Goal engagement and goal attainment in adolescents with and without visual impairment

The present longitudinal study analyzed the effects of domain-specific goal engagement on the attainment of four developmental goals in 133 adolescents with visual impairment and in 449 sighted peers. Goal engagement predicted stronger progress in goal attainment with regard to getting access to a peer group, career choice and development of romantic relationships at the 1-year-follow-up. However, goal engagement at T1 did not predict progress in the achievement of autonomy from ones’ parents. Furthermore, we found an interaction effect between vision status and goal engagement on progress in career choice. Higher initial levels of goal engagement predicted stronger progress in goal attainment of sighted adolescents. No such effect was found in adolescents with visual impairment. It is concluded that effects of goal engagement vary by goal contents and contexts.