

Understanding Ego Depletion - diego
http://danariely.com/2012/08/15/understanding-ego-depletion/

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nostromo
It seems trivial, but last year there were related findings with very real
consequences:

"Judges are more lenient after taking a break, study finds. Prisoners are more
likely to be granted parole early in the day or after a break such as lunch,
according to researchers" ([http://www.guardian.co.uk/law/2011/apr/11/judges-
lenient-bre...](http://www.guardian.co.uk/law/2011/apr/11/judges-lenient-
break))

Here is the actual paper: <http://www.pnas.org/content/108/17/6889>

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acgourley
Understanding ego depletion and willpower are incredibly important skills for
any knowledge worker. A book like [http://www.amazon.com/The-Willpower-
Instinct-Self-Control-Ma...](http://www.amazon.com/The-Willpower-Instinct-
Self-Control-Matters/dp/1583334386) will help a programmer perform better work
than a book on compilers.

~~~
lpolovets
I read the book a few months ago and thought it was excellent. If anyone is
interested, I took extensive notes (warning, they kind of spoil reading the
book, which I think is very much worth reading):
[http://leopolovets.com/blog/2011/10/23/book-notes-on-
willpow...](http://leopolovets.com/blog/2011/10/23/book-notes-on-willpower/)

~~~
andyjsong
> Zeigarnik effect: uncompleted tasks and unmet goals tend to pop into one’s
> mind. Once the task is completed and the goal is reached, however, this
> stream of reminders comes to a stop. For example, if you listen to a song,
> your mind moves on; if you listen to a song that’s abruptly cut off in the
> middle, your mind will continue inserting bits and pieces of the song into
> your stream of thoughts, reminding you that you’re not “done” listening.

Interesting, I wonder if this is the same as when you have a song stuck
(looping) in your head. I've been told that listening to the whole song will
make it unstuck.

~~~
StavrosK
My observations confirm both of these assertions. Leaving a song (I was semi-
actively listening to) unfinished will make it stuck in my head, finishing it
will remove it.

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gwern
But then again:
[http://lesswrong.com/lw/2y2/willpower_not_a_limited_resource...](http://lesswrong.com/lw/2y2/willpower_not_a_limited_resource/)

~~~
rrmm
From scanning that paper, I'm guessing that talking about willpower as a
limited resource causes those in that group to assume that willpower is not
only limited but small and about to run out as well.

So for example, if one were to talk about sunlight as being a limited resource
(which it is), it carries the implication that that limit is close enough to
worry about.

People's attention is drawn to the idea that they will run out of willpower.
The first time they start to experience depletion, they give up, because they
assume they've run out.

It would be interesting to repeat the experiment, but tell the participants
that in addition to the normal amount of willpower, they also have a secondary
reserve which, with a little more effort, they can tap into to double or
triple their performance.

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jwilliams
How generalizable is this outside food? There was the cheating example, but
that felt a bit more abstract than the other examples. I wonder if a taxed
mind simply makes us craze glucose to keep it powered.

Either way, I think most people could associate with this - if I'm stressed
I'll figure I _deserve_ whatever treat. I think part of the problem is the
effort and reward aren't linked at all.

If I need to push on something - I try to build the reward in - e.g. Big week
of work and I'll buy an LP, or go out, whatever. Then I feel less inclined to
grab something unhealthy "cos I deserve it".

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verroq
Another take on this: <http://youarenotsosmart.com/2012/04/17/ego-depletion/>

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smartkids
Sounds more like energy depletion that "ego depletion".

The more stress the person is undergoing the more energy is drained. Isn't
this obvious? I thought Ariely was known for brilliant insights on human
behaviour. Maybe he's become a dieting guru? That's where the money is?

