When perception is more than reality: The effects of perceived versus actual resource depletion on self-regulatory behavior.

Clarkson, Joshua J.; Hirt, Edward R.; Jia, Lile; Alexander, Marla B.

doi:10.1037/a0017539

Cited by 235 publications

(229 citation statements)

References 62 publications

(127 reference statements)

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“…For example, studies show that the depleting effects of initial efforts at self-control are reversed by increased incentives for performance on subsequent tasks or greater positive affect (Muraven & Slessareva, 2003;Tice, Baumeister, Shmueli, & Muraven, 2007). Depletion is also increased by mere perceptions of self-control effort (Clarkson, Hirt, Jia, & Alexander, 2010;Wan & Sternthal, 2008) or expectations of future needs for self-control (Muraven, Shmueli, & Burkley, 2006) and occurs only when people themselves believe that self-control abilities are limited (Job et al, 2010). Thus, although engaging in self-control often leaves people less willing to subsequently exert further self-…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Motivational Versus Metabolic Effects of Carbohydrates on Self-Control

Hui²,

et al. 2012

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Self-control is critical for achievement and well-being. However, people's capacity for selfcontrol is limited and becomes depleted through use. One prominent explanation for this depletion is that self-control consumes energy in the form of carbohydrate metabolization and further suggests that ingesting carbohydrates improves self-control. Some evidence has supported this energy model, but given the broad implications of the model for efforts to improve self-control, the present research reevaluated the role of carbohydrates in selfcontrol processes. Four experiments demonstrated that (a) under carefully standardized conditions using precise measurements, exerting self-control did not reduce blood glucose; (b) rinsing one's mouth with, but not ingesting, carbohydrate solutions immediately bolstered self-control and prevented depletion; and (c) carbohydrate rinsing did not itself increase blood glucose. These findings challenge metabolic explanations for the role of carbohydrates in self-control depletion and suggest an alternate motivational model for these and other previously observed effects of carbohydrates on self-control (150 words).

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Motivational Versus Metabolic Effects of Carbohydrates on Self-Control

Hui²,

et al. 2012

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“…Specifically, participants read that belief in freewill has consistently been associated with feelings of either progress and peace of mind (which enhances self-control) or frustration and anxiety (which impedes selfcontrol) (for full wording, see SI Text). Participants then responded to multiple solution anagrams, with the amount of time participants persisted on the task serving as our index of self-control (29,33). Finally, participants reported their political ideology along with demographics.…”

Section: Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

The self-control consequences of political ideology

Clarkson

Chambers

Hirt

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Evidence from three studies reveals a critical difference in self-control as a function of political ideology. Specifically, greater endorsement of political conservatism (versus liberalism) was associated with greater attention regulation and task persistence. Moreover, this relationship is shown to stem from varying beliefs in freewill; specifically, the association between political ideology and selfcontrol is mediated by differences in the extent to which belief in freewill is endorsed, is independent of task performance or motivation, and is reversed when freewill is perceived to impede (rather than enhance) self-control. Collectively, these findings offer insight into the self-control consequences of political ideology by detailing conditions under which conservatives and liberals are better suited to engage in self-control and outlining the role of freewill beliefs in determining these conditions. freewill beliefs | self-control | political ideology | individual differences P olitical ideologies loosely represent a shared set of beliefs that define both a specific social order and the means to attain it (1). These ideologies are often categorized into two broad groups-those who endorse traditional values and the status quo (conservatives) and those who endorse egalitarian ideals and progressive change (liberals) (2). Although research demonstrates the various consequences of these distinct ideologies (3), of primary interest to the present research is the unexplored possibility for selfcontrol differences between conservatives and liberals. In particular, we hypothesize that conservatives will demonstrate greater selfcontrol than liberals.This proposition-although untested-is not without indirect support. Kemmelmeier et al. (4) demonstrate that conservative students earn higher grades in college than liberals (controlling for general intellect). The authors interpret this finding as a function of social dominance, arguing that doing well in these disciplines promotes the existing social hierarchy that conservatives seek to maintain. However, a complementary position is that conservatives more strongly embrace the belief that they are responsible for their actions (i.e., freewill beliefs) (5-8). For instance, it could be that conservatives believe they have greater control over their performance and thus expend greater selfcontrol in their academic pursuits.The possibility that conservatives and liberals differ in their freewill beliefs would be consistent with the attributional proclivities of conservatives and liberals. Specifically, conservatives tend to attribute causality to internal or dispositional factors (e.g., personal effort and control), whereas liberals tend to attribute causality to external factors (e.g., systemic or sociocultural forces) (9-13). Given that conservatives are more likely than liberals to make internal attributions for their actions, it follows that conservatives should also more strongly endorse the belief in freewill than should liberals. Indeed, believing outcomes are dete...

