Science Explains: New Year, new you?

It’s the same spiel every year. Whether it’s losing weight, quitting smoking or going to the gym, New Year’s resolutions always follow the same pattern. They almost always involve ‘giving up’ something, and are almost always still unresolved by the end of the year. Often, they are simply empty promises made to oneself to compensate the guilt of having one too many indulgences over December. So, what has science got to say about New Year’s resolutions? Why do resolutions fail, and what are the scientific reasons behind successful resolutions?

According to numerous psychological studies, we break our resolutions for plenty of reasons. However, one factor that consistently crops up is that we resort back to our bad habits. Often our resolutions will revolve around breaking a habit, like overeating or overspending. Because these are ingrained behaviours that we will have likely been repeating for a very long time, they can often be very hard to break.

According to numerous psychological studies, we break our resolutions for plenty of reasons…

Another reason that we break our resolutions is because we haven’t set realistic expectations of ourselves. Professor Peter Herman of the University of Toronto has referred to this phenomenon as ‘false hope’ syndrome. By picking an unattainable goal, we are initially setting ourselves up to fail before we’ve even begun. Herman also argues that a second stage of the ‘false hope’ phenomenon can occur, so even those who are initially successful with their resolutions can face failure at a later date. When all the other unattainable expectations we placed on our resolutions do not happen for us, we are likely to give up on the dream altogether. For example, we might set ourselves up to lose weight in the New Year, hoping that it would help us to find a significant other. When we do not find said other, we may give up on our weight loss goal altogether.

According to research by the University of Scranton, only 8% of people manage to successfully achieve their New Year’s resolutions. So how did this 8% manage to defy the odds? This is an answer that can also be explained psychologically. A Forbes article has recently stated that there are two key ways to achieve your Resolutions: keep it simple, and make your goal a tangible one.

According to research by the University of Scranton, only 8% of people manage to successfully achieve their New Year’s resolutions…

In this sense, if your New Year’s resolution is to drop three dress sizes, save 10K for a holiday and build bridges with a long-estranged sister, you’re probably aiming a bit too high. Your New Year’s resolution should not be treated as a way of completely overhauling all the negative parts of your life. Instead, just pick an aspect of your life you’d like to improve.

A recent article from The Independent mentions other ways to increase your chances of making your New Year’s resolution a reality. The article stresses the importance of measuring your success, taking baby steps, and treating set-backs as mistakes to learn from. All too often, a slip up in January will set you back on your quest for an improved year. In my case, one year’s pledge to lose weight was completely ruined by an enormous slice of cake. If I had treated this as a minor setback and carried on the following day, I wouldn’t be making the exact same pledge again this year.

All too often, a slip up in January will set you back on your quest for an improved year…

So overall, make your goals attainable. Measure your success, and don’t punish yourself for being human. At the end of the day, losing weight or going to the gym will not make you happy. You have the power to do that now, even without the resolutions. Focus on making steps to improve your life all year round, rather than just at the beginning of the New Year.