What’s in a streak?
This morning, while my tea was steeping, I completed a lesson on Duolingo. According to the app, this was my 834th consecutive day of doing so — and I’m not alone. Around 6 million people have a streak of 7 days or more on Duolingo, and a percentage of that group has maintained streaks for over a calendar year. The phenomenon is certainly not limited to Duolingo. Many websites, tools, games, and individuals make a point of recording streaks. The activities can range drastically, from attending 48 straight Super Bowls or surfing every day for three years to exchanging pictures with friends on Snapchat for over 2,600 days. Runners in particular seem fond of performance streaks, to the point of founding the United States Running Streak Association. As of today, the organization counts 4,642 active members who have run at least one mile every day for a year or more. Some of these individuals have maintained their streaks for more than half a century. Interestingly, these records aren’t always based on enjoyment. Most people report engaging in their target activity simply to “keep the streak alive” at least some of the time. So what exactly makes people feel so attached to their streaks?
What is a streak?
A relatively standard definition of a streak is “a series of at least three repeated, consecutive events or behaviours.” However, it is unclear whether the three-times requirement is strict. Additionally, consecutive events or behaviours may occur without a person considering them performance streaks. By gathering insights from groups of streak runners, popular press, and social media, researchers Weathers and Poehlman from Clemson University published an updated definition of a streak as: “a repetitively completed task attributed to the resolve of the actor, defined by absolute performance and temporal parameters, and construed and quantified by the actor as an uninterrupted series”. This phrasing focuses on performance streaks of the type introduced so far, adding new, compelling constraints, and clarifying the difference between performance streaks and other recurring events and behaviours. Unlike winning streaks, performance streaks need not be about outperforming others. As opposed to lucky streaks and habits, performance streaks require intentional acts. Different from collections, streaks revolve around a temporal aspect and experiences that are relatively similar to each other.
Key determinants of streak commitment
As to why people maintain streak-tracked activity, researchers at the University of Delaware proposed that observing a streak signals a recent increase in commitment to the target goal. People may then use this signal to reinforce and perpetuate their own behaviour. However, not everyone gets hooked on streaks. While someone may be drawn to a streak on Snapchat, they may ignore a streak on Wordle or Headspace. What factors make some streaks more relevant than others?
For some, the value of a streak depends on how closely the activity aligns with our identities. In one experiment run at Clemson University, participants reported greater commitment to a streak for activities that reflected who they were compared to activities that did not, suggesting that the more an activity is compatible with an agent’s self-perception, the more interested they become in creating and maintaining a streak. At the same time, people are less likely to maintain streaks for entirely recreational activities. For instance, someone who sets a goal to cook dinner at home more often is more likely to start and maintain a streak of home-cooked meals than someone who simply likes to cook dinner. This shows that the value we find in streaks may be connected to the objectives we hope to accomplish. Corroborating this idea, people feel stronger about streaks they think will lead to self-improvement. As shown by the Clemson University group, people project greater commitment to a streak when the activity was perceived to improve their physical or mental health.
Individual differences also play an important role in maintaining a streak. For instance, some people are more prone to organize information in simple, clear, and consistent ways — a tendency that psychologists quantify as the personal need for structure. Structure can support goal achievement by reducing the number of decision points that are necessary to achieve an objective. Accordingly, studies suggest that people who score highly on “need for structure” metrics are more likely to maintain active streaks.
Another interesting factor is whether the target activity is presented as a cumulative goal compared to a discrete activity. People are more likely to maintain a streak when the associated activity is clear and consistent (e.g., completing one lesson every day) than flexible (e.g., completing seven lessons each week), even when the activity amounts to the same total engagement. Of course, many other factors determine the probability that someone will keep their streak active, including the possibility of repairing a streak and whether streaks are publicly shared. Broken streaks may lead people to completely abandon their goals, whereas fear of public failure, performance pressure, and feelings of inauthentic behaviour may prevent people from initiating a publicly advertised streak.
Should you streakify your life?
With personalized marketing strategies on the rise, we will likely see more and more applications tracking our activity streaks. In some ways, this may be beneficial. Streaks can help build healthy habits and support us in achieving our goals — one step at a time. However, streaks may come at a cost. Some report that quantifying your achievements reduces how much you enjoy reaching them. This is because the focus on objective outputs and measures can make activities feel like obligations, rather than play. Is the tradeoff worthwhile? Would you sacrifice passion for growth?