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“…Research shows that various processes in the body (such as glucose release from the liver) assure that under normal conditions the brain has ample energy supplies for neuronal functioning (14). Moreover, numerous studies show that self-control performance can be restored by various psychological manipulations (e.g., positive mood, mindfulness meditation) without glucose ingestion (15)(16)(17)(18). Taken together, these findings imply that brain functions are unlikely to depend on the short-term intake of glucose (14,19).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Beliefs about willpower determine the impact of glucose on self-control

Job

Walton

Bernecker

et al. 2013

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

118

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Past research found that the ingestion of glucose can enhance selfcontrol. It has been widely assumed that basic physiological processes underlie this effect. We hypothesized that the effect of glucose also depends on people's theories about willpower. Three experiments, both measuring (experiment 1) and manipulating (experiments 2 and 3) theories about willpower, showed that, following a demanding task, only people who view willpower as limited and easily depleted (a limited resource theory) exhibited improved self-control after sugar consumption. In contrast, people who view willpower as plentiful (a nonlimited resource theory) showed no benefits from glucose-they exhibited high levels of self-control performance with or without sugar boosts. Additionally, creating beliefs about glucose ingestion (experiment 3) did not have the same effect as ingesting glucose for those with a limited resource theory. We suggest that the belief that willpower is limited sensitizes people to cues about their available resources including physiological cues, making them dependent on glucose boosts for high self-control performance.self theories | implicit theories | ego depletion | cognitive performance "Ideas set free beliefs, and the beliefs set free our wills." -William James, The Energies of Man (1907, p. 14) (1) A n intriguing finding in recent years is that the short-term ingestion of glucose can improve a variety of basic cognitive and self-regulatory functions including episodic memory, information processing, attention, and self-control (2-5). For instance, studies show that the ingestion of glucose can prevent the drop in self-control performance that can otherwise follow the exertion of self-control (6-8), improving such things as persistence and the inhibition of impulses.In suggesting a close relationship between glucose and cognitive and self-regulatory outcomes, these findings raise fundamental questions about how physiological and psychological processes intersect. Popular theories suggest that glucose directly fuels brain functions, which would otherwise suffer from a lack of glucose (9-11). These theories can be taken to suggest that optimal performance on everyday cognitive and self-regulatory tasks requires frequent glucose boosts.Given the centrality of cognitive performance and self-regulation for human functioning and welfare in general, it would be striking if these functions were so fragile as to depend to a significant extent on the short-term ingestion of glucose (12, 13). Research shows that various processes in the body (such as glucose release from the liver) assure that under normal conditions the brain has ample energy supplies for neuronal functioning (14). Moreover, numerous studies show that self-control performance can be restored by various psychological manipulations (e.g., positive mood, mindfulness meditation) without glucose ingestion (15)(16)(17)(18). Taken together, these findings imply that brain functions are unlikely to depend on the short-term intake of glucose (14,19). Why then do...

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When perception is more than reality: The effects of perceived versus actual resource depletion on self-regulatory behavior.

Cited by 235 publications

References 62 publications

Motivational Versus Metabolic Effects of Carbohydrates on Self-Control

Motivational Versus Metabolic Effects of Carbohydrates on Self-Control

The self-control consequences of political ideology

Beliefs about willpower determine the impact of glucose on self-control

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