Know Your Preferences: Self-Regulation as Need-Congruent Goal Selection

2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 437-451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Axel Grund ◽  
Stefan Fries ◽  
Falko Rheinberg
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Goal Pursuit ◽  
Human Action ◽  
Goal Maintenance ◽  
Goal Selection ◽  
Goal Pursuits ◽  
Action Phases ◽  
Insight Into

Theory and research on self-regulation is dominated by a social–cognitive perspective that places an emphasis on postdecisional (i.e., volitional) control processes of goal-maintenance in response to dual-motive conflict. In the current contribution, we focus on research on self-regulation that acknowledges the affective fundamentals of motivated action, and we highlight processes of goal selection as vital parts of self-regulation. From our perspective of motivational competence, affective and cognitive processes work together rather than oppose each other in self-regulation, rendering effortless rather than effortful goal pursuit as the hallmark of efficient human action. A precondition for such motive- and self-congruent goal pursuits is that individuals have insight into their basic preferences and (can) act accordingly. Therefore, we address capacities, such as mindfulness, which may take effect in predecisional (i.e., motivational) action phases, thereby determining all subsequent action processes.

scholarly journals To sext or not to sext. The role of social-cognitive processes in the decision to engage in sexting

2021 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 1410-1429
Author(s):  
Claire Wilson ◽  
Tommy van Steen ◽  
Christabel Akinyode ◽  
Zara P. Brodie ◽  
Graham G. Scott
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Cognitive Factors ◽  
Relationship Status ◽  
Injunctive Norm ◽  
The Social ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Insight Into

Technology has given rise to online behaviors such as sexting. It is important that we examine predictors of such behavior in order to understand who is more likely to sext and thus inform intervention aimed at sexting awareness. We used the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to examine sexting beliefs and behavior. Participants (n = 418; 70.3% women) completed questionnaires assessing attitudes (instrumental and affective), subjective norms (injunctive and descriptive), control perceptions (self-efficacy and controllability) and intentions toward sexting. Specific sexting beliefs (fun/carefree beliefs, perceived risks and relational expectations) were also measured and sexting behavior reported. Relationship status, instrumental attitude, injunctive norm, descriptive norm and self-efficacy were associated with sexting intentions. Relationship status, intentions and self-efficacy related to sexting behavior. Results provide insight into the social-cognitive factors related to individuals’ sexting behavior and bring us closer to understanding what beliefs predict the behavior.

scholarly journals Longitudinal Relations Between Self-Defining Memories and Self-Esteem: Mediating Roles of Meaning-Making and Memory Function

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 318-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hsiao-Wen Liao ◽  
Susan Bluck ◽  
Gerben J. Westerhof
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Life Story ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Longitudinal Design ◽  
Memory Function ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Adult Lifespan ◽  
Social Cognitive Processes

The present study examines Hsiao-Wen Liao is now at the Department of Psychology, Stanford University, CA, USA. the role of self-defining memories in predicting self-esteem using a 1-year longitudinal design with an adult lifespan sample ( N = 1,216; age range 18–92; Mage = 49.52; SDage = 17.25). The interplay between narrators’ personality at the life story level and two social-cognitive processes, meaning-making and functional memory use, is investigated. Participants provided three self-defining memories, and their personality positivity was assessed in terms of the ratio of positive-to-all memories. Memory narratives were reliably coded for meaning-making, and participants reported the extent to which they use each remembered event to serve adaptive functions. One year later, participants completed a measure of self-esteem. Personality positivity at Time 1 predicts greater self-esteem at Time 2. The effect of personality positivity occurs, however, completely through creating positive meaning and using memories functionally. The findings contribute to the literature on narrative identity and autobiographical memory by delineating how memory processes relate to self-regulation over time. The relative roles of personality and social-cognitive processes in autobiographical narratives in linking to self-esteem are discussed.

scholarly journals PCIT engagement and persistence among child welfare-involved families: Associations with harsh parenting, physiological reactivity, and social cognitive processes at intake

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Skoranski ◽  
Elizabeth Skowron ◽  
Akhila Nekkanti ◽  
Carrie Scholtes ◽  
Emma Lyons ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Child Welfare ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Adult Child ◽  
Readiness For Change ◽  
Dyadic Interaction ◽  
Sinus Arrhythmia ◽  
Welfare Families ◽  
Interaction Phase

