The Influence Of Self-control On Well-being And The Psychological Mechanisms And Neural Correlates

With the rising tide of positive psychology and health psychology,exploring the determinant factor affecting well-being has become one of the most valued goal that scholars from different field foucus on,and revealing the answer to this issue is essential for elevating individuals’ life quality,optimizing government’s public service and management,and promoting social harmony and stability.Based on different philosophical foundations,two dominant and well-established perspectives are developed from the existing studies of well-being: hedonia and eudaimonia.Hedonic well-being,developed from hedonia,holds that well-being is a subjective experience of pleasure and the main purpose of individual’s all activities is to acquire pleasure and avoid pain.Whereas eudaimonic well-being,evolved from eudaimonia,holds that well-being is not equal to subjective experience of pleasure but is more concerned with the fulfilment of human potential,goal-achievement,and self-realization.As the core component of self-regulation,self-control is defined as the capacity to restrain and alter spontaneous dominant response resulting in inhibiting undesired impulsive behavioral tendencies while promoting long-term goals.Previous studies have shown that self-control can positively predict one’s hedonic well-being,but some researchers argue that too much self-control may be detrimental to one’s hedonic well-being.Whether the influence of self-control on hedonic well-being being is “too much” or “more is better”remains controversial,and further research evidence is needed.Notably,studies have mainly focuses on the relationship between self-control and hedonic well-being,while less attention has been paid to the relationship between self-control and eudaimonic well-being.Considering that eudaimonic well-being plays a more important role in individuals’ health and adaptation,it may become an intrinsic mechanism underlying the link of self-control with hedonic well-being.Moreover,the psychological mechanisms underlying the associations of self-control with well-being are still not well understood.This paper will further explore the role of basic psychological need and self-authenticity in the influence of self-control on eudaimonic well-being and hedonic well-being.Finally,there are no studies directly investigating the neural correlates underlying the associations of self-control with hedonic well-being and eudaimonic well-being.Exploring the neural correlates underlying the associations of self-control with well-being could provide cognitive neural evidence for understanding the relationship between personality and well-being and provide a basis for future cognitive neural intervention research.In summary,this article focuses on these above issues and designed four parts of studies to reveal the influence of self-control on eudaimonic well-being and hedonic well-being,as well as its psychological mechanisms and neural correlates.The first part of study mainly used cross-sectional survey,diary experience sampling,and situational experiment to gradually reveal the influence of self-control on eudaimonic well-being and hedonic well-being.Specifically,Study 1 collected the data of personality and well-being in a group of 1758 adolescents(13～24 years old,M=16.25,SD=1.95).The correlation analysis results showed that adolescents with higher level of self-control ability were associated with more positive affect,less negative affect,and higher life satisfaction;self-control also had a moderately high positive correlation with the scores of psychological well-being and sub-dimensions.The curve fitting analysis results showed that there were no inverted U-shaped relationships between self-control and each of the indicators of psychological well-being and subjective well-being,but were closer to positive linear relationships or curve growth relationships.The latent profile analysis results showed that the high self-control group scored significantly higher in psychological well-being and subjective well-being than the low self-control group.Study 2 administered a one-week diary survey to 167 adolescent subjects(18～23 years old,M= 20.39,SD= 1.33).Hierarchical linear model showed that adolescents with higher self-control ability were able to experience greater affective well-being and higher life satisfaction,as well as higher sense of achievement and significance,goal progress,autonomy,and vitality in daily life.The findings of Study 2 basically supported the expected hypothesis and provided more ecological evidence for the impact of self-control on well-being.Moreover,Study 3 randomly divided 170 adolescent subjects(17～25 years old,M =20.76,SD = 1.83)into two groups and ask to review their most recent experience of self-control success or failure and subsequently completed questionnaires related to two tyeps of well-being.Analysis of variance results showed that compared with the experience of self-control failure(low self-control),the experience of self-control success(high self-control)significantly improved one’ s positive affect and decision-making satisfaction,as well as experienced higher sense of purpose and significance,and hope.Study 3 verified the expected hypothesis and provided preliminary insight into the causal