Measures Of Self-control Research Articles

Committing Homicide After Drinking: The Characteristics of Self-Reported Alcohol-Involved Homicide Offending

ABSTRACT It is well established that alcohol use is associated with homicide (e.g. Kuhns et al. 2014; Parker et al. 2011). However, much of our knowledge of alcohol-involved homicide is based on official data. Self-report data obtained directly from offenders about their consumption of alcohol immediately prior to committing homicide provide valuable information that complements data from official sources such as details emerging from police investigations and court proceedings. However, such data are rare. This study analyzes self-report data collected through face-to-face interviews with 205 men and women convicted of murder or manslaughter in Australia, of whom almost half (43.4%) reported use of alcohol prior to the homicide. The strongest predictor of alcohol-involved homicide was ongoing alcohol problems, speaking to the importance of prevention strategies targeting the entrenched nature of substance misuse. Furthermore, alcohol-involved homicides were nighttime events, committed in public places by older offenders using knives. Though such variables appear indicative of impulsiveness, a measure of self-control did not distinguish between alcohol-involved and not alcohol-involved homicide. Further investigations into the role of self-control on alcohol and violence are necessary.

The relationship between four indicators of future time orientation, criminal thinking style, and illegal behaviors.

Individuals who commit criminal behaviors are often thought to prioritize short-term goals rather than long-term goals (i.e., a present vs. a future time orientation). Though previous theories of crime and empirical research support a relationship among future time orientation, criminal thinking, and illegal behaviors, there is disagreement in the literature about how to operationalize the multidimensional construct of future time orientation. The primary aim of this pre-registered survey study was to measure multiple components of future time orientation to better understand the relationship with criminality-related outcomes. Participants were 248 undergraduate college students. Survey materials included a measure of impulsivity (Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11), self-control (Brief Self-Control Scale), delay discounting (Monetary Choice Questionnaire), and Carstensen's Future Time Perspective Scale. Participants also completed two measures of criminal thinking style (the Texas Christian University Criminal Thinking Scale, the Criminogenic Cognitions Scale) and an illegal behaviors checklist. Bivariate results demonstrated a negative relationship between future time orientation (i.e., low impulsivity, high self-control, high future time perspective) and criminal thinking style. The relationship between delay discounting and criminal thinking was in the hypothesized direction but failed to reach statistical significance. Multiple regression analyses indicated that the measure of self-control had the most consistent and incrementally significant relationship with both criminal thinking style and illegal behaviors. Theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed along with study limitations and future directions.

Parental socialization and adolescent dating violence victimization

There has been a great deal of research interest on intimate partner violence, but comparatively less research has been focused on adolescent dating victimization. The available research, however, shows that adolescent dating victimization is often a precursor to adulthood intimate partner violence victimization as well as a range of other maladaptive outcomes. The current study sought to examine whether parental socialization was associated with being the victim of adolescent dating violence. To do so, data from the National Longitudinal of Adolescent to Adult Health were analyzed. The results revealed that most of the parenting measures were unrelated to adolescent dating violence victimization, but that measures of self-control and delinquent peers emerged as consistent predictors for both males and females. These findings underscore the complex nature of adolescent dating victimization and highlight the importance of future research addressing this pressing social issue.

Assessing the Gender-Neutral Claim of Self-Control and Offending: A Meta-Analysis

While low self-control is one of the strongest predictors of offending, scholars do not agree whether the theory is gendered or gender neutral. This study used hierarchal meta-analytic methods to take stock of the self-control literature, focusing specifically on all-male and all-female samples. The analysis included 1,282 effect size estimates (ESEs) nested in 244 individual studies which used 169 unique datasets. Moderator analyses examined potential differences depending on sample and offense characteristics, measurement of self-control, and included controls in multivariate models. While mean ESEs did not differ significantly for males and females, suggesting that the effect between self-control and offending is similar, once moderator analyses were conducted, differences emerged in female offense type and measurement. This suggests that while self-control can explain both male and female offending, there may be important gendered risk factors that are also influential.