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) has been shown to improve positive, responsive parenting and lower risk for child maltreatment (CM), including among families who are already involved in the child welfare system. However, higher-risk families show higher rates of treatment attrition, limiting effectiveness. In N = 120 child welfare families randomized to PCIT, we tested behavioral and physiological markers of parent self-regulation and socio-cognitive processes assessed at pre-intervention as predictors of retention in PCIT. Results of multinomial logistic regressions indicate that parents who declined treatment displayed more negative parenting, greater perceptions of child responsibility and control in adult-child transactions, respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) increases to a positive dyadic interaction task, and RSA withdrawal to a challenging, dyadic toy clean-up task. Increased odds of dropout during PCIT’s Child-Directed Interaction phase were associated with greater parent attentional bias to angry facial cues on an Emotional Go/No-Go task. Hostile attributions about one’s child predicted risk for dropout during the Parent-Directed Interaction phase, and readiness for change scores predicted higher odds of treatment completion. Implications for intervening with child welfare-involved families are discussed along with study limitations.

Interpersonal Influences on Self-Regulation

2010 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gráinne M. Fitzsimons ◽  
Eli J. Finkel
Keyword(s):  
Self Regulation ◽  
Goal Pursuit ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Interpersonal Processes ◽  
Goal Progress ◽  
The Social ◽  
Current Article ◽  
Goal Pursuits ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
The Impact

Since the 1960s, personality and social psychologists have taken major strides toward understanding the intrapersonal processes that promote successful self-regulation. The current article reviews insights into the understanding of self-regulation gained by examining the impact of interpersonal processes on the initiation, operation, and monitoring of goals. We review research suggesting that other people can act as triggers of goals, causing people to unconsciously initiate new goal pursuits; that interpersonal interactions can tap self-control, leaving people with depleted resources for goal pursuit; that relationship partners can support goal operation, leading to more effective goal pursuit; and that the social environment can facilitate effective monitoring of one’s extant goal progress and likelihood of future goal achievement.

scholarly journals Goal Cycle: Antecedents and Consequences of Goal Progress

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ewa Szumowska ◽  
Katarzyna Jasko ◽  
Karolina Dukała ◽  
Paulina Górska
Keyword(s):  
Self Regulation ◽  
Goal Pursuit ◽  
Cyclic Process ◽  
Goal Progress ◽  
Reciprocal Relationships ◽  
Goal Importance ◽  
Antecedents And Consequences ◽  
Person Centered Approach ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Level Of Analysis

Even though goal pursuit is often conceptualized as a linear phenomenon, it consists of feedback loops and reciprocal relationships between its crucial components. To investigate this aspect, we tested relationships between goal properties (goal importance and expectancy of success) as well as goal-related emotions and goal progress over time. Across three waves, 389 participants, and 3,150 unique goals, we found that goal progress was positively predicted by goal expectancy and, less consistently, by the importance attached to the goal. Furthermore, it was also positively predicted by goal-related satisfaction and, to a lesser extent, stress. Moreover, goal progress positively predicted future progress on the same goal via increased importance, increased expectancy, and increased satisfaction and negatively via decreased stress. These results provide insight into the mechanisms of goal-pursuit viewed as a cyclic process. Moreover, given that we have found much greater variability at the goal (compared to the person) level of analysis, the results suggest a goal- rather than person-centered approach to studying self-regulation.

scholarly journals Neural Correlates of Promotion and Prevention Goal Activation: An fMRI Study using an Idiographic Approach

2007 ◽  
Vol 19 (7) ◽  
pp. 1152-1162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kari M. Eddington ◽  
Florin Dolcos ◽  
Roberto Cabeza ◽  
K. Ranga R. Krishnan ◽  
Timothy J. Strauman
Keyword(s):  
Regulatory Focus ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Goal Pursuit ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Cortical Activation ◽  
Goal Activation ◽  
Fmri Study ◽  
Idiographic Approach ◽  
Goal Priming

Regulatory focus theory [Higgins, E. T. Beyond pleasure and pain. American Psychologist, 52, 1280–1300, 1997] postulates two social-cognitive motivational systems, the promotion and prevention systems, for self-regulation of goal pursuit. However, the neural substrates of promotion and prevention goal activation remain unclear. Drawing on several literatures, we hypothesized that priming promotion versus prevention goals would activate areas in the left versus right prefrontal cortex (PFC), respectively, and that activation in these areas would be correlated with individual differences in chronic regulatory focus. Sixteen participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while engaged in a depth-of-processing task, during which they were exposed incidentally to their own promotion and prevention goals. Task-related cortical activation was consistent with previous studies. At the same time, incidental priming of promotion goals was associated with left orbital PFC activation, and activation in this area was stronger for individuals with a chronic promotion focus. Findings regarding prevention goal priming were not consistent with predictions. The data illustrate the centrality of self-regulation and personal goal pursuit within the multilayered process of social cognition.

