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Go Deeper
Books, research papers, and tools that shaped Pledged's approach — and can deepen your understanding of behavioral science and habit formation.
7 psychological principles explained visually
Selected peer-reviewed studies across behavioral-science topics
A growing library on behavioral science and accountability
How Pledged works for fitness, study, sobriety, and more
Fictional walkthroughs with explicit safety boundaries
Safer steps for defining, reviewing, and adapting a commitment
James Clear (2018)
A popular practical framework for cues, environment, repetition, and identity. Read it as applied guidance rather than a substitute for primary research.
Daniel Kahneman (2011)
An influential overview of judgment and decision-making. Some included findings have since been debated, so verify individual claims against current primary literature.
Richard Thaler & Cass Sunstein (2008)
An accessible introduction to choice architecture and the ethics of how options are presented. It does not establish that every nudge works in every setting.
Charles Duhigg (2012)
A narrative introduction to habit-related ideas and case studies. Its models are useful prompts, not a complete scientific account of behavior.
Dan Ariely (2008)
A general-audience book about systematic departures from purely rational choice. Treat specific examples as starting points for source checking.
Robert Cialdini (1984)
A widely read framework for persuasion principles. Public commitment can also create coercion or shame, so application requires consent and context.
BJ Fogg (2019)
A practical method that emphasizes very small behaviors and celebration. It offers a different design lens from consequences and financial stakes.
Nir Eyal (2019)
Practical guidance about attention, internal triggers, and pre-commitment. It is not clinical treatment for compulsive behavior or mental-health conditions.
Roy Baumeister & John Tierney (2011)
A historical account of the resource model of self-control. Later preregistered multilab studies did not find robust evidence for the originally proposed ego-depletion effect.
Angela Duckworth (2016)
A discussion of sustained interest and effort. Grit is one factor among many and should not be presented as a guarantee or as more important than circumstances and support.
Kahneman & Tversky (1979) · Econometrica
Foundational decision-under-risk theory; not evidence that a particular Pledged stake improves follow-through.
Baumeister et al. (1998) · JPSP
Influential early result included for research history. Later preregistered multilab tests challenged the robustness of the effect.
Hagger et al. (2016) · Perspectives on Psychological Science
Across 23 laboratories, the estimated effect was small and its confidence interval included zero.
Vohs et al. (2021) · Psychological Science
Confirmatory analyses across 36 sites did not find evidence for the preregistered depletion effect.
Lally et al. (2010) · EJSP
Observed habit-formation trajectories varied substantially; it should not be converted into one universal duration claim.
Volpp et al. (2008) · JAMA
A specific randomized intervention and population; results do not automatically generalize to other behaviors or products.
Gollwitzer (1999) · American Psychologist
A review of if-then planning research. Effect size and applicability depend on population, goal, and study design.
Giné, Karlan & Zinman (2010) · AEJ: Applied Economics
A commitment-savings study related to smoking cessation—not proof that any financial consequence works for every habit.
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