Dan McKinney11-14

Self- Control SummaryArticle #1 - Self-Control Relies on Glucose as a Limited Energy Source: Willpower Is

More than a MetaphorSelf- control is the ability to control or override one’s thoughts, emotions, urges, and

behaviors and is reliant on a limited energy or strength. The article states that when we engage in

an act of self-control it has been proven that we lose energy. The loss of that energy source

makes it difficult to contain self-control in the second or subsequent self-control task.

Our body as a biological organism is an energy system and depends heavily on ingesting

energy to fuel activities and is crucial in our ability to perform certain psychological processes.

Our brain is the key function of those processes and it consumes 20% of the body calories that

we take in. We have to have energy in order to function. When we exert self-control, our energy

source is depleted.

The caloric energy that we take in is glucose. Glucose is a principle circulating sugar in

the blood and is the main energy source of the body and most importantly the brain. Therefore,

glucose is a vital fuel for the brain and its activities and functions. It is important to preserve

normal glucose levels in order to maintain executive functions that require control, effortful

processes in order to maintain self-control.

Subsequently, low glucose levels have been linked to impaired performance on difficult

(incongruent) but not easy (congruent) trials of the Stroop color word interference task.

Therefore, low glucose levels impair controlled effortful processes. They require more glucose

and therefore more energy to carry out those complex processes.

In contrary, simpler or automatic processes do not require as much energy such as

glucose to be performed. They are simpler processes that are automatic and therefore require

very little thought and do not deplete a source such as glucose.

In addition, small acts of self-control are sufficient enough to deplete the remaining

glucose available, thereby impairing the control of thought and behavior until the body receives

more glucose.

Article # 2- The Strength Model of Self-Control

The strength model of self-control introduced by Roy Baumeister, compares self-control

and its vulnerability to depletion overtime with exertions, similar to a muscle that gets tired. The

muscle analogy is used and has three main parts where people practice self-control.

1. Just as you exercise muscles to improve strength, you must practice and exercise

using self-control. Self-control can improve willpower strength.

2. When people know that they have to exert self-control on initial and several

subsequent tasks, they tend to conserve that energy or strength. This is done when

future expectations or challenges are anticipated where self-control might be needed.

3. If the stakes in exerting self-control are high enough, they tend to exert self-control

Ex: If a gambler is in a high stakes poker game and the stakes become too high,

they will control and exert self-control.

When glucose enters the body, it is converted into neurotransmitters that are used as fuel

to carry out functions and activities.

In conclusion, self-control is a limited resource based on the amount of blood glucose

that is in our body. Glucose is the main energy source of our body and brain. Without glucose in

our system, it is difficult to perform and exert self-control on subsequent tasks after the initial

task of self-control has been performed. After the initial task, our energy (glucose) levels are

depleted. Just as a muscle gets tired after exertion, our glucose levels decrease after self-control

tasks are performed. It is important that in order to maintain self-control we must have plenty of

energy in our brain to carry out controlled effortful processes in self-control tasks. When we

have energy (glucose) in our brain and body, we have the ability to control our urges, thoughts,

emotions and behaviors. With having self-control we can make better decisions and judgments

and sustaining self-control can be deemed as a key in becoming an expert.