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The Science of Willpower Kelly McGonigal, PhD

Stanford University

Welcome to Willpower 101

How much sleep did you get last night?

Which is a true statement?

a) Willpower is a limited resource that gets depleted by use.

b) The more I use my willpower, the more willpower I have.

c) Both of the above.

d) Neither of the above.

What class/subject has the most potential to increase a child’s/

teen’s self-control?

“I feel so bad about procrastinating, and so anxious about the next exam, that I will I will procrastinate

again to avoid having to think about it.”

“I feel so bad about myself for procrastinating, and so anxious about the next exam, that I will start studying early, to prevent those feelings from reoccurring.”

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What has challenged your willpower today?

“I won’t” power “I will” power

“I want” power

HEALTH

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“Discipline” & Self-Control

•  Restrictions •  Warnings •  Punishment •  Criticism •  Shaming •  Harsh parenting •  “Don’t!” focus

Cecil et al 2012 Pratt, Turner, & Piquero 2004

Richaud de Minzi, 2005 Sheikh & Janoff-Bulman 2013

Do you trust your world?

Kidd, Palmeri, & Aslin 2013 University of Rochester

1. Physiology 2. Mindset 3. Self-Compassion 4. Connection 5. Future Self

A tale of two instincts

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PAUSE AND PLAN

Willpower is a mind-body response.

How much sleep did you get last night?

Telzer et al. 2013 University of California, Los Angeles

“won’t” power

Yoo, Gujar, Hu, Jolesz, & Walker 2007 UC Berkeley Sleep & Neuroimaging Laboratory

HEALTH

“want” power

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What class/subject has the most potential to increase a child’s/

teen’s self-control?

5 minutes of exercise decreases stress, improves mood, enhances focus, and boosts self-control.

Barton & Pretty 2010 University of Essex, UK

Van Rensburg et al. 2012 Van Rensburg, Taylor, & Hodgson 2009

Taylor & Oliver 2009 University of Exeter, UK

Davis et al. 2011 Medical College of Georgia

171 sedentary 7-to-11-year-olds randomized to 13 wks of exercise (20 or 40 min/day) or a control condition.

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Which is a true statement?

a) Willpower is a limited resource that gets depleted by use.

b) The more I use my willpower, the more willpower I have.

c) Both of the above.

d) Neither of the above.

Willpower exhaustion

Baumeister, Vohs, & Tice 2007 Inzlict, Schmeichel, & Macrae 2014

During final-exam week, students who believed that willpower is strengthened by use reported eating less junk food and procrastinating less, and earned better grades.

34 Job, Dweck, & Walton 2010

Stanford University Dept of Psychology

Miller, Walton, Dweck, et al. 2013 Stanford University Dept of Psychology

The “muscle model” of willpower (a growth mindset)

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1.  Hard things get easier through action. 2.  Failure can be a sign of progress. 3.  Developing willpower in one context

can translate to others. 4.  Full-out effort without recovery =

willpower collapse. 5.  Celebrating effort, milestones, growth,

& accomplishments fuels motivation.

The “muscle model” of willpower (a growth mindset)

What is your willpower workout?

“I feel so bad about procrastinating, and so anxious about the next exam, that I will I will procrastinate

again to avoid having to think about it.”

“I feel so bad about myself for procrastinating, and so anxious about the next exam, that I will start studying early, to prevent those feelings from reoccurring.”

Wohl, Pychyl, & Bennett 2010 Carleton University, Ontario

•  144 underage drinkers and community members tracked drinking.

•  8 AM: logged in to report how they felt.

•  The worse a person felt about how much they drank the night before, the more they drank that night and the next.

Muraven et al. 2005 University of Pittsburgh

The “what-the-hell” effect

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Heatherton & Wagner 2011 Dartmouth Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences

This is your brain on shame: The Doughnut Study

•  Wom

Adams & Leary 2007 Duke University

Women who received “self-compassion” message ate 28 grams of candy (vs. 70 grams).

A Self-Compassionate POV:

1.  Mindfulness of stress/suffering. (What are you feeling?)

2.  Common humanity. (How is this stress/setback universal?)

3.  Self-mentoring. (What would you say to someone you care about?)

Bromberg-Martin, Matsumoto, & Hikosaka 2010 National Institutes of Health, Maryland

Self-Compassion Increases Self-Improvement Motivation

1.  A brief self-compassion message following an induced failure experience increased effort/time to improve on test.

2.  Writing about a personal weakness from a self-compassionate POV increased a growth (vs fixed) mindset.

3.  Writing about an action participants felt guilty about from a self-compassionate POV led to greater motivation to make amends.

4.  Writing about a personal weakness from a self-compassionate POV increased desire to interact with someone who had overcome a similar weakness.

Brienes & Chen 2012 UC Berkeley

How do you handle setbacks, failures, and disappointments?

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Burson, Crocker, & Mischkowski 2012 University of Michigan

Social threats impair willpower

•  Social rejection impairs “I will” and “I won’t” power. (Baumeister et al. 2005)

•  Reminding stigmatized groups or minorities of their status depletes willpower. (Inzlicht, McKay, & Aronson 2006)

•  Loneliness associated with higher levels of stress hormones on waking, & greater reactivity to stress. (Steptoe et al. 2004; Uchino 2006)

Physiology of willpower = Social engagement system

Feeling connected to, cared for, and caring toward.

VAGUS NERVE

Bernier et al. 2012 University of Montreal Department of Psychology

Executive Function

Climate of Authenticity

Surface Acting

Burnout/Willpower Depletion

Workplace Stress

Grandey et al. 2012 Penn State University

Supporting Willpower in Stressful Environments What is a climate of authenticity?

1.  If you show anxiety or distress, it is held against you (R).

2.  Members of this team are able to discuss how they feel about problems and issues.

3.  It is safe to show how you really feel.

4.  It is uncomfortable for team members to show sadness or disappointment with each other (R).

5.  No one on this team would deliberately act in a way that disrespects another member’s feelings.

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• At school? • At home? • Anywhere? What can you do to create a

climate of authenticity?

Ersner-Hershfield et al 2010 Stanford University Dept of Psychology

Young adults who interacted with future self put >2x as much money into retirement account.

When do you graduate?

TODAY

TODAY

5 YEARS

25 YEARS

Peetz et al. 2009 Wilfrid Laurier University Dept of Psychology

X

X

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Distance of future goals

Peetz et al. 2009 Wilfrid Laurier University Dept of Psychology

A Self-Defining Future Moment

•  A meaningful event that can be vividly imagined

•  Feels important to understanding who you are as a person

•  Reflects an enduring theme, desire, or challenge in your life

•  At least 12 months in the future

Argembeau, Lardi, & Van der Linden 2012 Department of Psychology, University of Liege, Belgium

What is a self-defining future moment for you?

1. Physiology 2. Mindset 3. Self-Compassion 4. Connection 5. Future Self

Thank you!

•  kellymcgonigal.com •  @kellymcgonigal •  kmcg@stanford.edu •  www.facebook.com/

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