A single online goal-setting session helped struggling students raise their grades

The study

1. 01

   Who took part

   85 university students took part, all at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, with grades below a B. They were about 20 on average, and 60 of them were women.

2. 02

   What they did

   The goal group did one online programme in a single sitting of about two and a half hours. It led them through eight steps: imagining their ideal future, choosing specific goals and planning how to reach them. The other group did three unrelated online tasks: questionnaires, free writing about past good times, and a career-interest test.

3. 03

   What happened

   Four months later, grade point averages were 2.91 in the goal group and 2.46 in the other group. No student in the goal group dropped below nine credits next term, but eight of the other 40 did. Students in the goal group also rated themselves as less anxious, stressed and sad.

What the study found

1. HelpedGoals

   Students who did the goal-setting session raised their grades more than the other group, four months later.

   • Action: Set a specific goaltested
   • Action: Picture your future selftested
   • Rule: Choose it yourselftested
   • Rule: Make it concrete and specifictested

   Small randomised trial of 85 university students who were struggling · vs students who did questionnaires and a career test · behaviour was recorded

2. HelpedGoals

   None of the goal-setting students dropped below nine credits next term, against eight of 40 others.

   • Action: Set a specific goaltested
   • Action: Picture your future selftested
   • Rule: Choose it yourselftested
   • Rule: Make it concrete and specifictested

   Small randomised trial of 85 university students who were struggling · vs students who did questionnaires and a career test · behaviour was recorded

3. HelpedOther outcomes

   Students in the goal-setting group said they felt less anxious, stressed and sad than the other group did.

   • Action: Set a specific goaltested
   • Action: Picture your future selftested
   • Rule: Choose it yourselftested
   • Rule: Make it concrete and specifictested

   Small randomised trial of 85 university students who were struggling · vs students who did questionnaires and a career test · behaviour was recorded

Source