Self-control! We all believe we have full control of
ourselves, but do we really?
Ever decided to quit a bad habit and you either did quit but
no longer then a day or two and or just never quit at all; or maybe you planned
to study but then you realized the exam isn’t until next week so you watch
television instead; or maybe you’re like me and decided to wake up early to go
for a run, to get some exercise in but you like sleep too much to get up to
actually run? Well if you have experienced or done any of theses’ according to
Chapter 10 you and I both lack self-control. Self-control is explained as “choosing
between two rewards, selecting a larger later reward over a smaller sooner
reward”. People realize that there patterns are sub-optimal but they seem unable
to change. We know what to do, but we insist on not doing it.
Trying to understand why people have such difficulty
controlling their own behavior has long been a matter of assumptions. Philosopher
Plato continued his belief that people engage in actions that are not in their
best interest because the lack of education, and that once they realize that it
is to their benefit to behave appropriately, they will do so. Whilst Philosopher
Aristotle disagreed by believing that individuals often behave in ways that
they clearly recognize as counterproductive.
Noting that self-control requires a certain mental faculty called
“willpower”. Someone who behaves wisely and resists temptations is known to
have a lot of willpower, whereas someone like myself who yields to temptation
and behave poorly (that part isn’t me) has little to no willpower.
Skinner viewed self-control as not the issue of willpower but
as an issue involving conflicting outcomes, example in the text is drinking
alcohol, which can lead to both positive and negative outcomes. The positive
outcome would be the increased confidence and feeling of relaxation; the
negative outcome would be the hangover and the idiotic tattoo you found on your
arm the next morning.
Reading this part of the chapter helped me realize this
important trait about myself and I hope this helps you all as well.
Powell, R., Honey, P., Symbaluk, D. (2013). Introduction to learning and behavior. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Powell, R., Honey, P., Symbaluk, D. (2013). Introduction to learning and behavior. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
This was such a well written response!!! It helped me understand self-control a lot better. I related to the examples you used, too.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this post of self control. Its such and interesting thing that everyone deals with in their life. Realizing how much self control you use in your life either good or bad is amazing.
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