The science behind WOOP

Based on twenty years of research in the science of motivation, WOOP presents a unique and surprising idea: The obstacles that we think most impede us from fulfilling our wishes can actually help us to realize them. WOOP instructs us to dream our future dreams but then to imagine what obstacles inside ourselves prevent us from achieving these dreams. In research studies, WOOP has helped people reduce stress and increase work engagement, find integrative solutions to problems, and improve time management. It has supported adults in losing weight, drinking less alcohol, and sustaining healthier relationships. Children and adolescents using WOOP improved school attendance as well as effort and achievement in school.

WOOP helps people to be healthier

• People doubled their physical activity and had a healthier diet.

• Pain patients became more physically active in their everyday lives.

• People with type II diabetes took better care of their well-being.

• Depressed patients became more active and found it easier to pursue their goals.

• Stroke patients engaged in more physical activity and lost more weight.

WOOP helps people to improve their social behavior

• People with prejudices became more tolerant and socially responsible.

• Couples strengthened their bond and decreased anxiety related behaviors.

• Negotiators found more integrative and fairer solutions.

• People who struggled with their past overcame disappointment, regret, resentment, and other negative feelings.

WOOP helps people to improve their academic performance 

• Students exerted more effort in test preparation and improved their time management.

• Students from underprivileged backgrounds went to class more regularly and improved their grades.

• Children at risk for ADHD found it easier to do their homework.

• Future anesthesiologists were better able to study.

Rethinking Positive Thinking Inside The New Science of Motivation

“The solution isn’t to do away with dreaming and positive thinking. Rather, it’s making the most of our fantasies by brushing them up against the very thing most of us are taught to ignore or diminish: the obstacles that stand in our way.”

So often in our day-to-day lives we’re inundated with advice to “think positively.” From pop music to political speeches to commercials, the general message is the same: look on the bright side, be optimistic in the face of adversity, and focus on your dreams. And whether we’re trying to motivate ourselves to lose weight, snag a promotion at work, or run a marathon, we’re told time and time again that focusing on fulfilling our wishes will make them come true.

Gabriele Oettingen draws on more than twenty years of research in the science of human motivation to reveal why the conventional wisdom falls short. The obstacles that we think prevent us from realizing our deepest wishes can actually lead to their fulfillment. Starry-eyed dreaming isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, and as it turns out, dreamers are not often doers.

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