impact of self-control on eudaimonic well-being and hedonic well-being from the perspective of a situational experiment.The first part used different research designs and analysis methods and demonstrated that the influence of self-control capacity on eudaimonic well-being and hedonic well-being is “more is better” among adolescents.The second part of study combined data from cross-sectional and longitudinal tracking to construct a mediating model of self-control with eudaimonic well-being and hedonic well-being.Based on the existing data,Study 4 constructed a cross-sectional mediation model to explore the role of eudaimonic well-being in self-control affecting hedonic well-being.The mediation model results showed that self-control not only directly predicted individuals’ subjective well-being,but also indirectly affected subjective well-being through psychological well-being.Study 5 conducted a longitudinal study over a 3-month period among 607 adolescent subjects(12～18 years old,M = 14.92,SD = 0.90)to test the impact of self-control on eudaimonic well-being and hedonic well-being,and further to verify the mediating role of eudaimonic well-being in self-control predicting hedonic well-being.The cross-lagged analysis results showed that there was a unidirectional relationship between self-control and well-being,that is,self-control could significantly and positively predict adolescents’ subjective well-being and psychological well-being,whereas two types of well-being could not predict self-control.It should be noted that there was also a unidirectional relationship between subjective well-being and psychological well-being,that is,eudaimonic well-being could significantly and positively predict hedonic well-being.The longitudinal mediation model results indicated that self-control not only directly predicted subjective well-being after three months,but also indirectly affected subjective well-being through psychological well-being at different time points.The results of Study 5 validated the findings of the first part that self-control could positively predict hedonic well-being and eudaimonic well-being;and eudaimonic well-being may be an intrinsic mechanism underlying the predicting effect of self-control on hedonic well-being,and that the acquisition of eudaimonic well-being may help to enhance adolescents’ hedonic well-being.The second part suggests that eudaimonic well-being plays a more fundamental and important role in one’ s function and experience,that is,the progress of goals and the realization of personal potential achieved by self-control ability can help individuals obtain pleasure.Meanwhile,this finding also provides psychological evidence for the “concept of striving for well-being”.The third part of study introduced basic psychological need and self-authenticity and aimed to reveal the psychological mechanisms underlying self-control affecting well-being,including two studies.Study 6 collected a large cross-sectional data of 2982adolescents(15～20 years old,M=17.28,SD=0.87),and results indicated that there were positive correlations between self-control and psychological well-being and subjective well-being;basic psychological need and self-authenticity were also highly and positively correlated with self-control,and both types of well-being.The structural equation model showed that self-control not only directly and positively predicted subjective well-being and psychological well-being,but also indirectly predicted both types of well-being through basic psychological need,and predicted subjective well-being through the chain mediation from basic psychological need to psychological well-being.Moreover,self-control also predicted psychological well-being through self-authenticity,and predicted subjective well-being through the chain mediation from self-authenticity to psychological well-being.Finally,self-control could satisfy basic psychological need which promoted self-authenticity and then increased psychological well-being and finally resulted in the enhancement of subjective well-being.Study 7conducted a 6-month longitudinal follow-up design among 2539 adolescents(15-20 years old,M= 17.27,SD=0.85),and results further validated the multiple mediation effect of Study 6,and indicated that self-control not only directly and positively predicted subjective well-being and psychological well-being,but also indirectly predicted both types of well-being through basic psychological need,and predicted subjective well-being through the chain mediation from basic psychological need to psychological well-being.Moreover,self-control also predicted psychological well-being through self-authenticity,and predicted subjective well-being through satisfying basic psychological need which promoted self-authenticity and then psychological well-being.Based on the above findings,this paper suggests that the chain multiple mediation of basic psychological need and self-authenticity could explain the predicting effect of self-control on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being.In other words,adolescents with higher self-control experience greater basic psychological need and higher authenticity,which could improve eudaimonic well-being and ultimately contribute to hedonic well-being.The fourth part of study is mainly based on the Behavioral-Brain Research Project(BBP)of