Researchers at the University of Michigan (Destin & Oyserman, 2010) examined the types of future identities (in other words, long-term goals) that students envisioned for themselves. They observed that almost 90% of 8th graders in three Detroit middle schools, many of whom were low-income and minority students expected to attend college, but about half of those same students did not choose the classes or exert the academic effort that would earn them college admission. Although the students had set the admirable goal of attaining higher education, it did not influence their educational behavior. What could explain this gap between goal and action? The researchers employed identity-based motivation theory, which holds that people act in ways they feel correspond to their