Perceived control of aversive stimulation and the reduction of stress responses¹

Deciding How To Decide: Self-Control and Meta-Decision Making

“…In fact, controllability and a closely related concept, autonomy, have been shown to improve self-control performance [15] and to mitigate the worsening of self-control performance after performing a demanding task [88][89][90]. This effect is strikingly reminiscent of early findings that the perception of controllability alleviates the deleterious effect of stressors [ 3 1 _ T D $ D I F F ] on performance [91,92], and these considerations are consistent with the hypothesis that the expected benefit of investing more resources into control is, at least in part, estimated by assessing the controllability of the environment [54].…”

Variables affecting the reporting of pain following an acute myocardial infarction

“…Experimental studies of pain have demonstrated that subjects who believe that they have control over the aversive stimulus perceive the stimulus to be less painful (Corah & Boffa, 1970;Glass et al, 1973;Litt, 1988). Conversely, the lack of control was associated with an increased reported of symptoms (Pennebaker et al, 1977).…”

“…Perceived Control of Pain The perception of control over aversive stimuli has been demonstrated to be a determinant of the cognitive appraisal of the threat (Corah & Boffa, 1970;Litt, 1988). Studies concerning experimental pain have found that subjects who perceived that their behavior could lead to the reduction or avoidance of an electric shock perceived the stimulus to be less painful (Corah & Boffa, 1970;Glass et al, 1973), and manifested less autonomic reactivity (e.g., lower skin conductance responses) (Geer, Davison, Gatchel, 1970). Pennebaker, Burnam, Schaeffer, and Harper (1977) demonstrated that lack of control was associated with an increased reporting of symptoms.…”

Who Needs Entrepreneurial Role Models? Driving Forces of Students’ Cyber-Entrepreneurial Career Intention

“…Any factor that may serve as a guide or a motivator is rooted in the core belief that one's actions can lead to desired effects; otherwise, one would have little or no incentive to act or persevere in the face of difficulties (Bandura, 2002). Studies have found that when subjected to equally painful events, those who are led to believe that they have personal control over the events display lower autonomic arousal and less performance impairment than those who believe the opposite (Geer, Davison, & Gatchel, 1970;Glass et al, 1973). It is therefore important for teachers and researchers of cyber entrepreneurship education to find out how to enhance CESE in students.…”