clear, specific goals, incorporating feedback, balancing difficulty with challenge, and fostering commitment can transform your organization’s ability to meet its targets and drive real improvement. By the end, you’ll have a new perspective on goal-setting—one that’s not just based on tradition, but grounded in proven behavioral science.
1: The Power of Clear, Specific Goals (SMART Goals)
We’ve all heard of SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound. But what makes these goals so effective? Why does the clarity of a goal make such a difference in how likely it is to be achieved?
Think of a goal as a destination on a map. If you simply say, “I want to travel to the mountains,” the possibilities are endless. Do you want to go to the Andes, the Swiss Alps, or the Rockies? Without a clear, specific endpoint, you’ll waste time guessing where to go and how to get there. But if you say, “I want to travel to the Swiss Alps to hike the Matterhorn by July 2025,” you now have a roadmap—a clear direction. Your plan becomes focused, and the journey ahead starts to take shape.
In the world of business improvement, specificity in goal-setting acts in much the same way. Behavioral science tells us that when goals are clear and well-defined, we reduce cognitive overload and improve focus. A vague goal, like “improve sales,” can leave teams feeling lost. It’s too broad, too intangible. But when we specify, for example, “increase sales by 10% in the next quarter by targeting a new market segment,” suddenly, the path is clear. Teams know exactly what they’re working towards, and they can chart their course accordingly.
Research backs this up. Edwin Locke’s Goal-Setting Theory, a foundational principle in behavioral science, emphasizes that specific goals result in higher performance. People perform better when they understand exactly what is expected of them and can measure their progress. When goals are too vague, the brain struggles to focus. Without a clear destination, it’s easy to get distracted or lose motivation.
This doesn’t just apply to individual performance—it’s true for organizations as a whole. Take, for example, probably one of the most public goals ever declared. On May 25, 1961, President Johnn F. Kennedy stood before Congress and proposed that the US “should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth.”
The clarity of this goal galvanized entire teams of managers and team members to rally around a common cause, leading to focused efforts. This led, ultimately, to landing on the moon in July 1969, with the Apollo program’s successful Apollo 11 mission.. The specificity gave everyone a concrete target, and the results spoke for themselves.
2: The Importance of Feedback and Adjustment
Once you’ve set clear, specific goals, the next critical step in driving improvement is ensuring that progress is continuously measured and adjusted. Feedback, in its simplest form, acts as the compass guiding the team toward the destination. Without regular feedback, a goal, no matter how specific, can feel like trying to drive somewhere blindfolded. You may have a target, but you won’t know if you’re on the right track, or if you’re veering off course.
The role of feedback in goal-setting is grounded in operant conditioning, a behavioral science concept developed by B.F. Skinner. According to Skinner, behavior can be shaped by providing positive reinforcement when individuals perform as expected or by offering corrective feedback when things go wrong. In the context of goal-setting, feedback acts as the reinforcement mechanism, helping to shape and refine how people approach their tasks.
Think of feedback like driving along a highway. If you’re trying to stay on the road – in your lane – you need immediate feedback — by looking at the road and understanding where you are in relation to the lane markings —to understand what adjustments you need to make. Without that feedback or insight, you’ll be unable to safely reach your destination. Similarly, in the workplace, without constant, clear feedback loops, employees may not understand whether they’re making the progress needed to reach their target.
For example, consider a team working toward improving their project delivery times. At the start, their goal might be set to “reduce project delivery time by 20% over the next year.” Without feedback, team members may continue working as they always have, unaware that they’re not making enough progress. However, with regular performance checks and feedback (say, a bi-weekly review of current delivery timelines), employees can see where they’re falling short and make adjustments to their processes, which could include streamlining communication or optimizing resource allocation.
Much research has been done on the effect of feedback. Interestingly, and perhaps not surprisingly, feedback is not a simple panacea that works in all cases. ‘The effects of feedback interventions on performance’ by Kluger and DeNisi found that ‘over 1/3 of the Feedback Interventions decreased performance’. Their research suggested that feedback is most effective when the feedback receiver has a commitment toward the goal, the goal is clear and the goal is within reach. So don’t simply assume that all feedback is going to be effective – even your own 😊!
Incorporating feedback isn’t just about catching mistakes—it’s about fostering a culture where progress is continuously measured, celebrated, and refined. It reinforces the concept that improvement is a journey, not a destination.
3: The Right Balance of Difficulty (Stretch Goals vs. Achievability)
As you’ve probably experienced, the most motivating goals strike a delicate balance between being challenging yet achievable. Goals that are too easy don’t spark excitement; they don’t require effort or innovation. Goals that are too difficult, on the other hand, can lead to frustration and burnout. Finding the sweet spot between stretch and achievability is key to driving sustainable improvement.
But the goals need to be within reach. Canadian psychologist Victor Vroom formulated and developed the expectancy theory in 1964 at the Yale School of Management. According to Vroom’s Expectancy Theory, “intensity of work effort depends on the perception that an individual’s effort will result in a desired outcome”. The theory suggests that although individuals may have different sets of goals, they can be motivated if they believe that
- There is a positive correlation between efforts and performance,
- Favorable performance will result in a desirable reward,
- The reward will satisfy an important need,
- The desire to satisfy the need is strong enough to make the effort worthwhile
If the goal feels too difficult, individuals may not believe their effort will yield a positive outcome, leading to disengagement.
