A leaderboard got people to list more uses than a do-your-best goal

The study

1. 01

   Who took part

   240 university students were in the results, mostly women, average age about 23. The study ran online in the US.

2. 02

   What they did

   Everyone had 12 minutes to list uses for a knife. One group was told to do their best. Others had a goal of 15, 39 or 53 uses, or a leaderboard with scores set in advance.

3. 03

   What happened

   The leaderboard group listed about 38 uses, against about 24 for the do-your-best group. It did about as well as the group with a goal of 39 uses, which listed about 37. People who were more committed to their goal listed more uses.

What the study found

1. Helped

   A leaderboard got people to list more uses than being told to do their best.

   • Rule: Compete or compare with otherstested
   • Rule: Get feedback on your progressused

   Randomised trial of 240 university students in a brainstorming test · vs people told to do their best · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ only counted people who finished

2. No difference

   A leaderboard got people to list about as many uses as a goal of 39 did.

   • Action: Set a specific goaltested
   • Rule: Compete or compare with otherstested

   Randomised trial of 240 university students in a brainstorming test · vs people with a goal of 39 uses · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ only counted people who finished

Source