Forming optimal intentions for goal pursuit

Humans form intentions to pursue goals in the future. Specific strategies for forming intentions impact long-term goal pursuit in nearly every behavioural domain. In this Perspective, we propose a cognitive framework for intention formation. Our framework outlines three key computational components of intention formation that impact whether people go on to pursue goal-directed behaviour in the future – how much they value the goal, the specificity of the context in which they intend to pursue it, and how certain they are that they will pursue it as intended. The framework explains findings broadly across the vast intention formation literature, including seemingly contradictory ones. Importantly, it establishes normative conditions under which different intention formation strategies are optimal, considering their costs and benefits, for pursuing life goals. Finally, our framework lays the groundwork for a cognitive science of planning and decision-making at the ecological timescale of human intentions.