Can You Learn to Control Your Mind?
The late Sir John Templeton had a deep and abiding conviction that people have the innate ability to master their own passions and impulses, if only they would take the time to develop them. Rigorous self-discipline helped Sir John make his fortune—and this experience, in turn, inspired his interest in what science tells us about free will and self-control. To that end, the John Templeton Foundation supported the work of Roy F. Baumeister, one of the nation's leading social psychologists, as he has explored how people make decisions, and learn—or fail to learn—how to control their own minds.
Now Baumeister brings his research findings to the general public in Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength (Penguin Press), co-authored with New York Times science writer John Tierney, in which the duo uses cutting-edge science to explain why our willpower fails, and how we can make it stronger. Harvard University psychologist Steven Pinker calls Willpower "an immensely rewarding book, filled with ingenious research, wise advice and insightful reflections on the human condition." A Times Magazine article Tierney adapted from the book was the most e-mailed article from the newspaper's website for days after its August publication, and helped propel Willpower up the bestseller lists when it hit bookstores in September.
The book builds on Baumeister's discovery that willpower is like a muscle. The more you exercise it, the stronger it gets—but it is also subject to weariness from overuse. Baumeister calls this condition "decision fatigue," a specific expression of a more general phenomenon he calls "ego depletion." The Florida State University psychologist tells Templeton Report that a key to building one's willpower is to understand how the thing works.
"People think willpower is something you just use once in a while—say, when you're going on a diet," he says. "In fact, it's used constantly, all day long, for little acts, such as making yourself laugh at someone's stupid joke. Every decision, except possibly the occasional snap or easy decision, draws down your willpower."
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AUTHOR:
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Willpower is not simply a moral and mental quality, but also emerges from biological processes. Says Baumeister: "When your immune system is fighting off a cold, it will use a lot of that same energy. Plus, food and sleep contribute to building your willpower. When you're depleted and need to restore your willpower to face a current challenge, just getting something good to eat and having a rest can help."
Yet science also shows that contrary to what researchers used to believe, the old-fashioned habit of practicing self-denial really does help to strengthen one's willpower. "Many studies in our lab and by other people show that the old Victorian notion of building character has some validity to it," Baumeister says.
It's ironic that Baumeister has become a pioneering voice from science for the view that people have the ability to control themselves to a substantial degree. In the 1970s, when he began his career, the psychology field's then-dominant view held that free will was largely a myth, and that society should focus on building self-esteem, not self-control. Baumeister not only accepted this belief, but became one of research psychology's most forthright advocates for it.
"I think it was an honest mistake," he says today. "Self-esteem does correlate with many good things, but it turned out in time that self-esteem was a result, not a cause. I advise parents today to forget about building self-esteem in their kids, and concentrate on building self-control. Self-control is the best gift you can give your children. It's good for them, and it's good for society at large."
The economic crash, driven by too much debt at every level of society, testifies to how much we all need to relearn the virtues of self-control. Research shows that when individuals suffer from ego depletion, they're willing to pay higher prices for goods they need, and to spend impulsively for things they don't need, Baumeister says. What's more, everyday life in a consumer society where choices, and information about those choices, seem to increase exponentially, dramatically ratchets up stress on individual consumers, depleting their willpower to an even greater degree.
"We have a vicious circle where lapses in self-control lead to increases in debt, which leads to more decreases in self-control, spiraling downward," Baumeister says.
Struggling to get by in a fast-moving, information-rich environment, with temptations and exhortations to self-indulgence abounding in our spendthrift consumer culture, individuals may feel like helpless victims of forces beyond their control. In Willpower, Baumeister and Tierney emphatically argue that this isn't the case at all—and offer scientifically sound techniques for gaining control of one's own mind and life.
"People tend to be very pessimistic about this, but they have more self-control than they think," Baumeister tells TR. "While it's true that we have more challenges than ever to our willpower, the good news is that, thanks to technology, we have more to aid us than ever before. And we also can have confidence from the sound knowledge that self-control and willpower can be improved, even as adults. It's never too late."
Evolution and Human Nature: An Invitation to Researchers
Are you a research scholar interested in the dialogue between religion and science? You are invited to apply through the Center of Theological Inquiry (CTI) for one of a number of interdisciplinary fellowships through an initiative funded by the John Templeton Foundation. Based in Princeton, NJ, CTI offers eight research fellowships up to $70,000, and two postdoctoral fellowships of $40,000. According to a CTI statement, the Center welcomes proposals "to explore how the explosion of new research in evolutionary biology, psychology, and anthropology is challenging and changing our understanding of human nature and development, not least in relation to religion and theological accounts of the human condition."
Because of its interdisciplinary nature, this project encompasses evolutionary and human sciences, theological anthropology, practical theology, psychology of religion, religious studies, and the history and philosophy of science. The 12-member team will live and work together for one year in Princeton, beginning in the fall of 2012. "What we want is the very best possible scientists and the very best possible scholars in the humanities who are prepared to work alongside one another in conversations about how to move this field forward," said Celia Deane-Drummond, a Notre Dame university theologian and co-leader of the project.
The Center is taking applications online through November 30. For more information or to apply, visit the CTI website.
The 2011 Templeton Freedom Award Winners
The Atlas Network in Washington, DC, recently announced winners of the 2011 Templeton Freedom Awards, $10,000 cash prizes given to think tanks around the world who demonstrate creativity and innovation in promoting ideals and practices that promote liberty. The 16 winners this year come from 10 nations, and represent a diverse set of approaches to defending liberty. For example, the Philadelphia-based Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) won for its efforts defending free speech and civil liberties on campus. Indego Africa, a collaborative project between Americans and Rwandans, landed a Templeton Freedom Award for its work helping impoverished female Rwandan artisans sell their home decor products online and through 70 U.S. retailers. On the ethics front, Atlas honored the Central European Business and Social Initiative (CEBSI) with a Templeton Freedom Award for its online efforts to educate rising young leaders in Slovakia, the formerly communist country, in the necessity of personal freedom, morality, and tolerance for a healthy democratic society.
Named after the late investor and philanthropist Sir John Templeton, the Templeton Freedom Awards were established in 2003. It is the largest international prize program celebrating think tank contributions to the understanding of freedom. The program has awarded more than $1.5 million in prizes and grants since its inception.
