title: A test of positive affect induction for countering self-control depletion in cigarette smokers.
abstract: The self-control strength model posits that exerting self-control on one task, such as resisting temptations, will deplete self-control and impair subsequent self-regulatory performance, such as controlling smoking. The current study examined interventions designed to replenish depleted self-control strength to prevent tobacco use by inducing positive affect. In a 2 × 2 design, 200 participants were randomized to either (1) resist eating from a plate of desserts (high temptation) or from a plate of raw vegetables (low temptation) and then (2) undergo a positive or neutral affect induction. Two inductions were compared (video vs. writing technique). Participants were then given a 10-min recess. Whether or not participants smoked during the recess, assessed by self-report and biochemical verification, served as the primary dependent variable. The interaction between depletion and exposure group was significant, Wald's χ² = 9.66, df = 3, p < .05. Among those assigned to resist desserts, 65.5% to 85% smoked if they were in the neutral video or writing conditions versus 10.5% in the positive affect video group. Positive affect elicited with a video was able to counteract the detrimental effects of self-control depletion on smoking behavior, while writing exercises were associated with smoking. Implications for tobacco cessation intervention are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of California-San Francisco, 94143-0984, USA.
authors.forename: Dikla
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Shmueli
authors.forename: Judith J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Prochaska
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D009042:Motivation; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods* / Q000523:psychology; D012927:Social Control, Informal