Abstract
The World Health Organization has identified physical inactivity as the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality. People often intend to engage in physical activity on a regular basis, but have trouble doing so. To realize their health goals, people can voluntarily accept deadlines with consequences that restrict undesired future behaviors (i.e., commitment devices).
Purpose:
We examined if lottery-based deadlines that leverage regret aversion would help overweight individuals in attaining their goal of attending their gym twice per week. At each deadline a lottery winner was drawn from all participants.
The winners were only eligible for their prize if they attained their gym-attendance goals. Importantly, nonattending lottery winners were informed about their forgone prize. The promise of this counterfactual feedback was designed to evoke anticipated regret and emphasize the deadlines.
Methods:
Six corporate gyms with a total of 163 overweight participants were randomized to one of three arms. We compared (i) weekly short-term lotteries for 13
weeks; (ii) the same short-term lotteries in combination with an additional long-term lottery after 26 weeks; and (iii) a control arm without lotteries.
Results:
After 13 weeks, participants in the lottery arms attained their attendance goals more often than participants in the control arm. After 26 weeks, we observe a
decline in goal attainment in the short-term lottery arm and the highest goal attainment in the long-term lottery arm.
Conclusions:
With novel applications, the current research adds to a growing body of research that demonstrates the effectiveness of commitment devices in closing the gap between health goals and behavior.
| Language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages | 342-351 |
| Journal | Annals of Behavioral Medicine |
| Volume | 52 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2018 |
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Keywords
- ANTICIPATED REGRET
- BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS
- BODY-MASS INDEX
- Behavior change
- Behavioral economics
- Commitment devices
- Deadlines
- HABIT FORMATION
- HEALTH BEHAVIORS
- Health promotion
- INCENTIVES
- METAANALYSIS
- OBESE
- Physical activity
- SELF-CONTROL
- WEIGHT-LOSS
Cite this
}
Commitment lotteries promote physical activity among overweight adults : A cluster randomized trial. / van der Swaluw, K.; Lambooij, M.S.; Mathijssen, J.J.P.; Schipper, M.; Zeelenberg, M.; Berkhout, S.; Polder, J.J.; Prast, H.M.
In: Annals of Behavioral Medicine, Vol. 52, No. 4, 2018, p. 342-351.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Scientific › peer-review
TY - JOUR
T1 - Commitment lotteries promote physical activity among overweight adults
T2 - Annals of Behavioral Medicine
AU - van der Swaluw, K.
AU - Lambooij, M.S.
AU - Mathijssen, J.J.P.
AU - Schipper, M.
AU - Zeelenberg, M.
AU - Berkhout, S.
AU - Polder, J.J.
AU - Prast, H.M.
PY - 2018
Y1 - 2018
N2 - Background: The World Health Organization has identified physical inactivity as the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality. People often intend to engage in physical activity on a regular basis, but have trouble doing so. To realize their health goals, people can voluntarily accept deadlines with consequences that restrict undesired future behaviors (i.e., commitment devices).Purpose: We examined if lottery-based deadlines that leverage regret aversion would help overweight individuals in attaining their goal of attending their gym twice per week. At each deadline a lottery winner was drawn from all participants.The winners were only eligible for their prize if they attained their gym-attendance goals. Importantly, nonattending lottery winners were informed about their forgone prize. The promise of this counterfactual feedback was designed to evoke anticipated regret and emphasize the deadlines.Methods: Six corporate gyms with a total of 163 overweight participants were randomized to one of three arms. We compared (i) weekly short-term lotteries for 13weeks; (ii) the same short-term lotteries in combination with an additional long-term lottery after 26 weeks; and (iii) a control arm without lotteries.Results:After 13 weeks, participants in the lottery arms attained their attendance goals more often than participants in the control arm. After 26 weeks, we observe adecline in goal attainment in the short-term lottery arm and the highest goal attainment in the long-term lottery arm.Conclusions: With novel applications, the current research adds to a growing body of research that demonstrates the effectiveness of commitment devices in closing the gap between health goals and behavior.
AB - Background: The World Health Organization has identified physical inactivity as the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality. People often intend to engage in physical activity on a regular basis, but have trouble doing so. To realize their health goals, people can voluntarily accept deadlines with consequences that restrict undesired future behaviors (i.e., commitment devices).Purpose: We examined if lottery-based deadlines that leverage regret aversion would help overweight individuals in attaining their goal of attending their gym twice per week. At each deadline a lottery winner was drawn from all participants.The winners were only eligible for their prize if they attained their gym-attendance goals. Importantly, nonattending lottery winners were informed about their forgone prize. The promise of this counterfactual feedback was designed to evoke anticipated regret and emphasize the deadlines.Methods: Six corporate gyms with a total of 163 overweight participants were randomized to one of three arms. We compared (i) weekly short-term lotteries for 13weeks; (ii) the same short-term lotteries in combination with an additional long-term lottery after 26 weeks; and (iii) a control arm without lotteries.Results:After 13 weeks, participants in the lottery arms attained their attendance goals more often than participants in the control arm. After 26 weeks, we observe adecline in goal attainment in the short-term lottery arm and the highest goal attainment in the long-term lottery arm.Conclusions: With novel applications, the current research adds to a growing body of research that demonstrates the effectiveness of commitment devices in closing the gap between health goals and behavior.
KW - ANTICIPATED REGRET
KW - BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS
KW - BODY-MASS INDEX
KW - Behavior change
KW - Behavioral economics
KW - Commitment devices
KW - Deadlines
KW - HABIT FORMATION
KW - HEALTH BEHAVIORS
KW - Health promotion
KW - INCENTIVES
KW - METAANALYSIS
KW - OBESE
KW - Physical activity
KW - SELF-CONTROL
KW - WEIGHT-LOSS
U2 - 10.1093/abm/kax017
DO - 10.1093/abm/kax017
M3 - Article
VL - 52
SP - 342
EP - 351
JO - Annals of Behavioral Medicine
JF - Annals of Behavioral Medicine
SN - 0883-6612
IS - 4
ER -