Affective strategies of self-control: Hidden risks and cognitive rigidity.

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Title: Affective strategies of self-control: Hidden risks and cognitive rigidity.
Authors: Doulatova, Maria (AUTHOR)
Source: Philosophical Psychology. May2026, Vol. 39 Issue 4, p1587-1605. 19p.
Subjects: Self-control, Emotions, Emotion regulation, Addictions, Affect (Psychology), Attitude (Psychology), Goal (Psychology)
Abstract: Many theorists argue that self-control produces only positive outcomes with no apparent downsides. Of course, while exercises of self-control could be put to bad use in cases of cognitive rigidity like anorexia, the value of self-control remains prominent in everyday life. Nevertheless, some worries remain. Do some ways of exercising self-control incur greater risks for developing cognitive rigidity than others? That is, do all exercises of self-control have equally positive outcomes? I synthesize empirical findings to show that some popular ways of bolstering self-control have greater risks for developing cognitive rigidity than others. Hence, not all exercises of self-control have equally positive outcomes. While strategies of using emotions to bolster self-control have recently been met with a great deal of enthusiasm, some of these strategies incur greater risks for developing cognitive rigidity than others. For example, while using emotions like anger could initially bolster self-control, these emotions could become addictive and invite cognitive rigidity in the long run. Similarly, while using implementation intentions could initially bolster self-control, this strategy could thwart cognitive flexibility necessary for goal-disengagement. Finally, certain ways of bolstering self-control with negative emotions like shame could increase cognitive rigidity by causing one to "get stuck" in self-control mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Philosophical Psychology is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: Affective strategies of self-control: Hidden risks and cognitive rigidity.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Doulatova%2C+Maria%22">Doulatova, Maria</searchLink> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Philosophical+Psychology%22">Philosophical Psychology</searchLink>. May2026, Vol. 39 Issue 4, p1587-1605. 19p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Self-control%22">Self-control</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Emotions%22">Emotions</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Emotion+regulation%22">Emotion regulation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Addictions%22">Addictions</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Affect+%28Psychology%29%22">Affect (Psychology)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Attitude+%28Psychology%29%22">Attitude (Psychology)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Goal+%28Psychology%29%22">Goal (Psychology)</searchLink>
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  Data: Many theorists argue that self-control produces only positive outcomes with no apparent downsides. Of course, while exercises of self-control could be put to bad use in cases of cognitive rigidity like anorexia, the value of self-control remains prominent in everyday life. Nevertheless, some worries remain. Do some ways of exercising self-control incur greater risks for developing cognitive rigidity than others? That is, do all exercises of self-control have equally positive outcomes? I synthesize empirical findings to show that some popular ways of bolstering self-control have greater risks for developing cognitive rigidity than others. Hence, not all exercises of self-control have equally positive outcomes. While strategies of using emotions to bolster self-control have recently been met with a great deal of enthusiasm, some of these strategies incur greater risks for developing cognitive rigidity than others. For example, while using emotions like anger could initially bolster self-control, these emotions could become addictive and invite cognitive rigidity in the long run. Similarly, while using implementation intentions could initially bolster self-control, this strategy could thwart cognitive flexibility necessary for goal-disengagement. Finally, certain ways of bolstering self-control with negative emotions like shame could increase cognitive rigidity by causing one to "get stuck" in self-control mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Philosophical Psychology is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/09515089.2025.2483682
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 19
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      – SubjectFull: Self-control
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Emotions
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      – SubjectFull: Emotion regulation
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      – SubjectFull: Addictions
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      – SubjectFull: Affect (Psychology)
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      – SubjectFull: Attitude (Psychology)
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      – SubjectFull: Goal (Psychology)
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              Text: May2026
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              Y: 2026
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