Exploring the Interplay of Trait Self-Control and Ego Depletion: Empirical Evidence for Ironic Effects

Trait self-control (TSC) has been conceptualized as a general and abstract ability to exert self-regulation across multiple domains that has mostly beneficial effects. However, its relationship to situational depletion of self-regulatory resources has received little attention. We systematically explore the interplay of trait and situational self-control in two studies (total N = 264). In contrast with a positive view of TSC, the results show greater ego depletion effects for high (vs. low) self-control abilities across such diverse domains as candy consumption (Study 1), risk-taking behaviour (Study 2) and achievement motivation (Study 2). It is proposed that these ironic effects are attributable to high-TSC individuals' less frequent active inhibition of impulses in everyday life and their resulting lack of experience in resisting acute temptations. A third study (N> = 358) corroborated this general reasoning by showing that TSC is indeed associated with less frequent impulse inhibition in daily routines. Our data point to a downside of dispositional self-control in ego depletion paradigms. Other explanations and potential future avenues for resolving inconsistent findings across the literature are discussed

Discrepancies between implicit and explicit self-concepts of intelligence: relations to modesty, narcissism, and achievement motivation

Previous research has shown that different configurations of the implicit self-concept of intelligence (iSCI) and the explicit self-concept of intelligence (eSCI) are consistently related to individuals' performance on different intelligence tests (Dislich et al., 2012). The results indicated that any discrepant configuration between the iSCI and the eSCI impairs performance. In the present study, how correspondence between the iSCI and the eSCI is related to intelligence test performance as well as personality traits of modesty (low eSCI, high iSCI), narcissism (high eSCI, low iSCI), and achievement motivation was investigated. Furthermore, a moderated mediation analysis showed that the relation between the iSCI eSCI configurations and intelligence test performance was mediated by achievement motivation for modest individuals