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Gillebaart M, Schneider IK. Effortless self-control. Curr Opin Psychol 2024; 59:101860. [PMID: 39178788 DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2024.101860] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2024] [Revised: 08/02/2024] [Accepted: 08/02/2024] [Indexed: 08/26/2024]
Abstract
Self-control is essential for outcomes in several life domains but is often seen as effortful. We discuss recent research indicating the possibility of effortless self-control. First, we discuss how high levels of self-control are associated with quicker self-control conflict identification and resolution. Second, we describe two pathways that may lead to these associations: (1) How automatization of behaviors plays a role in self-control outcomes. That is, self-control is associated with better, effortless habits. (2) We discuss that self-control conflicts can be anticipated and resolved with strategies that avoid effortful inhibition. Taken together, we aim to demonstrate that there is more to successful self-control than 'simply' working hard to resist your impulses - there may be easier roads to take.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marleen Gillebaart
- Utrecht University, Social, Health, and Organisational Psychology, Heidelberglaan 1, 3584CS Utrecht, the Netherlands.
| | - Iris K Schneider
- Dresden University of Technology, Zellescher Weg 17, 01069 Dresden, Germany; Center for Social and Economic Behavior, University of Cologne, Germany
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Rojas-Saffie JP, García-Matte N. Emotional self-regulation and personality in the light of Thomas Aquinas's philosophical anthropology. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1419202. [PMID: 38882512 PMCID: PMC11177343 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1419202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2024] [Accepted: 05/06/2024] [Indexed: 06/18/2024] Open
Abstract
This article aims to thoroughly understand the concept of emotional self-regulation (ESR) and its relationship with personality. Through an interdisciplinary dialogue between psychology and philosophy-specifically, the anthropology of Thomas Aquinas-three realities are proposed that could be considered as ESR. The conceptual relationship between ESR-understood as operation, faculty and habit-and personality is examined, specifically using the Five-Factor Model and the virtues model. Key findings include the need for consensus on a precise definition of ESR, the central role of reason as a faculty capable of ruling over emotions, the relevance of the distinction between ESR and self-control, and the understanding of ESR as a set of habits that include aspects of prudence, temperance and fortitude. Interdisciplinary dialogue seems to be a valuable intellectual approach to the advancement of the field of psychology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan Pablo Rojas-Saffie
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Psychology and Family, Universidad Finis Terrae, Santiago, Chile
- Center for Research in Education, Psychology and Family (CIPEF), Faculty of Education, Psychology and Family, Universidad Finis Terrae, Santiago, Chile
| | - Nicolás García-Matte
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Psychology and Family, Universidad Finis Terrae, Santiago, Chile
- Center for Research in Education, Psychology and Family (CIPEF), Faculty of Education, Psychology and Family, Universidad Finis Terrae, Santiago, Chile
- Millenium Institute for Depression and Personality Research (MIDAP), Doctoral Program in Psychotherapy, Faculty of Social Sciences and Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
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Colling J, Wollschläger R, Keller U, Grass J, Strobel A, Preckel F, Fischbach A. The relation between Self-Control, Need for Cognition and Action Orientation in secondary school students: A conceptual replication study. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0286714. [PMID: 37294789 PMCID: PMC10256181 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0286714] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Self-Control can be defined as the self-initiated effortful process that enables individuals to resist temptation impulses. It is relevant for conducting a healthy and successful life. For university students, Grass et al. found that Need for Cognition as the tendency to engage in and enjoy thinking, and Action Orientation as the flexible recruitment of control resources in cognitively demanding situations, predict Self-Control. Further, Action Orientation partially mediated the relation between Need for Cognition and Self-Control. In the present conceptual replication study, we investigated the relations between Self-Control, Need for Cognition, and Action Orientation in adolescence (N = 892 9th graders) as a pivotal period for the development of self-control. We replicated the findings that Need for Cognition and Action Orientation predict Self-Control and that Action Orientation partially mediates the relation between Need for Cognition and Self-Control. In addition, Action Orientation moderates the relation between Need for Cognition and Self-Control. This result implies that in more action-oriented students Need for Cognition more strongly predicted Self-Control than in less action-oriented students. Our findings strengthen theoretical assumptions that Need for Cognition and Action Orientation are important cognitive and behavioral mechanisms that contribute to the successful exertion of Self-Control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonne Colling
- Faculty of Humanities, Luxembourg Centre for Educational Testing (LUCET), Education and Social Sciences, University of Luxembourg, Esch-Sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Rachel Wollschläger
- Faculty of Humanities, Luxembourg Centre for Educational Testing (LUCET), Education and Social Sciences, University of Luxembourg, Esch-Sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Ulrich Keller