scholarly journals PCIT engagement and persistence among child welfare-involved families: Associations with harsh parenting, physiological reactivity, and social cognitive processes at intake

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Amanda M. Skoranski ◽  
Elizabeth A. Skowron ◽  
Akhila K. Nekkanti ◽  
Carolyn M. Scholtes ◽  
Emma R. Lyons ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Child Welfare ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Adult Child ◽  
Readiness For Change ◽  
Dyadic Interaction ◽  
Sinus Arrhythmia ◽  
Welfare Families ◽  
Interaction Phase

Abstract Parent-Child interaction therapy (PCIT) has been shown to improve positive, responsive parenting and lower risk for child maltreatment (CM), including among families who are already involved in the child welfare system. However, higher risk families show higher rates of treatment attrition, limiting effectiveness. In N = 120 child welfare families randomized to PCIT, we tested behavioral and physiological markers of parent self-regulation and socio-cognitive processes assessed at pre-intervention as predictors of retention in PCIT. Results of multinomial logistic regressions indicate that parents who declined treatment displayed more negative parenting, greater perceptions of child responsibility and control in adult–child transactions, respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) increases to a positive dyadic interaction task, and RSA withdrawal to a challenging, dyadic toy clean-up task. Increased odds of dropout during PCIT's child-directed interaction phase were associated with greater parent attentional bias to angry facial cues on an emotional go/no-go task. Hostile attributions about one's child predicted risk for dropout during the parent-directed interaction phase, and readiness for change scores predicted higher odds of treatment completion. Implications for intervening with child welfare-involved families are discussed along with study limitations.

scholarly journals PCIT engagement and persistence among child welfare-involved families: Associations with harsh parenting, physiological reactivity, and social cognitive processes at intake

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Skoranski ◽  
Elizabeth Skowron ◽  
Akhila Nekkanti ◽  
Carrie Scholtes ◽  
Emma Lyons ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Child Welfare ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Adult Child ◽  
Readiness For Change ◽  
Dyadic Interaction ◽  
Sinus Arrhythmia ◽  
Welfare Families ◽  
Interaction Phase

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) has been shown to improve positive, responsive parenting and lower risk for child maltreatment (CM), including among families who are already involved in the child welfare system. However, higher-risk families show higher rates of treatment attrition, limiting effectiveness. In N = 120 child welfare families randomized to PCIT, we tested behavioral and physiological markers of parent self-regulation and socio-cognitive processes assessed at pre-intervention as predictors of retention in PCIT. Results of multinomial logistic regressions indicate that parents who declined treatment displayed more negative parenting, greater perceptions of child responsibility and control in adult-child transactions, respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) increases to a positive dyadic interaction task, and RSA withdrawal to a challenging, dyadic toy clean-up task. Increased odds of dropout during PCIT’s Child-Directed Interaction phase were associated with greater parent attentional bias to angry facial cues on an Emotional Go/No-Go task. Hostile attributions about one’s child predicted risk for dropout during the Parent-Directed Interaction phase, and readiness for change scores predicted higher odds of treatment completion. Implications for intervening with child welfare-involved families are discussed along with study limitations.

EXPRESS: We Succeeded Together, Now What: Relationship Power and Sequential Decisions in Couples' Joint Goal Pursuits

2021 ◽  
pp. 002224372110345
Author(s):  
Hristina Nikolova ◽  
Gergana Y. Nenkov
Keyword(s):  
Goal Pursuit ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Financial Data ◽  
Self Concept ◽  
Relational Self ◽  
Relationship Power ◽  
Sequential Decisions ◽  
Goal Progress ◽  
Goal Pursuits

Research has demonstrated that after making high goal progress consumers feel liberated to engage in goal-inconsistent behaviors. But what happens after consumers make high progress in the context of joint goal pursuit? We examine how jointly-made progress towards a joint goal pursued by couples affects subsequent individually-made goal-relevant decisions. Across five experiments with both lab-created couples and married participants and financial data from a couples' money management mobile app, we show that after making high progress on a joint goal (vs. low or no progress), higher relationship power partners are more likely to disengage from the joint goal to pursue personal concerns (e.g., indulge themselves or pursue individual goals), whereas lower relationship power partners do not disengage from the joint goal and continue engaging in goal-consistent actions that maintain its pursuit. We elucidate the underlying mechanism, providing evidence that the joint goal progress boosts the relational self-concept of high (but not low) relationship power partners and this drives the effects. Importantly, we demonstrate the effectiveness of two theory-grounded and easily implementable interventions which promote goal-consistent behaviors among high relationship power consumers in the context of joint savings goals.

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