In the present article, we propose that consumers’ initial effort investment in pursuing a goal may increase or decrease the value of the goal and the consumer’s subsequent motivation, depending on whether the pursuit of the goal is perceived to be one’s autonomous choice. When consumers...

The current research explores how the structure of a goal, more specifically whether its completion requires completing a set of actions in a fixed sequence or in a flexible order, influences consumers’ decision to adopt the goal and how individuals actually fare once they have initiated the...

Because consumers ask different questions to establish commitment at beginning versus advanced stages of goal pursuit, we propose that progress that they attribute to themselves and to the situation will have a distinctive impact on motivation, depending on their relative position in goal...