‘Pleasureful self-control’? A new perspective on old problems

Many societal challenges, for example regarding health and sustainability, are conceptualized as problems of too little self-control: people's long-term goals are jeopardized (e.g., healthy weight, small carbon footprint) because one cannot resist attractive alternatives (e.g., chocolate cake,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Current opinion in psychology Vol. 60; p. 101888
Main Authors:	Becker, Daniela, Bernecker, Katharina, Guobyte, Aiste, Ganama, Daniel
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Elsevier Ltd 01-12-2024
Subjects:	Health Hedonic goal pursuit Intrinsic motivation Pleasure Self-control Self-regulation Sustainability Intrinsic motivation Self-control Health Sustainability Hedonic goal pursuit Pleasure Self-regulation
Online Access:	Get full text
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Summary:	Many societal challenges, for example regarding health and sustainability, are conceptualized as problems of too little self-control: people's long-term goals are jeopardized (e.g., healthy weight, small carbon footprint) because one cannot resist attractive alternatives (e.g., chocolate cake, vacation in the sun). Here, we introduce a different way of conceptualizing those challenges, namely as problems of ‘too little pleasure’. We review empirical evidence showing that pleasure can support three central aspects of self-control: the initiation of long-term goal behavior, persistence in long-term goal pursuit, and resisting tempting alternatives. We close by encouraging the field to change perspectives and to include pleasure in the solution of problems that have mainly been studied as a matter of too little self-control and too much pleasure.
ISSN:	2352-250X 2352-250X
DOI:	10.1016/j.copsyc.2024.101888