Skip to main content

The Nature of Self-Regulatory Fatigue and "Ego Depletion": Lessons From Physical Fatigue.

Author
Abstract
:

Self-regulation requires overriding a dominant response and leads to temporary self-regulatory fatigue. Existing theories of the nature and causes of self-regulatory fatigue highlight physiological substrates such as glucose, or psychological processes such as motivation, but these explanations are incomplete on their own. Historically, theories of physical fatigue demonstrate a similar pattern of useful but incomplete explanations, as recent views of physical fatigue emphasize the roles of both physiological and psychological factors. In addition to accounting for multiple inputs, these newer views also explain how fatigue can occur even in the presence of sufficient resources. Examining these newer theories of physical fatigue can serve as a foundation on which to build a more comprehensive understanding of self-regulatory fatigue that integrates possible neurobiological underpinnings of physical and self-regulatory fatigue, and suggests the possible function of self-regulatory fatigue.

Year of Publication
:
2016
Journal
:
Personality and social psychology review : an official journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc
Volume
:
20
Issue
:
4
Number of Pages
:
291-310
ISSN Number
:
1088-8683
URL
:
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1088868315597841?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%3dpubmed
DOI
:
10.1177/1088868315597841
Short Title
:
Pers Soc Psychol Rev
Download citation