You (Luke) give the cognitive-behavioral school of psychology too much credit. Yes, they’re empirical, but empiricism is worth little unsupplemented by reason and imagination. What you get is the empirical study of platitudes and truisms.
That’s not to say these works are of no benefit; only that the benefit doesn’t lay in their tediously trivial experimentation. The idea advanced in the recommended book that procrastination is a species of impulsivity is valuable if you use it flexibly because it allows you to bring the whole literature on impulsivity to bear or procrastination. It appears that scientific offerings on procrastination are meager because less narrow-minded schools of psychology view procrastination as a facet of impulsity, which has been the subject of a great deal of research and analysis by more than a single school of thought.
Procrastination isn’t one of my many problems, but merely writing the last sentence acknowledging impulsivity’s relevance gave me the following idea about how to apply one line of impulsivity research. Here it is. Empirical research shows that will-power, while lacking the omnipotence often assumed, is something one can use up. In other words, if you exert your will it exertion becomes harder (in the short term.
To overcome a particular procrastination, indulge your appetites without restraint before trying to make yourself do the task, and you should subsequently you should find more will to exert. For example, if you have dietary impulse-control problems, pig out. (I guess getting drunk doesn’t work because then you’ll have to perform your task inebriated when you overcome procrastination with your will-power enhanced by preceding self-indulgence. Untested.
Empirical research shows that will-power, while lacking the omnipotence often assumed, is something one can use up. In other words, if you exert your will it exertion becomes harder (in the short term.
Voted up. Interesting article, but I don’t think I (we) mean the same by “self-control” as the authors. Their model for a failure of self control is a lapse of concentration. Their studies show that the power to concentrate doesn’t diminish, an interesting finding in its own right. But it’s not a problem with volition. Involuntary lapses of concentration are not the “akrasia” kind of problem mostly discussed here. Lapse of concentration is a different phenomenon than procrastination.
There exists an even more important problem with using the results of this study to claim that self control is not a limited resource—that isn’t a valid conclusion based on the evidence. There are an infinite number of other possible explanations, but the one claimed by the writer of the article doesn’t explain the phenomena observed. The study shows a completely different effect than the one imputed. The study didn’t even establish a fair correlation to strengthen the statements made—they ended up studying something different than what they intended.
By splitting the groups into one that believed in the limited nature of self control, and one that did not believe in it, they tested the utility of a belief, not its correctness. The limited nature of self control may be completely correct, and the study is simply showing that people told about this fact use it as an excuse to exercise their self control less often.
No, the experimenters also found that those lacking the self-limiting theory didn’t suffer any detriment in their performance. They performed like Energizer Rabbits.
The researchers also countered my point by showing real-world effects on akrasia-type behavior. So, it’s possible that contrary to appearance and introspection, lapses in concentration do demonstrate the same phenomenon as procrastination.
Regardless the scope of the findings, whether will-power is a limited resource is one of the most important questions for rational self-regulation. It exemplifies ongoing research relevant to procrastination, which you’re unlikely to see addressed in the self-help literature, because of its narrow cognitive-behavioral framework. Reorienting one’s reading and reasoning to the broader topic of impulsivity, moreover, leads you to the work of two laboratories advancing opposed theories, a healthier epistemic environment than one dominated by cognitive behaviorism.
I’m unclear on why you think that their findings in the particular cases shown demonstrate what they claim. (I could easily be missing something.) The lack of findings demonstrates that the cases considered are not examples of the effect that they looked for—that still fails to show that there is no such effect.
Again, what they did show was that the existence of the mental model was detrimental to performance.
I just want to point out that it is impossible to prove a thing doesn’t exist.
However, when things exist we expect certain observations, and we don’t find them that is, in fact, evidence that the thing we are looking for doesn’t exist. It isn’t particularly strong evidence (unless the “thing” absolutely must cause the effect we’re looking for in the experiment). Not finding any effect in these studies really should shake your confidence in the theory quite a lot unless a.) there is already a large body of evidence contradicting these findings (doesn’t sound like there is) or b.) there are some methodological flaws that invalidates the findings in the study (doesn’t sound like there are, just disagreement with the conclusion). More studies would clarify both issues.
In other words, the lack of findings do, in fact, show that there is no such effect. It’s just weak evidence, that’s all. If various experiments are repeated over and over looking for the self-limiting control and never find them, well, we still haven’t proven it doesn’t exist. However, we can be pretty damn sure that it either doesn’t exist or is so insignificant as to be meaningless.
