Commitment Device
People often have certain goals they want to accomplish in the future. However, their immediate desires can interfere with their ability to accomplish these long-term goals. Psychologists have found that when there is a conflict between immediate desires and long-term goals, it may be helpful to use a commitment device. A commitment device is a plan or arrangement that people make in advance to ensure that, if a conflict occurs, they will continue working toward their long-term goals instead of choosing to satisfy immediate desires. A commitment device forces people to act in their own long-term best interests, increasing their chances of successfully reaching their goals.
听力材料：
Okay. So here’s an example from my own life.
A few years ago, I had the idea that I wanted to run in this race, this 10-kilometer race, which would be pretty far for me. So I needed to train for it ahead of time, to get in better physical shape so I would be ready to run that far,because at the time I wasn’t really exercising much.
Well, I knew that the only time I had to train was in the mornings, before work, so I would need to get up early and run if I was going to be ready for that race. So the first few days I intended to get up early,but when my alarm went off I didn’t feel like getting up in the morning, and I just roll over and go back to sleep. It definitely seemed like a better idea to sleep longer instead of going running.
So what I ended up doing was, I had this friend who I knew was also interested in doing some running, and I asked him if he would agree to meet me at a certain time each morning to go for a run together. I knew if I made a promise to meet my friend, I would be responsible and get up in the morning.
I wouldn’t just choose to go back to sleep. And it worked. I did get up and go each morning with my friend. I was able to improve my fitness enough thatI eventually ran in the 10-kilometer race and did pretty well.
Question：
Explain how the example from the professor’s lecture illustrates the concept of a commitment device.
