Summary: A sweeping analysis of 235 studies shows that holding onto impossible goals harms mental and physical wellbeing, increasing stress and lowering life satisfaction. In contrast, releasing unachievable goals — and crucially, shifting toward new, attainable ones — improves mood, resilience, and overall psychological health.
The study identifies a wide range of factors, from personality traits to life history, that shape how easily people can adjust their goals. These findings suggest that flexibility, not blind persistence, may be the healthier long-term strategy for personal growth.
Key Facts:
- Quitting Helps: Letting go of unattainable goals reduces stress, anxiety, and depression.
- Reengagement Restores Wellbeing: Pursuing new goals brings back purpose, satisfaction, and resilience.
- Adjustment Is Complex: Motivation, coping style, relationships, health, and life history all shape how people change course.
Source: Curtin University
Though many people may benefit from setting life goals, new research led by Curtin University has revealed working towards unachievable targets could in fact have a negative impact on overall wellbeing – and knowing when to abandon or change your goals may be just important as persistence.
The research, published in Nature Human Behaviour, looked at 235 studies with more than 1400 findings from multiple disciplines including psychology, health and social sciences, on how people adjust their goals when faced with obstacles.
The study found letting go of unattainable goals was linked to reduced stress, anxiety, and depression, while shifting to new goals was found to restore wellbeing and life satisfaction.
Lead researcher Dr Hugh Riddell, from the Curtin School of Population Health, said the study showed quitting isn’t always a sign of weakness.
“Sticking with impossible goals can take a real toll, with previous research suggesting it can lead to higher stress, poorer wellbeing and even physical health costs such as illness,” Dr Riddell said.
“But letting go and – crucially – reengaging with new goals, was found to restore purpose and wellbeing.
“Changing how you pursue your goals by being flexible rather than rigid could help people stay resilient and still have a focus in their lives, even if it has changed.”
Dr Riddell said the review revealed different predictors such as personality traits, coping styles, social support, and life circumstances can influence whether someone is more likely to let go, reengage, or adapt their goals.
“It isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach, as different people take different paths and a wide range of things can all impact how we approach our goals in life,” Dr Riddell said.
“For example, someone’s motivation, age, stress management, strength of relationships, experiences growing up, health status and more were all found to play a part in how we approach our goals.
“This study essentially distils all the previous research down to a conceptual roadmap charting what kinds of things might contribute to adjusting one’s goals and how this might benefit a person.”
Dr Riddell said the next step in the research is to better understand when the right time is to stick to a plan or change things up.
“Finding out when exactly people should stick with their goals or change course, without giving up too early, is really the next piece of the puzzle,” Dr Riddell said.
Key Questions Answered:
A: Persisting with impossible goals increases stress, anxiety, and depression.
A: Letting go of unattainable goals and reengaging with new, achievable ones restores purpose and satisfaction.
A: Traits like coping style, motivation, social support, and life circumstances shape how people disengage and reengage.
Editorial Notes:
- This article was written by a Neuroscience News editor.
- Journal paper reviewed in full.
- Additional context added by our staff.
Author: Samuel Jeremic
Source: Curtain University
Contact: Samuel Jeremic – Curtin University
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access.
“A meta-analytic review and conceptual model of the antecedents and outcomes of goal adjustment in response to striving difficulties” by Hugh Riddell et al. Nature Human Behavior
Abstract
A meta-analytic review and conceptual model of the antecedents and outcomes of goal adjustment in response to striving difficulties
There is growing interest in how and why individuals adjust their goals in response to difficulties encountered during goal striving and the outcomes of such adjustments; however, research on these topics is fragmented across theoretical perspectives and life domains.
To address this issue, we conducted a systematic search of databases (Web of Science, Scopus, PsycInfo, Business Source Ultimate, Proquest Dissertations and Theses Global, Medline; last updated May 2025) of empirical studies examining antecedents or outcomes of goal adjustment.
Studies were eligible if they examined predictors or wellbeing/functional/goal-related outcomes of goal disengagement, goal reengagement, or goal-striving flexibility. We identified 1,421 effect sizes from 235 studies, which we categorized and mapped onto a conceptual model.
Further, we used random-effects meta-analyses to examine the strength and direction of associations between model categories and goal adjustment variables.
Despite relatively high-quality ratings (assessed using QualSyst), the overall standard of accumulated evidence was determined to be low to moderate due to the reliance on cross-sectional studies, risk of publication bias and high heterogeneity.
Nonetheless, we identified associations between multiple antecedent categories and goal disengagement, reengagement and flexibility, as well as associations between these different aspects of goal adjustment and wellbeing, functional and goal-related outcomes.
We conclude that different aspects of goal adjustment are predicted by unique combinations of antecedent variables, and predict distinct outcomes.
Our conceptual model consolidates the literature on goal adjustment and provides a roadmap for a more systematic investigation of this field going forward.
