Ego depletion and the use of mental contrasting

Causality orientations and spontaneous mental contrasting

Mental contrasting is a motivational behavior change strategy necessary for strong goal commitment. Meanwhile, general causality orientations are motivational patterns that represent individuals' motivation for behavior change and the reason for their goal commitment. The current study explored whether causality orientations predict spontaneous mental contrasting in Chinese university students. Study 1 investigated whether academic autonomy, control, and amotivated orientations correlate with spontaneous mental contrasting about an important academic goal. The findings of Study 1 reveal that autonomy orientation did not correlate with mental contrasting, whereas control and amotivated orientations were negatively correlated with mental contrasting. Study 2 investigated whether priming autonomy and control orientations, in addition to the neutral condition, would induce spontaneous mental contrasting about an academic goal related to the students' research topic. The results of Study 2 revealed that the autonomy condition orientation did not differ significantly from the controlled orientation condition. However, when compared to the neutral condition, the autonomy condition significantly predicted mental contrasting, whereas the controlled orientation condition did not show any significant difference. In Study 2, the autonomy-oriented participants generated more spontaneous mental contrast than the control orientation and neutral conditions. The findings show that controlled and amotivated orientations predicted negative mental contrasting. As a result, controlled and amotivated students must learn how to use mental contrasting to achieve high levels of goal commitment and achievement. Lastly, the study discussed its implications, limitations, and suggestions for future research.

Low working memory reduces the use of mental contrasting

Mentally contrasting a desired future with reality is a self-regulation strategy that helps people effectively pursue important personal wishes. People with higher self-regulation skills are more likely to spontaneously use mental contrasting. Because one central cognitive function underlying self-regulation is working memory capacity, we investigated whether people with low rather than high working memory capacity are less likely to spontaneously use mental contrasting. Study 1 provided correlational evidence that participants with lower working memory capacity, as measured by the Operation-Span Task, were less likely to use mental contrasting when elaborating an important interpersonal wish. Study 2 provided experimental evidence that manipulating low working memory capacity by inducing cognitive load (vs. no load) led fewer participants to use mental contrasting. The findings have theoretical implications by illuminating the processes that impede mental contrasting, and they have applied implications for understanding how to foster the use of mental contrasting in everyday life.

Multiple Group Membership, Optimistic Bias, and Infection Risk in the Context of Emerging Infectious Diseases

Abstract. Background: Understanding psychosocial factors which impact responses to emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) is vital in managing epidemics and pandemics. Two under-researched areas in this field are the interactive roles of optimistic bias (underestimation of the likelihood of negative events occurring to the self, relative to others) and group membership (a factor observed to be psychologically protective, but infection risk enhancing). Aims: The current study aimed to test the relationships between optimistic bias and membership of multiple groups upon EID-related emotional and psychological responses and behavioral intentions. Methods: Participants from the UK and US ( N = 360) rated how they would evaluate and respond to a fictitious EID immediately before the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns in a correlational study. Results: Negative relationships were observed between optimistic bias and perceived infection vulnerability, infection prevention strategies, and perceived EID severity. Multiple group membership correlated negatively with germ avoidance, but positively with emotional responses such as disgust and increased perceived vulnerability to infection – factors linked to avoiding infection. Multiple group memberships and optimistic bias were unrelated. Limitations: The study focussed on a fictitious disease and relies on cross-sectional data and behavioral intentions. Conclusions: These findings build upon the small evidence base on the role of optimistic bias in EID management and suggest that multiple group membership is unlikely to increase optimistic bias. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings for EID management are discussed.

Taking Responsibility for Others and Use of Mental Contrasting

Mentally contrasting a desired future with present reality fosters selective goal pursuit: People pursue feasible desired futures and let go from unfeasible ones. We investigated whether people are more inclined to spontaneously use mental contrasting when they feel responsibility. Studies 1 and 2 provided correlational evidence: Employees who felt responsible for completing an important team project (Study 1) and MTurk users who felt and actively took social responsibility (Study 2) were more inclined to use mental contrasting. Studies 3 and 4 added experimental evidence: Students who were instructed to imagine responsibility for giving an excellent class presentation in a group or alone (Study 3) and participants who elaborated on an idiosyncratic wish that involved responsibility for others or themselves tended to use mental contrasting (Study 4). Apparently, people who feel or take responsibility for others, the society, or themselves are more likely to use mental contrasting as a self-regulation tool.

Demand to Act and Use of Mental Contrasting

Abstract. Mentally contrasting a desired future with present reality fosters selective goal pursuit: People pursue feasible desired futures and let go from unfeasible ones. We investigated whether people spontaneously use mental contrasting when the demand to act toward their desired future is high. Study 1 provided correlational evidence: The participants who planned to act most immediately were also those who used mental contrasting. Studies 2 and 3 added experimental evidence: Imagining an immediate (vs. no immediate) action and being confronted with the opportunity to perform an instrumental (vs. noninstrumental) action, respectively, led participants to mentally contrast. The findings have theoretical implications by suggesting that people initiate mental contrasting as a problem-solving strategy; they have applied implications for interventions teaching mental contrasting.

Ego-depletion increases selfish decision making, but may also increase self-conflict and regret about those decisions

The effect of ego-depletion on self-control conflict identification is the subject of ongoing debate with only limited and indirect empirical assessment. The present research used behavioral and self-report measures to test if ego-depletion affects self-control conflict identification across two studies: in an economic social dilemma game and a probe reaction task. In the social dilemma game, ego-depleted participants acted more selfishly, but also reported feeling more conflicted about their decisions and were more likely to go back and change choices they had made earlier in the game. These results replicated and extended earlier findings on ego-depletion and prosocial behavior. Study Two tested the effect of ego-depletion on self-control conflict identification using a probe recognition task designed to measure goal conflict accessibility, but found no significant effects of ego-depletion.

How to bridge the intention-behavior gap in food parenting: Automatic constructs and underlying techniques

Although parents often report positive intentions to promote and create a healthy food environment for their children (e.g., setting limits to snacks offered), they also experience difficulties in translating these intentions into actual behaviors. In this position paper, we argue that automatic processes explain an important part of the gap between parents' intentions and their actual food parenting behaviors. We provide a conceptual framework in which we hypothesize that automatic effects on food parenting occur through two key interrelated constructs: habits (key outcome construct) and volitional regulation behaviors (key mediating construct). Moreover, we discuss potentially important impulse-focused techniques that may directly change habits (e.g., nudging; inhibitory control training) or indirectly through volitional regulation behaviors (e.g., implementation intentions; mental contrasting). We make use of the literature on the role of intention-behavior discordance in general health behaviors and discuss implications for food parenting practices. Our framework provides a dual process view towards food parenting and may help to explain when and why parents are likely to engage in (un)healthy food parenting behaviors. In addition, this framework may hopefully stimulate research on (combinations of old and) new techniques to promote good food parenting behaviors.

Well Self-Regulated People Use Mental Contrasting

Abstract. Mentally contrasting a desired future with reality is a self-regulation strategy helping people manage their life by promoting selective goal pursuit: people pursue feasible futures and disengage from unfeasible ones. We investigated whether participants who effectively regulate their academic and everyday life spontaneously use mental contrasting. Indeed, students who were good self-regulators in the academic domain, as indicated by their high self-reported academic self-regulation skills, high need for achievement, and above-average grades mentally contrasted when writing about an important achievement-related wish (Study 1). So did participants who were good self-regulators in everyday life as indicated by their high self-reported generalized self-regulation skills and high need for cognition (Study 2). Results indicate that successful self-regulation is linked to spontaneous mental contrasting.