ABSTRACT
As Anne decides which friend to invite for lunch on Friday, she might consider which friends are likely to be available that day, with which friends she would most enjoy her time, and with whom she most needs to catch up. We suggest that in addition to these concerns, Anne might also consider—explicitly or implicitly—how each potential lunch partner would affect her ongoing goals, such as saving money or losing weight. If Anne were trying to lose weight, for instance, she might be less interested in inviting Sarah, a friend who will almost certainly insist they order and share a heaping slice of cake for dessert, and instead be more interested in inviting Erin, a friend who regularly follows a healthy diet. If Anne were focused on her goal of saving money, she might be more likely to invite Alicia, a friend who prefers to dine at inexpensive local joints, rather than Melody, a friend who prefers to dine at upscale trendy restaurants. Although Anne’s choice of lunch partner does not dictate her behavior (she can still overeat while with Erin or abstain while with Sarah), it can certainly have a strong influence on her behavior. According to Transactive Goal Dynamics (TGD) theory, even seemingly independent goal-pursuits are inherently interpersonal, embedded in the social contexts in which people develop, pursue, and monitor those goals (Finkel, Fitzsimons, & vanDellen, 2016; Fitzsimons, Finkel, & vanDellen, 2015).