People overeat when they're stressed. Everyone knows that. But why? I've
sometimes thought it's because overeating is like an opiate. Think about how
you feel after a big meal. The blood rushes to your stomach, you might even
feel sleepy and it's much more difficult to "get stressed" than it is on an
empty stomach.

~~~
zxcdw
When you're stressed your blood's glucose levels get depleted which weakens
your ability for self-control. Once you give in, especially when you are tired
and exhausted, it's easier to go all "fuck this, imma eat all I can for now
and eat better later on!". Of course, eating increases the glucose level of
your blood and afterwards you feel kind of bad about it and the whole idea of
giving in starts to feel stupid - "I could've sticked to my promise", "It was
just stupid, I should have been stronger".

There's also the fact that habitual snacking and eating "just a bit... ...all
the time" grows 1) a mental habit to the act of eating 2) physical dependency
to the act of having glucose levels high 3) mental and physical dependency on
the good experience(smell and taste).

I used to be a person who ate once a day(lunch), and perhaps ate a
fruit(banana or an apple) a few times a week to supplement. Back then I really
pitied people who couldn't control their weight. To me it was outright
laughable that someone simply could not refuse the sweets, pastries, soft
drinks, ... because for me they were never even an option I considered. These
days though, while I am not obese(although I've gained a lot of weigh which I
know I _should_ get rid of) I've realized that I've became a habitual eater. I
eat constantly, all the time. Small snacks, soft drinks, whatever. All the
time. Every 15-30-45 minutes I check the fridge. And I can't help it. It's not
hunger. It's not the taste itself. It's the act of eating. Act of having
something down my throat. While I can resist it on irregular basis every now
and then, I can't cancel the actual act of habit just like this. And man, this
is horrible. Now I know how it is to not being able to "just refuse it and
that's it". Luckily, I consume lots more than average person(physical work,
hobbies, conscious effort) so I can control my weight at least. But I am
hooked on eating. Habitual eater, no way to deny it.

~~~
smartkids
It's interesting if you think about how easy is is to get food. The drives
that cause us to eat probably evolved in the long period of human evolution
where we had to work really hard, like every other animal, to find food.
Hunger might cause stress, and rightly so. The search for food, for any
animal, is always a top priority. But it's so ridiculously easy for people to
feed themselves now. The search for food, driven by hunger, is "trivial". You
could even eat just for the fun of eating. It's fun. It's also not very
healthy. But how many fun things are also healthy? I digress.

Maybe someone in the UK can comment on what it was like during WWII when there
was a severe shortage of food. I have heard some say people were actually
quite healthy because they were not eating "too much" as it is so easy to do
under normal conditions. I don't know. Maybe some from the UK can comment.

In sum, given that we are still animals with animal drives like hunger,
finding food and eating is way too easy. Maybe our evolution has not caught
up.

~~~
keithpeter
I can't find any solid references, but there was an improvement in health, but
part of the reason could be that people who would previously have had a poor
diet were 'rationed up' to a balanced and healthy one: everyone got protein
and fresh veg.

<http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/9728.php>

PS: My Mum can still remember the first banana she saw, and getting fresh
oranges (overseas sourced foods basically disappeared for 8 years)

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rdtsc
Does this explain why many crappy infomercials are airing late night on TV. By
that point people have depleted their willpower and will just buy any junk
that is shown to them?

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andreasvc
No, that just happens to be the time when the networks don't have any
programming, which they sell for a much more reasonable price than prime time
commercials.

~~~
bgilroy26
These two conditions work together

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nisa
It appears to be not so easy: [http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mind-
design/201108/willp...](http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mind-
design/201108/willpower-is-not-resource)

~~~
rrmm
I hope a lot more research is put into this subject to find out. It's
something that can greatly improve people's lives.

More effort thus far has been put into figuring out how to overcome people's
willpower and induce them to make poor decisions not in their own interests.

On the bright side, most of the strategies to improve willpower will be
effective regardless of which model is actually true.

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jasonkolb
I have definitely noticed this effect after prolonged bouts of intense coding.
There comes a point when the tank is just empty, and I might as well stop
because I'll mostly just sit there and stare at the screen. I'm definitely
more likely to succumb to easy but bad choices such as fast food at those
times too.

A 10 minute nap seems to reset me though, which is cool. I try to take one
after completing a good sized chunk of work so I'll be capable of completing
another one or two in the same day.

