Setting Realistic Goals Can Improve Well-being
Effective goal setting is a key factor in coaching. It could also be a play a role in an individual’s overall well-being. Research from the University of Basel found that people who set realistic goals are more satisfied with their lives. It also found that another contributing factor, to a lesser extent, is what the goal means to the individual.
A group of psychologists at the University of Basel was interested in looking at how goals are embedded in people’s lives across adulthood. They surveyed and analyzed data from 973 people, ages 18-92, who live in German-speaking parts of Switzerland. More than half of these participants were surveyed two and four years later. Using a four-point scale, the participants were asked to assess the importance and perceived attainability of life goals in 10 areas:
- Community
- Fame
- Family
- Health
- Image
- Personal growth
- Responsibility/care for younger generations
- Social relationships
- Wealth
- Work
Those who perceived their personal goals as attainable also indicated later cognitive and affective well-being, meaning that the most satisfied participants had a feeling control and attainability. Interestingly, they felt particularly satisfied in the area of life their goal focused on. For example, those who set and achieved health goals were particularly more satisfied with their own health.
The importance of the goal was less important than the researchers expected, yet they did find a correlation between satisfaction, different types of goals and different life stages. For instance, the younger the participant, the more they rated personal growth, status, work and social relationship goals as important. The older the participant, the more important social engagement and health were rated.
The research shows that the link between goals and later well-being seems to be independent of participants’ ages.
The findings were published in the European Journal of Personality.
Lisa Cunningham
Lisa Cunningham is a freelance writer and social media consultant. She holds a master’s degree in professional writing with a focus on web content development from Chatham University and a bachelor’s degree in English writing and communication from the University of Pittsburgh.
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