- Faculty of Humanities, Luxembourg Centre for Educational Testing (LUCET), Education and Social Sciences, University of Luxembourg, Esch-Sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Julia Grass
- Department of Psychology, Personality Psychology and Assessment, Chemnitz University of Technology, Chemnitz, Germany
| | - Anja Strobel
- Department of Psychology, Personality Psychology and Assessment, Chemnitz University of Technology, Chemnitz, Germany
| | - Franzis Preckel
- Department of Psychology, Giftedness Research and Education, University of Trier, Trier, Germany
| | - Antoine Fischbach
- Faculty of Humanities, Luxembourg Centre for Educational Testing (LUCET), Education and Social Sciences, University of Luxembourg, Esch-Sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
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Vinney LA, Tripp R, Shelly S, Gillespie A. Indexing Cognitive Resource Usage for Acquisition of Initial Voice Therapy Targets. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY 2023; 32:717-732. [PMID: 36701805 DOI: 10.1044/2022_ajslp-22-00197] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to index cognitive resource usage for acquisition of initial targets of two common voice therapy techniques (resonant voice therapy [RVT] and conversation training therapy [CTT]) based on the theorized depletion effect (i.e., when an initial task requiring high cognitive load leads to poorer performance on a subsequent task). METHOD Eleven vocally healthy participants, ages 23-41 years, read aloud the Rainbow Passage and produced consonant-vowel resonant targets (/mi, ma, mu/) followed by a baseline computerized Stroop task and a 15-min washout. Following this baseline period, participants watched and interacted with two videos instructing them in RVT or CTT initial targets. After viewing each video and practicing the associated vocal skills, participants rated the degree of mental effort required to engage in the target vocal technique on a modified Borg scale. Participants recorded their attempts at RVT on /mi, ma, mu/ and CTT on the Rainbow Passage, which were later rated by three voice-specialized speech-language pathologists as to how representative they were of each respective target technique. Changes in fundamental frequency and average auditory-perceptual ratings from baseline were examined to determine if participants adjusted their technique from RVT and CTT baseline to acquisition. RESULTS Performance on the Stroop task was, on average, worse post CTT than post RVT, but both post-CTT and post-RVT Stroop scores were poorer than baseline. These results suggest that both treatment techniques taxed cognitive resources but that CTT was more cognitively taxing than RVT. However, despite differences in raw averages, no statistically significant differences were found between the baseline, post-CTT, and post-RVT Stroop scores, likely due to the small sample size. Participant ratings of mental effort for CTT and RVT were statistically similar. Likewise, poorer post-RVT Stroop scores were associated with participants' greater perceived mental effort with RVT acquisition, but there was no significant association between mental effort ratings for CTT acquisition and post-CTT Stroop scores. Significantly higher fundamental frequency and perceived ratings of the accuracy of technique from baseline to acquisition for both CTT and RVT were found, providing evidence of vocal behavior changes as a result of each technique. CONCLUSIONS Brief exposure to initial treatment tasks in CTT is more cognitively depleting than initial RVT tasks. Results also indicate that vocally healthy participants are able to make a voice change in response to a brief therapy prompt. Finally, participant-rated measures of mental effort and secondary measures of cognitive depletion do not always correlate.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Raquel Tripp
- Department of Communicative Sciences and Disorders, New York University, NY
| | - Sandeep Shelly
- Emory Voice Center, Department of Otolarynngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
| | - Amanda Gillespie
- Emory Voice Center, Department of Otolarynngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
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Zher-Wen, Yu R. Unconscious integration: Current evidence for integrative processing under subliminal conditions. Br J Psychol 2023; 114:430-456. [PMID: 36689339 DOI: 10.1111/bjop.12631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 01/05/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Integrative processing is traditionally believed to be dependent on consciousness. While earlier studies within the last decade reported many types of integration under subliminal conditions (i.e. without perceptual awareness), these findings are widely challenged recently. This review evaluates the current evidence for 10 types of subliminal integration that are widely studied: arithmetic processing, object-context integration, multi-word processing, same-different processing, multisensory integration and 5 different types of associative learning. Potential methodological issues concerning awareness measures are also taken into account. It is concluded that while there is currently no reliable evidence for subliminal integration, this does not necessarily refute 'unconscious' integration defined through non-subliminal (e.g. implicit) approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zher-Wen
- Department of Management, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China.,Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, Singapore City, Singapore
| | - Rongjun Yu
- Department of Management, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