I’m not saying this has happened at all, I haven’t read any of the papers on the subject, I’m just saying your reasoning has a flaw. If you’re really attached to the self-limiting theory for some reason, it could be a case of looking for evidence that allows you to believe in what you want to believe, rather than looking at whether or not the theory has a decent probability of being right and adjusting your views accordingly.
I don’t understand exactly how that experiment is supposed to work.
Right now, I’m trying to work on a programming exercise for class, but I’m also interested in playing Civ4. So are you suggesting that I, say, play Civ4 for an hour, then try the programming again?
If so, I have done that before (many times) and it doesn’t work. I’ll just end up spending all of my time today playing and when I try to get the exercise done in the evening or tomorrow, it will be equally hard. (Unless I indulge so much that I get sick of it and doing anything else becomes more desirable.)
Right now, I’m trying to work on a programming exercise for class, but I’m also interested in playing Civ4. So are you suggesting that I, say, play Civ4 for an hour, then try the programming again?
For one hour? You can do that? Don’t you want just one more turn?
(Personally I never played Civ 4 per se. I played the Fall From Heaven mod. Evil game.)
Well, I have successfully played Civ while studying for an exam. Play a turn, do a problem (and let the AI do its turn), repeat. Works surprisingly well, especially with Civ5 and its sluggish AI. I’d recommend using two different locations and removing any chair or other comfortable arrangement at the Civ machine. A little workout every time limits the willingness to start world wars.
Well, I have successfully played Civ while studying for an exam. Play a turn, do a problem (and let the AI do its turn), repeat. Works surprisingly well, especially with Civ5 and its sluggish AI. I’d recommend using two different locations and removing any chair or other comfortable arrangement at the Civ machine.
I’ve had some luck using Civ turns as a prompt to do mundane cleaning. Surprisingly effective! :)
A little workout every time limits the willingness to start world wars.
How does that work? Oh, you mean you make the civ playing time into a form of excercise so you become reluctant to make your turns last a long time, as is the case in world wars. I suppose this could be combined this with some core building or stretching exercises during the “Civ” phase for extra willpower managing convenience.
That’s it. I have some cleaning up to do this afternoon. I’m going to find a copy of Civ, install it and report back with my success story. :P
You (Luke) give the cognitive-behavioral school of psychology too much credit. Yes, they’re empirical, but empiricism is worth little unsupplemented by reason and imagination. What you get is the empirical study of platitudes and truisms.
That’s not to say these works are of no benefit; only that the benefit doesn’t lay in their tediously trivial experimentation. The idea advanced in the recommended book that procrastination is a species of impulsivity is valuable if you use it flexibly because it allows you to bring the whole literature on impulsivity to bear or procrastination. It appears that scientific offerings on procrastination are meager because less narrow-minded schools of psychology view procrastination as a facet of impulsity, which has been the subject of a great deal of research and analysis by more than a single school of thought.
Procrastination isn’t one of my many problems, but merely writing the last sentence acknowledging impulsivity’s relevance gave me the following idea about how to apply one line of impulsivity research. Here it is. Empirical research shows that will-power, while lacking the omnipotence often assumed, is something one can use up. In other words, if you exert your will it exertion becomes harder (in the short term.
To overcome a particular procrastination, indulge your appetites without restraint before trying to make yourself do the task, and you should subsequently you should find more will to exert. For example, if you have dietary impulse-control problems, pig out. (I guess getting drunk doesn’t work because then you’ll have to perform your task inebriated when you overcome procrastination with your will-power enhanced by preceding self-indulgence. Untested.
That’s disputed.
(PDF of the paper)
Voted up. Interesting article, but I don’t think I (we) mean the same by “self-control” as the authors. Their model for a failure of self control is a lapse of concentration. Their studies show that the power to concentrate doesn’t diminish, an interesting finding in its own right. But it’s not a problem with volition. Involuntary lapses of concentration are not the “akrasia” kind of problem mostly discussed here. Lapse of concentration is a different phenomenon than procrastination.
There exists an even more important problem with using the results of this study to claim that self control is not a limited resource—that isn’t a valid conclusion based on the evidence. There are an infinite number of other possible explanations, but the one claimed by the writer of the article doesn’t explain the phenomena observed. The study shows a completely different effect than the one imputed. The study didn’t even establish a fair correlation to strengthen the statements made—they ended up studying something different than what they intended.