The relationship between self-control and academic achievement: A meta-analysis investigation

Many studies have reported a significant relationship between self-control and academic achievement, although the strength of this relationship varies across studies. Moderator factors that influence the relationship between the two variables have yet to be clearly defined. Therefore, this meta-analysis aims further to explore the relationship between self-control and academic achievement and investigate moderating factors that may affect the strength of the relationship. The study involved 70 samples drawn from 16 primary studies published between 2005 and 2018. Data analysis was conducted using a random effects model with a significance level of α = 5%. In addition to the main analysis, six moderator variables were analyzed, namely education level, geographical region, self-control measurement tool, academic achievement measurement tool, and publication year. All analyses were conducted with the help of JASP software. The analysis of the 70 samples showed a moderate positive relationship between self-control and academic achievement (r = 0.32, p 0.001). Analysis of the moderator variables showed that all of these variables had a significant effect on the strength of the relationship between self-control and academic performance. Based on education level, the positive relationship was stronger in studies involving mixed participants and weakest in studies involving university students. The relationship was also stronger in studies involving students in the United States compared to students in Africa and Europe, using the ISC scale to measure self-control compared to the BSCS and other scales and using grade point average (GPA) as a measure of academic achievement compared to other measures. Potential explanations and implications of these findings for research and practice are discussed.

Validation of Short-Form Scales of Self-Control, Procedural Justice, and Moral Foundations

Self-control, perceived procedural justice, and moral foundations are prominent theoretical constructs in the criminological literature. However, existing measures of each are long. Long scales crowd questionnaires, increase cognitive burden, and lengthen completion times. Using a set of heuristic guidelines for scale construction, we develop short measures of self-control, procedural justice, and moral foundations and then test experimentally whether they can replace the existing longer versions. We conducted a series of split-ballot experiments with a national sample of American adults (N = 1191). Respondents were randomly assigned to receive the existing long scale or our shorter version. We then compared the scales on factor structure, reliability, and validity. The short scales performed as well, and sometimes better than, the longer versions. Our results suggest that researchers can use our short scales of self-control, procedural justice, and moral foundations in lieu of the existing long scales while maintaining data quality.

Clarifying the relationship between trait aggression and self-control using random item slope regression.

Myriad psychological research evinces a negative association between self-control and aggression with some arguing for self-control failure as a cause of aggression. Recent literature suggests that the relationship between aggression and self-control is likely more complex and even positive in some cases. One source of such conflict in the literature could be the presence of unaccounted for random item slopes in commonly used measures of self-control which may inflate the likelihood of Type I errors. This study (N = 1386) tested the hypothesis that self-control would share random item slopes with the facets of trait aggression using random item slope regression. We measured trait aggression and self-control via two common self-reports: the Buss-Perry Questionnaire and the Brief Self-Control Scale. Our analyses revealed that the facets of trait aggression shared significant random item slopes with self-control and that many of these slopes were positive, rather than negative. We also found that Type I error inflation was evident in models that did not account for these random slopes. These findings may in part explain some of the conflicting results in the literature and that researchers interested in studying self-control and aggression should test for random item slopes.

White matter integrity of right frontostriatal circuit predicts internet addiction severity among internet gamers.

Excessive use of the internet, which is a typical scenario of self-control failure, could lead to potential consequences such as anxiety, depression, and diminished academic performance. However, the underlying neuropsychological mechanisms remain poorly understood. This study aims to investigate the structural basis of self-control and internet addiction. In a cohort of 96 internet gamers, we examined the relationships among grey matter volume and white matter integrity within the frontostriatal circuits and internet addiction severity, as well as self-control measures. The results showed a significant and negative correlation between dACC grey matter volume and internet addiction severity (p < 0.001), but not with self-control. Subsequent tractography from the dACC to the bilateral ventral striatum (VS) was conducted. The fractional anisotropy (FA) and radial diffusivity of dACC-right VS pathway was negatively (p = 0.011) and positively (p = 0.020) correlated with internet addiction severity, respectively, and the FA was also positively correlated with self-control (p = 0.036). These associations were not observed for the dACC-left VS pathway. Further mediation analysis demonstrated a significant complete mediation effect of self-control on the relationship between FA of the dACC-right VS pathway and internet addiction severity. Our findings suggest that the dACC-right VS pathway is a critical neural substrate for both internet addiction and self-control. Deficits in this pathway may lead to impaired self-regulation over internet usage, exacerbating the severity of internet addiction.

