The present research examined whether and how loading working memory can attenuate negative mood. In three experiments, participants were exposed to neutral, weakly negative, or strongly negative pictures followed by a task and a mood scale. Working memory demands were varied by manipulating task presence (Study 1), complexity (Study 2), and predictability (Study 3). Participants in all three experiments reported less negative moods in negative trials with high compared to low working memory demand. Working memory demands did not affect mood in the neutral trials. When working memory demands were high, participants no longer reported more negative moods in response to strongly negative pictures than to weakly negative pictures. These findings suggest that loading working memory prevents mood-congruent processing, and thereby promotes distraction from negative moods.

a b s t r a c t a r t i c l e i n f oThe present research examines whether cognitive load can modulate the processing of negative emotional stimuli, even after negative stimuli have already activated emotional centers of the brain. In a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, participants viewed neutral and negative stimuli that were followed by an attention-demanding arithmetic task. As expected, exposure to negative stimuli led to increased activation in emotional regions (the amygdalae and the right insula). Subsequently induced task load led to increased activation in cognitive regions (right dorsolateral frontal cortex, right superior parietal cortex). Importantly, task load down-regulated the brain's response to negative stimuli in emotional regions. Task load also reduced subjectively experienced negative emotion in response to negative stimuli. Finally, coactivation analyses suggest that during task performance, activity in right dorsolateral frontal cortex was related to activity in the amygdalae and the right insula. Together, these findings indicate that cognitive load is capable of tuning down the emotional brain.

The present research shows in 4 studies that cognitive load can reduce the impact of temptations on cognition and behavior and, thus, challenges the proposition that distraction always hampers self-regulation. Participants performed different speeded categorization tasks with pictures of attractive and neutral food items (Studies 1-3) and attractive and unattractive female faces (Study 4), while we assessed their reaction times as an indicator of selective attention (Studies 1, 3, and 4) or as an indicator of hedonic thoughts about food (Study 2). Cognitive load was manipulated by a concurrent digit span task. Results show that participants displayed greater attention to tempting stimuli (Studies 1, 3, and 4) and activated hedonic thoughts in response to palatable food (Study 2), but high cognitive load completely eliminated these effects. Moreover, cognitive load during the exposure to attractive food reduced food cravings (Study 1) and increased healthy food choices (Study 3). Finally, individual differences in sensitivity to food temptations (Study 3) and interest in alternative relationship partners (Study 4) predicted selective attention to attractive stimuli, but again, only when cognitive load was low. Our findings suggest that recognizing the tempting value of attractive stimuli in our living environment requires cognitive resources. This has the important implication that, contrary to traditional views, performing a concurrent demanding task may actually diminish the captivating power of temptation and thus facilitate self-regulation.

The present study tested the hypothesis that facilitated processing of threatening faces depends on working memory load. Participants judged the gender of angry versus happy faces while event-related brain potentials were recorded. Working memory load was manipulated within subjects by the mental rehearsal of one- versus eight-digit numbers. Behavioral results showed that the relative slow-down to angry compared to happy faces in the gender-naming task (i.e., the negativity bias) was eliminated under high working memory load. Under low (but not high) load, N2 amplitudes were smaller to angry compared to happy faces. Moreover, high load reduced LPP amplitude and eliminated the enhanced LPP to angry compared to happy faces that were present under low load. These results suggest that working memory load improves attentional control, and reduces sustained attention for distracting negative expressions. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that facilitated processing of threatening cues may be contingent on cognitive resources.

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Traditionally, self-control research has put a strong focus on the mechanisms that support the control of behavior in the face of temptation. This emphasis in the field has led to some neglect of desire as an impelling force that needs to be controlled. However, the focus appears to be shifting, as recent research has led to novel insights into the nature of desire. In this review, we integrate these insights into how desire emerges, how it operates, and how it may best be controlled. Drawing on competitiveaccess models of working memory and dynamical reprocessing models, we highlight, among other factors, the role of top-down attentional resources in preventing the early conscious processing and subsequent escalation of desire.

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