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From Fantasy to Action: Mental Contrasting With Implementation Intentions (MCII) Improves Academic Performance in Children
Open accessAbstract
The current intervention tested whether a metacognitive self-regulatory strategy of goal pursuit can help economically disadvantaged children convert positive thoughts and images about their future into effective action. Mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII) entails mental contrasting a desired future with relevant obstacles of reality and forming implementation intentions (if–then plans) specifying when and where to overcome those obstacles. Seventy-seven 5th graders from an urban middle school were randomly assigned to learn either MCII or a Positive Thinking control strategy. Compared to children in the control condition, children taught how to apply MCII to their academic wishes and concerns significantly improved their report card grades (η 2 = .07), attendance (η 2 = .05), and conduct (η 2 = .07). These findings suggest that MCII holds considerable promise for helping disadvantaged middle school children improve their academic performance.
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Four studies combined implementation intentions with mental contrasting.
“Four studies combined implementation intentions with mental contrasting (Duckworth et al. 2013; Gawrilow et al., 2013; Schunk et al., 2022; Schwarz & Gawrilow, 2019)”
From The effectiveness of implementation intentions in children: A systematic review and meta‐analysis (2026) · cites this paper as Duckworth et al. 2013
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The effectiveness of implementation intentions in children: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
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Metadata
- Authors
- Duckworth, A. L., Kirby, T. A., Gollwitzer, A., & Oettingen, G.
- Affiliations
- University of Pennsylvania (US)
- University of Washington (US)
- New York University (US)
- Universität Hamburg (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Duckworth, Angela Lee
- Venue
- Social Psychological and Personality Science
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2013-02-11
- Volume
- 4
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 745-753
- ISSN
- 1948-5506 (ISSN-L)
- 1948-5514
- PMC
- PMC4106484
- OpenAlex
- W2027662460
- Cited by
- 171
- References
- 9
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 15 · 2021: 20 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 17 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 10 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 13.72
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Social Psychological and Personality Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Aging (K01AG033182)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Education, Achievement, and Giftedness
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Psychological and Temporal Perspectives Research
- Keywords
- mental contrasting with implementation intentions, metacognitive self-regulation, goal pursuit, low-income children, junior high school students, academic performance, school attendance, positive thinking, if-then planning
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