Brief multidimensional self-control scale: psychometric properties and cross-gender measurement invariance of the Portuguese version

ABSTRACT Self-control has been traditionally defined as the capacity to inhibit or overrule immediate urges in order to attain long-term goals, and it is considered an important topic of research in criminology and forensic psychology. The aim of the present study is to examine the psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the Brief Multidimensional Self-Control Scale (BMSCS). Our sample consisted of 242 male and female participants (M = 30.19 years, SD = 12.78, range = 16–77 years) from Portugal. The one-factor model and the two-factor second-order model obtained adequate fits. Internal consistency/reliability, as measured by the alpha and omega coefficients, was adequate when considering the BMSCS total but the Inhibition and Initiation factors tended to present lower values. Convergent validity (with other self-control measures), divergent validity, and criterion-related validity (with justice-involvement and alcohol/drug abuse variables) were demonstrated. Measurement invariance across gender was established, with no significant differences being found when comparing male and female participants. Our findings add novel information and mostly support the use of the recently developed BMSCS as a short, valid, and reliable measure of self-control.

Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) with better task-based delay of gratification skills are rated as less impulsive, more agreeable, and smarter.

Delay of gratification and inhibitory control are generally considered measures of self-control. In humans, individual differences in measures of self-control are associated with a host of behavioral, neurological, cognitive, and health-related outcomes. Self-control is not unique to humans and has been demonstrated in a variety of nonhuman species using a variety of paradigms. In this study, the effect of sex and age on delay of gratification performance, as measured by the hybrid delay task, was tested in a sample of 88 chimpanzees. Additionally, whether individual differences in hybrid delay task performance were associated with different aspects of personality was examined in this study. Contrary to reports in human subjects, geriatric male chimpanzees were found to perform more efficiently than adult males, while no age differences were found between geriatric and adult females. Indeed, delay of gratification efficiency was positively associated with age in males and negatively associated with age in females. Chimpanzees that performed more efficiently on the hybrid delay task were also found to be rated as more intelligent, more extraverted, and less impulsive. These findings suggest that objective measures of efficiency in delay of gratification tasks are associated with different dimensions of personality, which have some overlapping construct validity. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Evolution, the Cognitive Sciences, and the Science of Victimization.

Despite clear aversion to such labels, one of the most impactful criminological theories is rooted in cognitive science. Gottfredson and Hirschi's general theory has been repeatedly tested, replicated relatively well, and has since reached beyond its original scope to explain other important outcomes like victimization. However, the work never viewed itself as part of a larger scientific landscape and resisted the incursion of neuroscience, cognitive science, and evolutionary theory from the start. This missed opportunity contributes to some of the theory's shortcomings. We begin by considering relevant literatures that were originally excluded and then conduct a new analysis examining the cognitive underpinnings of victimization in a high-risk sample of adolescents. We used the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (n = 3,444; 48% female; 49% Black, 25% Hispanic) which contained sound measures of self-control and intelligence, as well as four types of adolescent victimization. Self-control was robustly associated with all forms of victimization, whereas intelligence had generally no detectable effect. We discuss how these findings fit into a broader understanding about self-control and victimization.

Explaining the Victim-Offender Overlap of Cyberbullying Using Low Self-Control and Parental Bonds

This study examined cyberbullying using a cross-sectional sample of n = 5,954 late adolescent high-school students in Arizona and had several purposes: 1. To examine the extent of the overlap of cyberbullying perpetration and victimization; 2. To examine the effects of low self-control and parental bonds on cyberbullying; and 3. To use both attitudinal and behavioral measures of low self-control as predictors. Using bivariate probit regression models, the study found an overlap between cyberbullying perpetration and victimization, with 9.1% of the sample experiencing both. For the most part, low self-control measures better predicted cyberbullying than parental bond measures. Implications for programming are discussed.

Social influences on delayed gratification in New Caledonian crows and Eurasian jays.

Self-control underlies goal-directed behaviour in humans and other animals. Delayed gratification - a measure of self-control - requires the ability to tolerate delays and/or invest more effort to obtain a reward of higher value over one of lower value, such as food or mates. Social context, in particular, the presence of competitors, may influence delayed gratification. We adapted the 'rotating-tray' paradigm, where subjects need to forgo an immediate, lower-quality (i.e. less preferred) reward for a delayed, higher-quality (i.e. more preferred) one, to test social influences on delayed gratification in two corvid species: New Caledonian crows and Eurasian jays. We compared choices for immediate vs. delayed rewards while alone, in the presence of a competitive conspecific and in the presence of a non-competitive conspecific. We predicted that, given the increased risk of losing a reward with a competitor present, both species would similarly, flexibly alter their choices in the presence of a conspecific compared to when alone. We found that species differed: jays were more likely to select the immediate, less preferred reward than the crows. We also found that jays were more likely to select the immediate, less preferred reward when a competitor or non-competitor was present than when alone, or when a competitor was present compared to a non-competitor, while the crows selected the delayed, highly preferred reward irrespective of social presence. We discuss our findings in relation to species differences in socio-ecological factors related to adult sociality and food-caching (storing). New Caledonian crows are more socially tolerant and moderate cachers, while Eurasian jays are highly territorial and intense cachers that may have evolved under the social context of cache pilfering and cache protection strategies. Therefore, flexibility (or inflexibility) in delay of gratification under different social contexts may relate to the species' social tolerance and related risk of competition.