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Bertrams A, Lindner C, Muntoni F, Retelsdorf J. Self-Control Capacity Moderates the Effect of Stereotype Threat on Female University Students' Worry During a Math Performance Situation. Front Psychol 2022; 13:794896. [PMID: 35465570 PMCID: PMC9022772 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.794896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 03/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Stereotype threat is a possible reason for difficulties faced by girls and women in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The threat experienced due to gender can cause elevated worry during performance situations. That is, if the stereotype that women are not as good as men in math becomes salient, this stereotype activation draws women's attention to task-irrelevant worry caused by the fear of conforming to the negative stereotype. Increased worry can reduce cognitive resources, potentially leading to performance decrements. We argue that such worry is more pronounced immediately after an unrelated self-control demand, which is assumed to temporarily decrease people's self-control exertion over their attention and stream of thought (i.e., relatively low self-control capacity). This prediction was examined in an experiment conducted with 102 participating university students enrolled in courses in which math plays a crucial role. After the manipulation of self-control capacity (low vs. high), stereotype threat was induced for the female students, but not the male students. Then, the students were asked to report their thoughts during a math performance situation (i.e., written thought protocols) three times. Multiple-group autoregressive path models revealed that when self-control capacity was relatively low, female compared with male students reported more intense worry in the initial two thought protocols. In contrast, in the relatively high self-control capacity condition, female and male students did not differ significantly in their reported worry at any time. These results expand on previous findings, suggesting that threat effects depend on definable situational self-control conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex Bertrams
- Educational Psychology Lab, Institute of Educational Science, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Christoph Lindner
- Faculty of Education, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.,Leibniz Institute for Science and Mathematics Education, Kiel, Germany
| | | | - Jan Retelsdorf
- Faculty of Education, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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Lewczuk K, Wizła M, Oleksy T, Wyczesany M. Emotion Regulation, Effort and Fatigue: Complex Issues Worth Investigating. Front Psychol 2022; 13:742557. [PMID: 35250704 PMCID: PMC8888450 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.742557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/17/2022] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Karol Lewczuk
- Institute of Psychology, Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Magdalena Wizła
- Institute of Psychology, Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Tomasz Oleksy
- Department of Psychology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
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Englert C, Dziuba A, Giboin LS, Wolff W. Elites Do Not Deplete - No Effect of Prior Mental Exertion on Subsequent Shooting Performance in Elite Shooters. Front Psychol 2021; 12:668108. [PMID: 34177728 PMCID: PMC8226326 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.668108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In order to perform at the highest level, elite shooters have to remain focused during the whole course of a tournament, which regularly lasts multiple hours. Investing self-control over extended time periods is often associated with lower levels of perceived self-control strength (i.e., the subjective estimation of how much mental effort one is capable of investing in a given task) and impaired performance in several sports-related domains. However, previous findings on the effects of prior self-control efforts on shooting performance have been mixed, as elite shooters seem to be less affected by preceding self-control demanding tasks than sub-elite athletes. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of self-control on shooting performance in elite shooters. Hence, we randomly assigned elite shooters to an experimental (n = 12) or a control condition (n = 11) and asked them to perform a series of 40 shots at baseline (T1) and again after a task which either did or did not require self-control (T2). Additionally, we continuously measured the shooters’ level of perceived self-control strength. We assumed that in elite athletes, shooting accuracy as well as the perceived level of self-control strength would not be significantly affected over time from T1 to T2 in both conditions. In line with our assumptions, Bayesian linear mixed effect models revealed that shooting performance remained relatively stable in both conditions over time and the conditions also did not differ significantly in their perceived levels of self-control strength. Contrary to resource-based theories of self-control, these results speak against the idea of a limited self-control resource as previous acts of self-control did not impair subsequent shooting performance in elite athletes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chris Englert
- Department of Educational Psychology, Institute of Education, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Anna Dziuba
- Institute of Sports and Sports Science, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, Germany
| | - Louis-Solal Giboin
- Department of Sport Sciences, Sensorimotor Performance Lab, Human Performance Research Centre, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Wanja Wolff
- Department of Educational Psychology, Institute of Education, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.,Sport Psychology, Department of Sport Sciences, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
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