What good is self-control? We incorporated a new measure of individual differences in self-control into two large investigations of a broad spectrum of behaviors. The new scale showed good internal consistency and retest reliability. Higher scores on self-control correlated with a higher grade point average, better adjustment (fewer reports of psychopathology, higher self-esteem), less binge eating and alcohol abuse, better relationships and interpersonal skills, secure attachment, and more optimal emotional responses. Tests for curvilinearity failed to indicate any drawbacks of so-called overcontrol, and the positive effects remained after controlling for social desirability. Low self-control is thus a significant risk factor for a broad range of personal and interpersonal problems.

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High self-control predicts good adjustment, less pathology, better grades, and interpersonal success.

This article offers objectification theory as a framework for understanding the experiential consequences of being female in a culture that sexually objectifies the female body. Objectification the...

Objectification Theory: Toward Understanding Women's Lived Experiences and Mental Health Risks:

Most theories of affective influences on judgement and choice take a valence-based approach, contrasting the effects of positive versus negative feeling states. These approaches have not specified if and when distinct emotions of the same valence have different effects on judgement. In this article, we propose a model of emotion-specific influences on judgement and choice. We posit that each emotion is defined by a tendency to perceive new events and objects in ways that are consistent with the original cognitive-appraisal dimensions of the emotion. To pit the valence and appraisal-tendency approaches against one another, we present a study that addresses whether two emotions of the same valence but differing appraisals—anger and fear—relate in different ways to risk perception. Consistent with the appraisal-tendency hypothesis, fearful people made pessimistic judgements of future events whereas angry people made optimistic judgements. In the Discussion we expand the proposed model and review evidence sup...

/pdf/beyond-valence-toward-a-model-of-emotion-specific-influences-710ja6je0p.pdf

Beyond valence: Toward a model of emotion-specific influences on judgement and choice

http://gruberpeplab.com/3131/Kreibig_2010.pdf

Autonomic nervous system activity in emotion: A review

Do people behave differently when they are lying compared with when they are telling the truth? The combined results of 1,338 estimates of 158 cues to deception are reported. Results show that in some ways, liars are less forthcoming than truth tellers, and they tell less compelling tales. They also make a more negative impression and are more tense. Their stories include fewer ordinary imperfections and unusual contents. However, many behaviors showed no discernible links, or only weak links, to deceit. Cues to deception were more pronounced when people were motivated to succeed, especially when the motivations were identity relevant rather than monetary or material. Cues to deception were also stronger when lies were about transgressions.

Cues to deception

182 undergraduates described personal embarrassment, shame, and guilt experiences and rated these experiences on structural and phenomenological dimensions. Contrary to popular belief, shame was no more likely than guilt to be experienced in "public" situations; all 3 emotions typically occurred in social contexts, but a significant proportion of shame and guilt events occurred when respondents were alone. Analyses of participants' phenomenological ratings clearly demonstrated that shame, guilt, and embarrassment are not merely different terms for the same affective experience. In particular, embarrassment was a relatively distant neighbor of shame and guilt, and the differences among the 3 could not be explained simply by intensity of affect or by degree of moral transgression. Finally, participants generally were their own harshest critics in each type of event, evaluating themselves more negatively than they believed others did.

/pdf/are-shame-guilt-and-embarrassment-distinct-emotions-27zd7fbv5m.pdf

Are shame, guilt, and embarrassment distinct emotions?

A study of 229 undergraduates examined whether specific self-discrepancies are differentially related to shame proneness and guilt proneness. Contrary to E. T. Higgins (1987), but in line with the present authors' expectations, the tendency to experience shame, but not guilt, was positively related to all types of self-discrepancies. An attempt was also made to replicate E. T. Higgins, Klein, and Strauman's (1985) findings that specific self-discrepancies are associated with distinct emotion syndromes. No support was found for the central hypotheses of self-discrepancy theory. Finally, the authors evaluated the utility of two methods for assessing self-discrepancies. Higgins's qualitative method and quantitative adjective ratings. The two methods yielded essentially identical relationships to other variables. The very high correlations among different types of self-discrepancies within each method, however, raise discriminant validity concerns.

Are shame and guilt related to distinct self-discrepancies? A test of Higgins's (1987) hypotheses.

The relation of shame-proneness and guilt-proneness to eating disorder sympto matology was explored in a sample of 171 undergraduate women. Participants completed the Eating Disorder Inventory 2 (EDI-2) and the Test of Self-Conscious Affect (TOSCA). In general, shame-proneness was positively and guilt-proneness negatively associated with eating disorder symptoms. Specifically, shame was significantly positively correlated with drive for thinness, bulimia, body dissatis faction, ineffectiveness, interpersonal distrust, lack of interoceptive awareness, asceticism, difficulties with impulse regulation, and social insecurity. Guilt was negatively or negligibly correlated with these symptoms. Clinical implications and those for future research are discussed.

Deborah Hill Barlow

Papers

Are shame, guilt, and embarrassment distinct emotions?

Are shame and guilt related to distinct self-discrepancies? A test of Higgins's (1987) hypotheses.

The Relation of Shame and Guilt to Eating Disorder Symptomatology