It hasn’t been that long since New Year’s but have you already given up on your New Year’s resolutions yet? If the answer is yes, then don’t worry because approximately only 9.2% of people reported having stuck with the goals that they set for the new year!

American psychologist and a pioneer in goal-setting theory, Edwin Locke, defined a goal as anything that you’re trying to accomplish. One quality of a goal is that it is future-focused, so it is something you have not obtained yet, but something you want to obtain in the future. Goals are also cognitively represented, so the goal exists in our minds and essentially our thoughts. Also, goals are desired end state, so it is something that you want to be and are striving for. Specifically, a goal is a future-focused cognitive representation of the desired end state that guides behavior. Some examples of goals are being able to run 5 miles, make $100, graduate from college, and exercise for an hour. Two bad goals people might have are to be happy and to be valuable (self-esteem) because they are the outcomes of the goal pursue process but not a goal itself. A goal is a mental idea of how we would like the outcome to turn out. While motivation is the psychological process that pushes us to achieve that desired end state.

Motivation is the internal driving force that allows us to pursue our goals. A goal is just an idea, the attainment of that goal is the outcome, but you need the motivation to link the idea and outcome together. For example, you have a goal to graduate college that is just an idea in your head, and it does not exist in any real way. If the outcome is actually, physically graduating college with the diploma in your hand, to obtain this real-world outcome, some type of motivation is needed.

So how exactly are we supposed to set a “good” goal and most importantly, be motivated to achieve it?

Locke’s goal-setting theory (GST) suggests that high goals lead to high performance. Goal-setting theory tells us that difficult and specific goals are motivating and produce higher performance than less challenging or “do your best” goals. This means that a good goal has these 4 qualities: they’re difficult (challenging enough for the person), specific(a clear goal that tells you exactly what you need to do), fosters commitment (meaning you must be somehow invested and think it is worthwhile), and provides feedback (information on progress). According to the GST, these goals are motivating because it provides direction (energy, attention, cognitive resources towards task), persistence (continuing exerting energy in face of obstacles), intensity (expend more energy), and strategy (create best plan).

Locke’s view on effective goals could be summarized by the acronym S.M.A.R.T. which stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-based. So the next time you set a goal, you may want to ask yourself, “is my goal S.M.A.R.T.?”.

By Amy Lee

When you think about Eating Disorders who do you think is most commonly perceived to be affected? Many individuals would think of a white female with a slim body. This is one of many misconceptions about who becomes affected by Eating Disorders. Yes, if an individual has Anorexia Nervosa they can be excessively slim. However, anyone no matter the gender, or race can be affected by any type of eating disorder. There are many types of eating disorders that can be detrimental to individuals lives. The top five eating disorders located in the DSM 5 are Anorexia Nervosa (AN), Bulimia Nervosa (BN), Binge Eating Disorder (BED), Avoidant-Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID), and Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED). Anorexia Nervosa individuals have excessive weight loss due to self-starvation. Bulimia Nervosa has the qualities of binge eating but with purging after, which means they vomit any intake of food. Binge Eating disorder is when an individual continuously binge eats without purging. Avoidant-Restrictive Food Intake Disorder is characterized by a lack of interest in food with the fear of negative consequences, thus they are selective with food intake. All the other disorders are on a spectrum and do not have all the symptoms of these four eating disorders. However, they are just as important to understand and have maladaptive qualities.

Many believe that having an Eating disorder is a choice, but it is biologically and environmentally provoked in individuals. They do not get up one morning and decide that they will engage in unhealthy behaviors. Like many disorders, it is a process and in a certain environment, they can become cognitively affected. Genetics can make them more prone to becoming affected but it is not the sole reason. We may not be a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist but we can still be on the lookout for our families and friends. Some behaviors we should notice are changes in personality or behavior such as withdrawal from the social events, obsession over appearance, constantly checking in the mirror for changes in weight. If they act differently with food that is a major sign such as leaving to the bathroom after every meal, hiding food, barely eating or chewing very slowly. Remember that full recovery from an eating disorder is possible. It is especially important if there is early detection and intervention.  This is the first step to learning about Eating disorders in order to help our loved one. If you are interested in learning a little more about Eating disorders and what you can do to help go to this website: https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/get-involved/nedawareness/resources

 

By: Natalie Cruz