7.4 Building the Theory
How did we build the theory? Basically by doing many experiments over a long
period of time; by showing that our experiments worked and thereby getting other researchers interested in goal setting research; by coming at the subject of goal setting from many different angles; by examining failures and trying to identify their causes; by resolving contradictions and paradoxes; by integrating valid ideas from other developing theories; by responding to criticisms that seemed to have merit and refuting those that did not; by asking ourselves critical questions; by differentiating the various elements of the theory; and Wnally by tying them together into a whole when we believed that there was sufficient evidence to do so.