Using behavioral skills training to teach goal setting for health behaviors

Abstract

Goal setting is a component of many behavior‐change interventions, with the Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time‐Bound (SMART) goal‐setting method being a commonly used strategy. The current study used a multiple‐baseline across participants design to evaluate the efficacy of behavioral skills training (BST) to teach individuals to set health‐related SMART goals in response to multiple hypothetical health scenarios. Participant attempts at goal setting were scored according to a task analysis encompassing each major element of SMART goals. Goal‐setting performance noticeably improved following an average of 1.25 h of BST, and participants rated the intervention and outcomes favorably.