Self-control and self-expression

Does self-control express or suppress our true selves? This article reviews the emerging body of literature on the effect of self-control on authentic self-expression from the actors' (self-signaling) and the observers' (other-signaling) perspective. While actors can experience self-control as either expression or suppression of the self, individual differences in decision-making or personal values can predict when self-control is more likely to be experienced in one way or the other. Self-control also signals to observers both positive (e.g., competent, trustworthy, powerful) and negative (e.g., inauthentic, robotic, less warm) identities, with specific inferences depending on the context (e.g., work vs. fun). Overall, the relationship between self-control and self-expression is more nuanced than earlier research suggested, and several open questions await further investigation.

Psychological perspectives on divine forgiveness: 3. Trait self-control is associated with well-being through seeking divine forgiveness

Introduction

Although a majority of the world's population believes in a Higher Power and subscribes to a religion in which divine forgiveness is emphasized, little work has been done to understand individual differences associated with seeking divine forgiveness.

Methods

Building on work that suggests trait self-control facilitates well-being, the current study (N = 439, undergraduate students) applies structural equation modeling (SEM) to test whether believers higher (vs. lower) in trait self-control are more likely to seek divine forgiveness, and, in turn, have better psychological health.

Results and discussion

We find that people higher in self-control engage in more divine forgiveness seeking (b = 0.16), and seeking divine forgiveness represents one of the pathways associated with psychological health (i.e., seeking is associated with higher well-being, b = 0.21, and lower distress, b = -0.07). Crucially, we operationalize both positive (well-being and flourishing) and negative (depression, anxiety, stress) aspects of psychological health and control for religiosity. These results suggest that for those who believe in God, seeking divine forgiveness may be one mechanism that links individuals' self-control to good psychological health, and this is not merely an artifact of higher levels of religiosity. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

Authenticity Occurs More Often Than Inauthenticity in Everyday Life

Abstract. Researchers have assumed that people generally strive toward authenticity, yet have also argued that authenticity may often be impeded by social constraints. Against this backdrop, it is unclear whether people feel authentic or inauthentic more often in everyday life. To address this question, we examined the retrospective frequency of these feelings. As researchers have conceptualized authenticity and inauthenticity in various ways, we also tested for generalization of the results across different conceptualizations. Our results indicate that authenticity occurs more often than inauthenticity in everyday life. While the results largely generalized across different conceptualizations of authenticity and inauthenticity, there was nonetheless some variation. Future research, therefore, should take different conceptualizations of authenticity and inauthenticity more into account.

Misattribution of duties as free choices: The role of emotional awareness in self-infiltration

Individuals sometimes mistake others' expectations or imposed duties for self-chosen goals, even though they are not congruent with their emotional preferences or integrated values-a phenomenon coined as self-infiltration. Previous studies demonstrated that self-infiltration is more likely to occur in individuals with reduced self-regulation abilities. Here, we investigated in a sample of 250 students whether this association may be mediated by trait emotional awareness, the ability to recognize and understand one's emotions. This mediation hypothesis could be confirmed. We discuss our findings with respect to their potential relevance for research on motivated goal pursuit and health and practical applications.

Staying on track in turbulent times: Trait self-control and goal pursuit during self-quarantine

Prior research has shown that routines and beneficial habits largely explain high self-control people's success at goal pursuit. However, COVID-19 self-quarantine measures and country-level lockdowns have largely challenged people's ability to stick to their daily routines and habits. How successful at goal pursuit are people with high self-control when the world around them is not as it used to be? We examined if self-control passes the ‘quarantine test’. In an online study (N = 271), we measured trait self-control, goal progress, continued engagement in pre-pandemic goal-directed behaviors, development of new goal-directed behaviors and turning these new behaviors into habits. Results showed that during lockdown, people with higher (vs. lower) trait self-control were not only more likely to continue engaging in pre-pandemic goal-directed behaviors, but also found it easier to develop new goal-directed behaviors and were more likely to turn these behaviors into habits. High self-control people's ability to continue performing pre-pandemic goal-directed behaviors and to turn new behaviors into habits explained their success at goal attainment despite the major disruptions caused by the pandemic.

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We examined the effect of trait self-control on goal pursuit during COVID-19 quarantine.

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Trait self-control is associated with successful goal pursuit.

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Self-control is associated with continuing pre-pandemic goal-directed behaviors.

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Self-control is associated with ease of developing new goal-directed behaviors.

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Self-control is associated with turning new goal-directed behaviors into habits.