1. SELF-CONTROL RELIES ON GLUCOSE AS A
LIMITED ENERGY SOURCE: WILLPOWER IS
MORE THAN A METAPHOR

2. WHY DID YOU LOSE IT?
On a piece of paper, briefly discuss a time where you didn’t
exercise self-control and you feel like you could have
handled the situation differently. Try to answer the
following:
What happened?
Speculate on why it happened? Do you know?
What would you have done differently? Or do you think
you could control it?

3. KEY TERMS
1.Self Control- The ability to control or override
one’s thoughts, emotions, urges, and behavior.
2. Glucose- A principle circulating sugar in the blood and the
major energy source of the body.
3. Ego Depletion- a state of diminished resources following
exertion of self-control.
4. Willpower- training and control of oneself and one’s
conduct, usually for self improvement.

4. SELF CONTROL AS A LIMITED RESOURCE
- Self control relies on a limited energy or strength, such
that engaging in a single act of self-control impairs
subsequent
attempts at self-control, as if some sort of energy had been
used up
during the initial act.
-Body is an energy system and depends on ingesting energy,
using it to fuel activities and is vital in psychological
processes
-Brain consumes 20 % of the bodies calories!
- Self control provides many benefits and therefore it might

5. GLUCOSE
-Glucose: Is a vital fuel for the brain and it’s
activities/functions
-Glucose metabolizes from the bloodstream and allows each
brain region to perform their respective duties
-Controlled, effortful processes that rely on executive
function are unlike most other cognitive processes and are
highly susceptible to normal fluctuations in glucose.

6. GLUCOSE
- Low glucose levels have been linked to impaired
performance on difficult (incongruent) but not easy
(congruent) trials of the Stroop color word interference
task and on complex but not simple reaction time tasks-
Driving!
- 2 Volunteers Please! Assessment of Speed and Accuracy
STROOP EFFECT/TASK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tpge6c3Ic4g
How did you do? Did you have self-control? Was it easy?

7. GLUCOSE
-Low Glucose was associated with poor performance on
driving simulation task when participants were fatigued and
task was not demanding. Why?
-Low glucose levels impair controlled or effortful processes.
They require more glucose and more energy.
-Simpler or automatic processes did not require the energy
source such as glucose to be performed

8. Problems associated with low levels of Glucose
1. Criminal Behavior
2. Aggression
3. Impulsiveness
4. Decrease in concentration and emotion regulation
5. Alcohol depletes levels of glucose in the body and brain
6. Glucose helps facilitate coping with stress and quitting
smoking

9. PRESENT WORK/PREDICTIONS
- Hypothesis:
- 1. completing a self-control task would use up a relatively
large amount of glucose, compared with completing a
cognitive task that does not require self-control.
- 2. low blood glucose levels after an initial self-control task
were then predicted to impair performance on subsequent
self-control tasks.

10. RESULTS
-Three main findings in the studies
- 1. Blood glucose levels dropped considerably following acts
of self-control. Especially participants who worked the
hardest.
- 2. Low glucose after an initial task was linked to poor self-
control on a subsequent task.
- 3. Experimental manipulations of glucose reduced or
eliminated self-control decrements stemming from an initial
self-control task

11. DIAGRAMS
Show on overhead!
Graph 1: Stroop performance as a function of self-control and
glucose conditions
Graph 2: Effortful persistence as a function of mortality
salience and glucose conditions

12. IMPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS
- Willpower is essential for Self Control
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdAFInKoUrY – Texas A&M
Study
- “ The last-in, first- out rule” P- 334. Discuss
- Small acts of self-control are sufficient to deplete the
remaining glucose available, thereby impairing the control
of thought and behavior until the body receives more
glucose.

13. STRENGTH MODEL- LIMITED RESOURCES
- Self Control: vulnerable to depletion overtime with
exertions, similar to a muscle that gets tired.
- Glucose can be converted to neurotransmitters- Fuel

14. STRENGTH MODEL- RESEMBLES MUSCLES
1. Exercise- Muscles
-Self control can improve willpower strength
2. Conserve Strength
- Further expectations and challenges
3. High Stakes
- If the stakes are high enough

15. THE STRENGTH MODEL OF SELF-CONTROL

16. STRENGTH MODEL CHARACTERISTICS
- Just as a muscle gets tired from exertion, acts of self-
control cause short-term impairments (ego depletion) in
subsequent self control.
Ego Depletion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Te71L-ugX1U
Will Power
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=roy+baumeister&view
=detail&mid=BB84749FE23B47ED6C10BB84749FE23B47ED6
C10&first=0&FORM=LKVR
Self Control and Decision Making
http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/resisting-
temptation/63lzwlq

17. QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSION
1. Participants- Mostly women. Why? Classes they picked or specific
gender?
2. Depletion in fuel vs. depletion of desire (motivation)
3. Dieting- Lowers Glucose????
4. Further Research and what we should eat in order to improve self-
control
5. How do these articles relate to selective pressures, emergent
properties, and different levels of organizational complexity?
6. What other forms rely on glucose?
7. How do we improve self-control? Delay Gratification?
1. - Other Ideas: Id, Ego, Superego, Stanford Marshmallow Experiment-

18. 8. Biological and Developmental implications?
9. New Study Article- Neuronal Networks
10. Self Control in a group setting vs. with an individual
11. What is important in improving self-control. Caloric intake, sleep and
rest, protein and complex carbohydrates. Self Control Exercises.