By splitting the groups into one that believed in the limited nature of self control, and one that did not believe in it, they tested the utility of a belief, not its correctness. The limited nature of self control may be completely correct, and the study is simply showing that people told about this fact use it as an excuse to exercise their self control less often.
No, the experimenters also found that those lacking the self-limiting theory didn’t suffer any detriment in their performance. They performed like Energizer Rabbits.
The researchers also countered my point by showing real-world effects on akrasia-type behavior. So, it’s possible that contrary to appearance and introspection, lapses in concentration do demonstrate the same phenomenon as procrastination.
Regardless the scope of the findings, whether will-power is a limited resource is one of the most important questions for rational self-regulation. It exemplifies ongoing research relevant to procrastination, which you’re unlikely to see addressed in the self-help literature, because of its narrow cognitive-behavioral framework. Reorienting one’s reading and reasoning to the broader topic of impulsivity, moreover, leads you to the work of two laboratories advancing opposed theories, a healthier epistemic environment than one dominated by cognitive behaviorism.
I’m unclear on why you think that their findings in the particular cases shown demonstrate what they claim. (I could easily be missing something.) The lack of findings demonstrates that the cases considered are not examples of the effect that they looked for—that still fails to show that there is no such effect.
Again, what they did show was that the existence of the mental model was detrimental to performance.
I just want to point out that it is impossible to prove a thing doesn’t exist.
However, when things exist we expect certain observations, and we don’t find them that is, in fact, evidence that the thing we are looking for doesn’t exist. It isn’t particularly strong evidence (unless the “thing” absolutely must cause the effect we’re looking for in the experiment). Not finding any effect in these studies really should shake your confidence in the theory quite a lot unless a.) there is already a large body of evidence contradicting these findings (doesn’t sound like there is) or b.) there are some methodological flaws that invalidates the findings in the study (doesn’t sound like there are, just disagreement with the conclusion). More studies would clarify both issues.
In other words, the lack of findings do, in fact, show that there is no such effect. It’s just weak evidence, that’s all. If various experiments are repeated over and over looking for the self-limiting control and never find them, well, we still haven’t proven it doesn’t exist. However, we can be pretty damn sure that it either doesn’t exist or is so insignificant as to be meaningless.
I’m not saying this has happened at all, I haven’t read any of the papers on the subject, I’m just saying your reasoning has a flaw. If you’re really attached to the self-limiting theory for some reason, it could be a case of looking for evidence that allows you to believe in what you want to believe, rather than looking at whether or not the theory has a decent probability of being right and adjusting your views accordingly.
I don’t understand exactly how that experiment is supposed to work.
Right now, I’m trying to work on a programming exercise for class, but I’m also interested in playing Civ4. So are you suggesting that I, say, play Civ4 for an hour, then try the programming again?
If so, I have done that before (many times) and it doesn’t work. I’ll just end up spending all of my time today playing and when I try to get the exercise done in the evening or tomorrow, it will be equally hard. (Unless I indulge so much that I get sick of it and doing anything else becomes more desirable.)
For one hour? You can do that? Don’t you want just one more turn?
(Personally I never played Civ 4 per se. I played the Fall From Heaven mod. Evil game.)
Well, I have successfully played Civ while studying for an exam. Play a turn, do a problem (and let the AI do its turn), repeat. Works surprisingly well, especially with Civ5 and its sluggish AI. I’d recommend using two different locations and removing any chair or other comfortable arrangement at the Civ machine. A little workout every time limits the willingness to start world wars.
I’ve had some luck using Civ turns as a prompt to do mundane cleaning. Surprisingly effective! :)
How does that work? Oh, you mean you make the civ playing time into a form of excercise so you become reluctant to make your turns last a long time, as is the case in world wars. I suppose this could be combined this with some core building or stretching exercises during the “Civ” phase for extra willpower managing convenience.
That’s it. I have some cleaning up to do this afternoon. I’m going to find a copy of Civ, install it and report back with my success story. :P
How many turns of Civ4 can you get through in an hour, anyway.
I’m confused as to why this was a reply to my comment.
My apologies. It was a careless error.
That’s what I suspected. That’s fine. :)