adolescents and aimed to reveal the relationship betwee self-control with hedonic well-being and eudaimonic well-being from a cognitive neuroscience perspective and included two studies.Study 8 used the resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging(f MRI)technology to investigate the brain activity and functional connection associated with self-control,and to reveal the association of self-control and its neural correlates with hedonic well-being and negative affect during the novel coronavirus pneumonia(COVID-19)pandemic.A total of 483 adolescents(17～22 years old,M = 18.75,SD = 1.56)completed resting-state f MRI scanning and measurements of trait self-control and subjective well-being at baseline and negative affect during the COVID-19 pandemic after 6 months.The whole-brain correlation analysis showed that self-control was positively associated with amplitude of low frequency(ALFF)scores in the inferior frontal gyrus of the executive control network and the anterior insula of the salience network,and negatively associated with ALFF scores in the medial prefrontal cortex and posterior cingulate gyrus,as well as in the precuneus of the default mode network.The functional connectivity analysis showed that self-control ability was associated with increased functional connections(e.g.,inferior frontal gyrus and posterior cingulate gyrus)and decreased functional connections(e.g.,anterior insula and medial frontal cortex)between brain regions in different brain networks.The mediating model showed that self-control completely mediated ALFF scores of brain region(e.g.,anterior insula)and function connection strength between regions(e.g.,bilateral precuneus connection)on subjective well-being.Moreover,ALFF scores in the inferior frontal gyrus and medial prefrontal cortex could predict negative affect during the pandemic through self-control.Study 9 based on the big data(BBP)and collected trait self-control and resting-state neural activity of adolescents(N = 483)and tracked the data of psychological well-being after 12 months,aiming to reveal the predictive role of self-control and its neural correlates on eudaimonic well-being.The mediating model further showed that self-control completely mediated the predictive effects of ALFF scores in the anterior insula and medial prefrontal cortex,and the function connection strength between anterior insula and insula on psychological well-being.Based on these findings,the neural correlates underlying the relationship between self-control and well-being in adolescents may involve brain activity and functional connections in a wide range of brain networks related to integrative functions(e.g.,salience network),cognitive control(e.g.,executive control network),and self-referential processing(e.g.,default mode network).The main innovations of this study: first,based on the hedonia and eudaimonia well-being orientation,this paper explores the influence of self-control on well-being and its underlying mechanism from the perspective of the “concept of striving for well-being”.Second,combining curve fitting method and potential profile analysis method,this paper tries to solve the controversy about the “too much” effect of self-control on well-being.Third,this paper finds psychological evidence for the“concept of striving for well-being”,that is,eudaimonic well-being can promote hedonic well-being,and self-control can indirectly affect hedonic well-being through eudaimonic well-being.Fourth,based on the Dual System Model,this paper introduces basic psychological need and self-authenticity as psychological mechanisms,and preliminarily establishes the Synthesis Model of self-control affecting well-being,which has certain theoretical guiding significance for future research.Fifthly,the reliability and stability of the present results are verified from multiple angles by using a variety of research methods,including cross-sectional survey,diary experience sampling,situational experiment,and longitudinal design,which compensates the shortcomings of previous studies mostly using a single research method.Using resting-state f MRI technology with high spatial resolution,this paper explores the neural basis of self-control at the trait level and reveals the associations of self-control with hedonic well-being and eudaimonic well-being at the neural level for the first time.The main conclusions of this study:(1)the effect of self-control on adolescents’ well-being is “more is better”;(2)eudaimonic well-being plays a more fundamental and important role in adolescents’ experience and function,and can explain the effect of self-control on hedonic well-being;(3)the psychological mechanisms of self-control affecting well-being involve basic psychological need and self-authenticity,and there is the chain mediation from basic psychological need to eudaimonic well-being and from self-authenticity to eudaimonic well-being,as well as the chain multiple mediation from basic psychological need to self-authenticity and then to eudaimonic well-being;(4)the neural correlates underlying the relationship between self-control and well-being involve brain activity and functional connections within brain networks related to integrative function(e.g.,salience network),cognitive control(e.g.,executive control network),and self-referential processing(e.g.,default mode network).