Managing time: The effects of personal goal setting on resource allocationstrategy and task performance

One key to understanding motivated behavior is examining the behavior of in dividuals as they work on multiple tasks under a time constraint. This arti cle is an exploration of the influence of self-set goals on subsequent reso urce allocation to different tasks. Participants were given a variety of ta sks from which they were to choose how to allocate their time and effort. R esults indicated that the use of self-set goals structured the work pattern , with less switching between tasks relative to the work pattern of a group of participants who did not set goals. In addition, those who set goals re ported less task-related cognitive interference, indicating that they were not as distracted while they worked. Participants who did not set goals, ho wever, performed at a higher level on some of the tasks. It is suggested th at self-set goals may often be chosen at an easily attainable level, creati ng a structured and focused work environment but not necessarily eliciting the motivational properties typically associated with goal setting.