Street Youth, Violence, and Hirschi’s Redefinition of Self-Control

ABSTRACT The research examines Hirschi’s redefinition of self-control and its link to violence. Utilizing a sample of 287 homeless street youth the paper explores the criminogenic impacts of three different operationalizations of self-control. It investigates the direct effects of bonding self-control, attitudinal self-control, and decisional self-control on violence and assesses the indirect relationships that bonding self-control and attitudinal self-control have with violence through their associations with decisional self-control. Results indicate all three measures of self-control contribute to the understanding of intentions to engage in violence. Further, evidence reveals that both bonding self-control and attitudinal self-control have indirect links to offending through their impact on decisional self-control. Findings are discussed and suggestions for future research offered.

사회초년생의 시간관과 자기통제력이 업무지연행동에 미치는 영향

Objectives The purpose of this study was to verify whether the time perspective of a new employee influences work delay behavior through self-control, and whether perceived stress between self-control and work procrastination is controlled.&#x0D; Methods To this end, an online survey consisting of zimbardo time perspective inventory, the brief self-control measure, perceived stress scale, and aitken procrastination inventory was conducted on 301 a new employee with less than three years of service at workplaces in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 25.0. Correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between measurement variables. The collected data were analyzed to examine the mediating effect and moderated mediation effect. And bootstrapping was used to verify the significance of indirect effects.&#x0D; Results The results of the study are as follows. First, as a result of the correlation analysis of each variable, the ‘past negative’ time perspective and ‘present fatalistic’ time perspective showed a statistically significant negative correlation to self-control, and a positive correlation with work procrastination. ‘future’ time perspective has a statistically significant positive correlation with self-control, and has shown an negative correlation with work procrastination. Second, self-control fully mediated the ‘past negative’ time perspective on work procrastination, and self-control partially mediated the ‘present fatalistic’ time perspective and ‘future’ time perspective on work procrastination. Third, the control effect of perceived stress in the relationship between self-control and work procrastination was shown to be statistically significant. In other words, the impact of self-control on work procrastination depends on the level of perceived stress.&#x0D; Conclusions It was confirmed whether perceived stress can control the effect of the time perspective of the new employee on work procrastination through self-control. This study is expected to provide useful data for understanding the cognitive and psychological factors that affect the relationship between time perspective and work procrastination and for consulting access to work procrastination in corporate consultation scenes.

Exploring the Relationship Between Religiosity and Offending Intentions Among Various Sub-Samples of Incarcerated Individuals

Researchers suggest an inverse relationship between criminal behaviors and a number of social bonds, including religiosity, but few studies have examined religiosity’s impact among adults, especially those known to have committed serious crimes. Utilizing survey data from a large sample of men and women incarcerated for felonies in a southwestern correctional system, we estimated a series of regressions examining the relationship between religiosity and intentions to drive drunk, controlling for a number of other social and self-control measures. We also explored possible race and sex differences in these relationships. Results support the negative relationship between religiosity and crime; and indicate that this significant relationship is similar among men and women, and also among White and African American individuals.

Self-regulatory control processes in youths: A temporal network analysis approach.

This study aimed to better understand the temporal interrelationships among self-control, response inhibition, and anger (i.e., momentary state and rumination) on both the within- and between-person levels in male adolescents. We applied temporal network analyses among 62 male adolescents with a wide range of behavioral difficulties. Self-control, momentary anger, and anger rumination were mapped by self-report measures, whereas we measured response inhibition through an ambulatory Go/No-go task (two measures a day-morning and afternoon-over a 9-day period). Temporal network analysis, at the within-person level, revealed that morning measures of response inhibition, anger rumination, and self-control were related to the corresponding measure in the afternoon. More efficient response inhibition in the morning was associated with higher self-control in the afternoon. Higher anger rumination in the morning led to higher momentary anger in the afternoon. In a concurrent within-person network, higher momentary anger was reciprocally associated with lower self-control. At the between-person level, higher momentary anger was correlated to higher anger rumination, lower response inhibition, and lower self-control. This study provides insight into the dynamic interactions among self-control, response inhibition, and anger (momentary state and rumination) in male adolescents, advancing the understanding of self-regulatory control functioning.

