ABSTRACT
The. cognitive. processes. that. support. and. maintain. goal. pursuit. have. become. a. central. issue. among. researchers. studying. self-regulation. and. motivation. (Gollwitzer. &. Bargh,. 1994;. Oettingen.&.Gollwitzer,.2001;.Shah.&.Kruglanski,.2000;.Sorrentino.&.Higgins,.1986)..Two.key. notions. in.self-regulation. research.on.goals.are. the.model.of.action.phases. (Gollwitzer,.1990;. Heckhausen,.1991;.Heckhausen.&.Gollwitzer,.1987).and.the.concept.of.implementation.intentions.(Gollwitzer,.1993,.1996).as.both.address.the.complex.interaction.of.cognitive.and.motivational.processes..The.model.of.action.phases.posits.distinct.consecutive.stages.of.goal.pursuit. an.individual.has.to.successfully.navigate.to.attain.a.goal.and.implies.that.self-regulation.within. each.stage.is.facilitated.by.developing.the.respective.mindset..On.the.other.hand,.implementation.intentions.(a.concept.stimulated.by.the.action-phase.model).are.specific.self-regulatory.tools. aimed.at.helping. individuals.plan. and. initiate.goal-directed. actions..A. further. self-regulatory. process.that.has.been.identified.to.foster.goal.attainment.is.mental.simulation.(Escalas.&.Luce,. 2003,.2004;.Greitemeyer.&.Wuerz,.2006;.Pham.&.Taylor,.1999;.Phillips.&.Baumgartner,.2002;. Taylor.&.Pham,.1999)..However,.so.far.the.cognitive.processes.associated.with.mental.simulation. have.not.been.studied.within.the.framework.of.the.model.of.action.phases.or.in.comparison.to. implementation.intentions.
