In one experiment with 97 volunteers, psychologist David de Buisonjé assigned participants to one of two treatment groups. Either they received money for being 20% more active, or they deposited money and were told they would only get it back if they achieved the goal. 100% of those who received the incentive participated, but only 62% of those paying the deposit participated.
In a second experiment with 137 other participants, he let participants decide how much money to deposit, and they could double the deposit amount by achieving the goal. This resulted in a 60% increase in activity levels.
In a third experiment, he looked at 70,000 participants taking part in a six-week challenge using the commecial StepBet app. Participants paid a $40 deposit, which could be earned back along with a bonus. Those who reached their goals increased their activity levels by 44%, but those who didn't decreased their activity levels by 5%. |
