This study examined the relationship between SMART goals and goal achievement in college students. The researchers hypothesized that a STEAM intervention would reduce procrastination, but found no significant effect. However, they discovered that forming goals as SMART goals (specific, measurable, agreed-upon, realistic, and time-bound) correlated with higher predicted grades on assignments and higher reported busyness levels during the goal period. Creating SMART goals was linked to better performance outcomes than less defined goals.

1. Think S.M.A.R.T: Why Creating Measurable Goals Matters
Maria Bolshakova, Jessica Tintsman, B.S., Erica Alvarado-Gomez, Sebastian Marin, Martin Heesacker, Ph.D
Department of Psychology, University of Florida
Introduction
● This study initially aimed to investigate effects of STEAM interventions in
a college population on levels of procrastination. Although no significant
correlation between STEAM and procrastination was found, a positive
effect between SMART goal use and goal achievement was evident in the
data.
● After twenty-four field studies conducted by Bandura and Simon in 1977,
it was found that individuals given specific, challenging goals either
outperformed those trying to do their best or surpassed their own
previous performance when they were not trying for specific goals.
● Fifty-one studies partially or wholly supported the view that specific hard
goals lead to better performance than do-your-best or no goals.
● These studies and other literature led us to examine the correlation of
SMART goals and achievement levels. (Higley, Heesacker, Mistler, 2015)
● SMART goals are created thoughtfully and must include the factors of
specific, measurable, agreed-upon, realistic and time-bound in time of
goal construction.
● SMART goal development enhances personal effectiveness and life
satisfaction. Failure to do so is a major reason why so many individuals
struggle to experience consist high levels of achievement and satisfaction.
Discussion
Our initial hypothesis was that given a student procrastinated on a
recent goal, a STEAM intervention would allow them to
procrastinate less on their goals. Unfortunately, we found no
evidence supporting our hypothesis. However, we did come across
significant correlations between SMART goals and two other
factors. Our results suggest that students who unintentionally
made SMART goals predicted a higher grade on the specific
assignment they desired to accomplish. In addition, our results
suggest that forming a goal into a SMART goal correlates with
higher level of busyness.
Methods
● This study was conducted using a population of college students
(n=86) who completed two surveys online for extra credit in one of
their psychology classes.
● Students were first instructed to complete a survey that asked them
to create an academic goal due within 1-2 weeks after survey
completion. They were then asked to complete a questionnaire
about their general tendency to procrastinate. Half of the students
were assigned to an intervention condition that we hypothesized
would allow them to procrastinate less on their academic goals.
● A follow-up study was conducted to assess participant’s predicted
grade, level of busyness during their goal timeframe, and
procrastination level for the specific task.
● Two raters independently assessed whether or not the initial goal
that the students created was a SMART goal (κ=.782), and then
resolved discrepancies between raters. We then compared
students who did not have SMART goals with those that
unintentionally created specific and measurable goals.
Results
Although we did not find significant results related to our
initial intervention hypothesis, we did find compelling
results when comparing students who made their initial
academic goals SMART goals vs those who had more
general goals that were either not specific, measurable,
agreed-upon, realistic or time-bound.
Conclusions
Further generalizing our findings to a college population leads to
the implication that students who automatically set their goals as
SMART, regardless of intentionality, may do better on tasked
assignments than those who do not. Furthermore, our results
suggest an association between students setting their goals as
SMART and the busyness of their schedules. We hypothesize that
students with full schedules who establish goals as SMART may
formulate their goals as such in order to organize their busy
schedules more efficiently. Due to the limitations of our
methodology, further studies have the potential to examine how
SMART goals affect the performance quality of goal achievement.
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SMART Goals and Level of Busyness
SMART Goals and Predicted Grade
Creating a SMART
goal correlated
inversely p= -.327 with
the self-rated level of
busyness that the
student experienced
during the 1-2 week
timeframe of the goal.
Creating a SMART
goal also positively
correlated p= .358
with the self-rated
predicted grade on
the academic
assignment that
the SMART goal
was related to. References
Bandura, A., & Simon, K. M. (1977). The role of proximal intentions in self-regulation of
refractory behavior. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 1(3), 177-193.
Higley, B. P., Heesacker, M., & Mistler, B. J. (2015). Watering the tree of excellence:
Execution-focused strategic planning for inevitable success. Unpublished manuscript.