Predicting sugar intake using an extended theory of planned behavior in a sample of adolescents: The role of habit and self-control.

High levels of sugar intake are associated with multiple maladaptive health outcomes in adult and younger populations. Identifying the psychological determinants of sugar intake in adolescents, and the processes involved, may help identify potentially modifiable targets and inform intervention development. We tested the predictions of an extended theoretical model based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), which specified social cognition constructs, habit, and self-control as correlates of sugar intake in an adolescent sample. Adolescents aged 12 to 14 years (N=88) recruited via a survey panel company and consenting to participate in the study completed online self-report measures of constructs from the TPB alongside measures of habit and self-control. One month later, participants completed a follow-up measure of free-sugar intake. Hypothesized effects of our proposed extended model were tested using partial least squares structural equation modeling. We found statistically significant effects of attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control on sugar intake intentions. We also found significant effects of habit and self-control on sugar intake measured at follow-up, but no effect for intention. Perceived behavioral control moderated the intention-behavior relationship such that intention effects on behavior were larger when perceived behavioral control was high. However, self-control did not moderate the intention-behavior relationship. Results indicate that sugar intake in this sample was a function of habits and self-control, and the effect of sugar intake intentions was conditional on perceived behavioral control. Results contribute to an evidence base of determinants and associated processes that relate to sugar intake in adolescents and may signal potentially modifiable targets for intervention.

Sin Taxes and Self-Control

According to theory, “sin taxes” are welfare improving if consumers with low self-control respond at least as much to the tax as consumers with high self-control. We investigate empirically if demand response to soft drink and fat tax variations in Denmark depends on consumers’ self-control. We use a unique home-scan panel that includes a survey measure of self-control. When taxes increase, consumers with low self-control reduce purchases less strongly than consumers with high self-control. When taxes decrease, both groups increase their purchases similarly. The results show an asymmetry in price elasticities by self-control that is more pronounced when taxes increase. (JEL D12, D91, H25, H31, I12, I18, L66)

Pre-pandemic family resources and child self-regulation in children's internalizing problems during COVID-19: a multi-level social-ecological framework for emotional resilience.

Children's psychological adjustment to adverse events can be determined by multiple risk and resilience factors. This study explored multi-level protective factors against children's internalizing problems and investigated the mechanism regarding how diverse environmental and child-level resources influence children's mental health in the context of COVID-19. Our participants included a nationally representative sample of 2,619 young children (48.3% girls) and their primary caregivers (95.1% mothers) in Singapore. They were a subset of the participants in the Singapore Longitudinal Early Development Study (SG LEADS). Data were collected over two waves-before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic (Wave 1) when these children aged 3 to 6, and during the second year of the pandemic (Wave 2). Primary caregivers completed measures of verbal cognitive ability, self-control, economic stress, and positive and negative parental control in Wave 1. Children's self-regulation was assessed by the Delay of Gratification task in Wave 1, and their internalizing problems were rated by their primary caregivers in both waves. Other pre-pandemic family and community characteristics were collected as covariates. Structural equation modeling was performed. Pre-pandemic parental resources (i.e., verbal cognitive ability, self-control, and low economic stress) predicted children's fewer internalizing problems during the pandemic and less aggravation of internalizing problems from before to during the pandemic, through more positive parental control (i.e., limit setting) and less negative parental control (i.e., harsh discipline). Moreover, children's self-regulation during early childhood was predicted by their primary caregivers' verbal cognitive ability and self-control, as well as positive parental control. Early childhood self-regulation further alleviated the aggravation of internalizing problems over time. Among the covariates, parental education, family income, parental psychological well-being, living with both parents, having a live-in domestic helper, and neighborhood quality also longitudinally predicted fewer child internalizing problems. Our findings underscore the importance of nurturing children's emotional resilience under adverse and uncertain circumstances by boosting protective factors in their social-ecological system, including community-, family-, parent-, and child-level resources.