Task Duration and Task Order do not Matter: No Effect on Self-Control Performance

Abstract

24The strength model of self-control proposes that all acts of self-control are energized by one 25 global limited resource that becomes temporarily depleted by a primary self-control task, 26 leading to impaired self-control performance in secondary self-control tasks. However, failed 27 replications have cast doubt on the existence of this so-called ego depletion effect. Here, we 28 investigated between-task (i.e. variation in self-control tasks) and within-task variation (i.e. 29 task duration) as possible explanations for the conflicting literature on ego depletion effects. 30In a high-powered experiment (N = 709 participants), we used two established self-control 31 tasks (Stroop task, transcription task) to test how variations in the duration of primary and 32 secondary self-control tasks (2, 4, 8, or 16 minutes per task) affect the occurrence of an ego 33 depletion effect (i.e., impaired performance in the secondary task). 34In line with the ego depletion hypothesis, subjects perceived longer lasting secondary tasks as 35 more self-control demanding. Contrary to the ego depletion hypothesis, however, 36 performance did neither suffer from prior self-control exertion, nor as a function of task 37 duration. If anything, performance tended to improve when the primary self-control task 38 lasted longer. These effects did not differ between the two self-control tasks, suggesting that 39 the observed null findings were independent of task type. 40 41 42 43 Keywords: ego depletion, self-control, strength model of self-control, Stroop, transcription 44 45 46 Task Duration and Task Order do not Matter: No Effect on Self-Control Performance 48Despite best intentions, self-control does not always work effectively 1 . One of the 49 most popular explanations for this impaired ability to exert self-control has been offered by 50 the strength model of self-control 2 . It defines self-control as a volitional act that enables 51 people to regulate certain behavioral tendencies or dominant impulses to accomplish long-52 term goals 3 . For instance, a long-term goal might be to lose weight. Then, self-control is 53 needed to restrain oneself from temptations (e.g., eating a delicious piece of cake) that would 54 lead to immediate joy and gratification but interfere with attaining the long-term weight goal. 55According to Baumeister and colleagues 3 , the capacity for such acts of self-control relies on a 56 global, limited resource that is required to regulate all aspects of self-regulatory behavior 57 (e.g., emotion regulation, attention regulation; e.g., 4 . Exerting self-control for a certain 58 amount of time is assumed to deplete this resource; and because it is not immediately 59 replenished, performance in subsequent situations that require self-control is impaired. This 60 state of temporary self-control exhaustion is termed ego depletion (e.g., 3 ). 61In order to investigate the ego depletion effect, participants first work on a primary 62 task which does (i.e. ego depletion condition) or does not require self-contr...

Manipulation of the Duration of the Initial Self-Control Task Within the Sequential-Task Paradigm: Effect on Exercise Performance

“…Furthermore, these durations of the Stroop task were utilized as previous research has employed this task for the same length of time (i.e., 4 min; Boat and Taylor, 2017 ). Also, 8 and 16 min reflect a 200 and 400% increase in duration, respectively, thus reflecting a suitable variance for differences to be observed and is in line with previous research (e.g., Wolff et al, 2019 ).…”

“…Participants persisted at the wall-sit task 32 s longer on average, when they exerted self-control for a short duration (i.e., 4 min) relative to when they exerted self-control for a long duration (i.e., 16 min); equivalent to a 28% improvement in performance. This is interesting given that recent research has suggested that the initial task duration is not associated with the magnitude of performance impairment for physical ( Giboin and Wolff, 2019 ) or cognitive ( Wolff et al, 2019 ) performance. However, it is important to highlight that prior cognitive exertion appears to have a greater negative influence on performance during subsequent isolation tasks (e.g., wall-sit task), compared to whole-body endurance tasks (e.g., cycling) ( Giboin and Wolff, 2019 ).…”

“…While the CR-10 questionnaire confirmed the manipulation of self-control in the present study, monitoring performance on the Stroop task could provide an informative measure of participants’ engagement and motivation during the initial self-control task ( Lee et al, 2016 ). However, recent evidence has indicated that performance does not vary across different durations of the Stroop task ( Wolff et al, 2019 ). In addition, although the participants in the current study were recreationally active (three times per week), we did not assess details of participants habitual physical activities.…”

“…In addition, regarding self-control, all studies to date have only examined one duration of initial self-control exertion; research has not manipulated the initial task duration within the sequential-task paradigm, or considered the effect on physical performance during the second self-control task ( Hagger et al, 2010 ; Lee et al, 2016 ; Giboin and Wolff, 2019 ). While recent research has demonstrated that different durations of the initial self-control task did not affect subsequent cognitive performance ( Wolff et al, 2019 ), it is currently unknown whether longer durations of self-control exertion could have a greater detrimental effect on subsequent physical performance. Spending longer on the initial self-control task may lead to greater shifts in motivation and attention ( Inzlicht and Schmeichel, 2016 ), exacerbating the performance decrements on a subsequent physical task, also requiring self-control.…”

A cross-sectional study of psychological wellbeing of Indian adults during the Covid-19 lockdown: Different strokes for different folks

“…Subhash and Sujoy’s narratives are good examples that show how abstinence from active sex life could make the LGBT adults more anxious during the lockdown. While Sujoy’s example reflects the high demand of self-control during the Covid-19 lockdown [ 48 ], research suggests that the application of self-control is effortful and aversive [ 49 ]. Therefore, individuals with low self-control could be at a higher risk of succumbing to their behavioral impulses during the pandemic.…”