The role of self-regulation in derogating attractive alternatives

The benefits of simply observing: Mindful attention modulates the link between motivation and behavior.

“…Potential partner judgments. Participants were instructed to indicate as quickly as possible whether the person presented in each picture would be a potential partner for them, using two designated keys on the keyboard for their "yes" or "no" answers (Ritter, Karremans, & van Schie, 2010). Forty pictures of opposite-sex others were presented, all ranging from relatively neutral to very attractive, including the 20 pictures from the second training phase.…”

Sociosexuality, Commitment, Sexual Infidelity, and Perceptions of Infidelity: Data From the Second Love Web Site

“…Individuals with greater self-control, similarly to those with greater commitment, can counteract and overcome their desires, feelings, needs and typical patterns of behavior (i.e., unrestricted sociosexual orientation) and prevent infidelity. Indeed, research shows that individuals depleted (vs. nondepleted) of self-control are likely to be more attentive to attractive others and to report more attraction (Ritter, Karremans, & van Schie, 2010), to accept a date with a confederate (Ciarocco et al, 2012) and to report greater intent to incur in sexual infidelity (Gailliot & Baumeister, 2007). This could be especially true for individuals for whom commitment is made more salient.…”

How executive control promotes happy relationships and a well-balanced life

“…Over the years, executive control has been related to forgiveness [25,26,27], the ability to refrain from aggression and intimate partner violence [28,29,30], the derogation of attractive alternatives [31], the ability to remain faithful [32,33,34] and the ability to engage in some forms of sacrifice [35,36].…”