But, how do you find that sweet spot – where an individual or team will make the extra effort to achieve the optimal output ?
This is where stretch goals come in. Stretch goals are designed to push individuals and teams beyond their current capabilities but are still within the realm of possibility. A stretch goal is like a challenging hike: It pushes you to take that extra step, but the summit is still visible, and the view from the top is worth the effort. A stretch goal should be seen as being achievable but only with significant effort.
For instance, a retail company aiming to increase its revenue by 25% might set a stretch goal of expanding into a new market while also enhancing online sales. This goal is achievable but will require the team to think creatively and work harder to reach it. It taps into employees’ drive to excel while keeping the goal attainable if the proper effort is put forth.
On the flip side, if the same company set a goal of increasing revenue by 50% without the necessary resources or capabilities, the goal might become demotivating – and feedback measuring progress against an ‘impossible’ goal would be even more demotivating. The key is in aligning the difficulty level with available resources, ensuring that the goal is ambitious but not impossible.
The Goldilocks Principle, or the concept of “just the right amount,” is particularly relevant here. Goals should neither be too easy nor too hard—they need to be just right to inspire engagement, innovation, and sustained effort. Some research into goal-setting, including the Yerkes-Dodson Law, has shown that optimal performance occurs when the task is challenging enough to stimulate focus, but not so difficult that it causes anxiety or burnout.
The Yerkes-Dodson Law (1908), based on the ‘dancing mouse’ dictates that performance increases with physiological or mental arousal, but only up to a point. When levels of arousal become too high, performance decreases. The process is often illustrated graphically as a bell-shaped curve which increases and then decreases with higher levels of arousal. However, beware calling this a ‘law’ – it’s applicability and replicability in human models is still being debated over 100 years later!
4: Commitment and Ownership - The Key to Sustainable Engagement
Goals become truly transformative when the people working towards them are not just following orders, but taking ownership of the objectives themselves. When employees feel personally invested in a goal, their motivation shifts from simply meeting expectations to a deeper, more intrinsic drive to succeed.
Behavioral science teaches us that ownership increases commitment through self-determination theory (SDT). Research in SDT evolved, in the 1970s, from studies comparing intrinsic and extrinsic motives, and from a growing understanding of the dominant role that intrinsic motivation played in individual behavior. Edward L. Deci and Richard Ryan wrote a book in the mid 1980s, “Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior”, that triggered widespread interest in SDT. Intrinsic motivation refers to initiating activities because it is interesting and satisfying in itself to do so, as opposed to doing an activity for the purpose of obtaining an external goal (extrinsic motivation). According to Deci and Ryan, three basic psychological needs motivate self-initiated behavior: autonomy, competence, and relatedness.
According to this theory, people are more motivated when they feel they have autonomy and control over their actions.
When employees have a say in setting their goals and can see how those goals tie into their values and skills, they’re more likely to work tirelessly to achieve them. The key takeaway here is that when employees feel like partners in goal-setting, their commitment to success skyrockets.
5: Celebrating Success and Reinforcing Progress
Finally, as goals are achieved or progress is made, it’s essential to celebrate success. Behavioral science tells us that positive reinforcement is key to maintaining momentum. Think about a time when you or your team worked hard to hit a milestone—wasn’t there a sense of accomplishment that came from being recognized for your effort? Positive reinforcement helps to solidify the progress made and encourages continued effort.
Celebrating achievements doesn’t have to be a grand affair, but it should be consistent and meaningful. Recognition can come in many forms: from a simple thank-you email to team-wide celebrations, or even monetary rewards or promotions. However, it’s not just about the prize—it’s about acknowledging the effort and progress. Reinforcing the idea that effort leads to success helps create a feedback loop where employees are motivated to keep striving toward future goals.
This principle is reinforced in Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, which emphasizes that individuals learn through observation and reinforcement. When employees see others being recognized and rewarded for achieving goals, it encourages them to push themselves further and work together toward shared success. In other words, actions that are rewarded are more likely to be imitated, while those that are punished are avoided.
One client we’ve worked with, when running their weekly performance reviews, always includes a moment to celebrate success by recognizing an individual who had made significant effort in the last week. Not only did this keep morale high, but it also helped the company maintain a strong culture of success, where employees felt that their hard work was noticed and valued.
Conclusion: Setting Goals that Drive Transformation
In the end, the science of goal-setting is not just about creating a checklist or a series of numbers to hit. It’s about understanding the psychology behind motivation, behavior, and human connection. When you set goals that are clear, feedback-driven, achievable but challenging, and owned by the people working toward them, you tap into the very core of what drives improvement and transformation. By applying these principles, you can create a framework that not only achieves business success but also creates a work environment where employees feel motivated, engaged, and empowered to push boundaries.
Final Call to Action: Reflect on your current goal-setting practices—are they working as effectively as they could? Think about how you can integrate these principles into your own organization to not only achieve targets but also create a more engaged, motivated workforce. Don’t just set goals—set the stage for transformation.
Given the nature of this article – we’ve also found some good reference links for you if you want to explore more 😊:
- Building a Practically Useful Theory of Goal Setting and Task Motivation – Edwin A. Locke and Gary P. Latham
- The effects of feedback interventions on performance: A historical review, a meta-analysis, and a preliminary feedback intervention theory – Kluger, Avraham N. and DeNisi, Angelo
- Human Agency in Social Cognitive Theory – Albert Bandura