The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What You Can Do To Get More of It

Chapter 10: Final Thoughts
Page 237—“Only reasonable conclusion to a book about scientific ideas is: Draw your own
conclusions
”: Credit for this suggestion goes to Brian Kidd, Senior Bioinformatics Research
Specialist, Institute for Infection Immunity and Transplantation, Stanford University.

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INDEX

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acceptance
inner
power of
Adams, Claire
addiction
addict loses his cravings
candy addict conquers sweet tooth
chocoholic takes inspiration from Hershey’s
Kisses
dopamine’s role in
drinking
drug
e-mail
Facebook
shopping
smoker under social influence
smoking
Advisor-Teller Money Manager Intervention (ATM)
Ainslie, George
Air Force Academy, U.S. (Colorado)
 
Amazon.com
American Journal of Psychiatry
American Psychological Association
anhedonia
Ansel, Mark
anticipation
anticipatory shame
“Anti-Social” (program)
anxiety
Archives of Internal Medicine
autonomic nervous system
Aztecs

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Baby Boomers
banking crisis (2009)
Baruch College (NYC)
Baumeister, Roy
behavior changes
religion and
Benson, Herbert
binge-drinking study
binge-eaters
Bloomingdale’s (department store)
bounded rationality
Bowen, Sarah
brain
on dopamine
early
energy needs for self-control
evolution of
mirror neurons
modern
pleasure center
prefrontal cortex
remodeling for willpower
reward system
self-control system
self-monitoring system
stress and
stress center
Breman, Anna
bride-to-be gains weight
Bush, George W.

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candy addict conquers sweet tooth
CapturedDiscipline (safe)
carbon offset
Carleton University (Ottawa)
Carlson, Kurt
Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
The Champ
(film)
Cheesecake Factory
Cheng, Ken
Chicago
chimpanzee–student study
chocoholic takes inspiration from Hershey’s Kisses
chocolate, and women
choice architecture
Christakis, Nicholas
cigarette package warnings
City University of New York
civilization collapse
classical conditioning
Columbia University
communities
contagion
complex
of emotion
of goals
people you like and
rule-breaking and
simple
weight gain and
cooperation
Cornell University Food and Brand Laboratory
Cortés, Hernán
cravings

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Daley, Richard M.
daughter makes peace with her anger
death reports on the news
delay discounting
delayed gratification
dental phobic stops waiting for future dentist-loving self to show up
depression
Desteno, David
Dhar, Ravi
Diakonia (Swedish charity)
dieters
dieting
discount rate
distractions
dopamine
brain on
dark side of
on demand
primary function
putting to work
role in addiction
role in anticipation
triggers
dopamine agonist
Dostoyevsky, Fyodor
drinkers
drug addicts
Duke University
Dvorak, Robert

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Easter Island
Edwards, John
e-mail addict
e-mail check-ins keep a goal alive
Erskine, James
Ersner-Hershfield, Hal
everyday distractions
exercise

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Facebook addict
false hope syndrome
fast-food restaurants
fatigue
fight-or-flight response
Fishbach, Ayelet
fish bowl technique
fitness, physical
Florida State University
food samples
food scarcity
“Forest Game,”
forgiveness
Fowler, James
Framingham, Mass.
Framingham Heart Study
Franzen, Jonathan
“Freedom” (program)
frustrated mom finds her want power
future self
fund-raiser uses optimism for good
meeting
as stranger
treating like different people
future-self continuity

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Gage, Phineas
Gailliot, Matthew
Gilbert, Daniel
Give More Now
Give More Tomorrow
giving up control
glucose
goal
contagion
liberation
sabotaging behavior
going green
Goldin, Philippe
grocery-shopper study
grocery stores
guilt

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Haggard, Ted
halo effect
Harlow, John Martyn
Harvard University
Medical School
health halo
heart rate variability
Heath, Robert
Herman. Peter
Hershey’s Kisses
Hill, Archibald
homo sapiens
Hong Kong University of Science
how you fail
human brain. 
See
brain
human nature
hyperopia

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immediate gains
immune system
inner acceptance
instant gratification
economics of
meet your future self
Under the Microscope
Are You Too Farsighted for Your Own Good?
Are You Waiting for Future You?
How Are You Discounting Future Rewards?
putting the future on sale
time to wait, time to give in
value of precommitment
Willpower Experiment
Lower Your Discount Rate
Meet Your Future Self
Precommit Your Future Self
Wait Ten Minutes
internal conflict
ironic rebound
avoiding
I want, I will, I won’t
neuroscience of
“I want” power
frustrated mom finds her want power
“I won’t” power
avoiding ironic rebound
chocoholic takes inspiration from Hershey’s Kisses
cognitive bias
daughter makes peace with her anger
inner acceptance, outer control
Under the Microscope
Investigating Ironic Rebound
What’s on Your Most-Wanted List?
no-dieting diet
no smoking
power of acceptance
social anxiety disorder
surfing urge to complain

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thought suppression
dieting
negativity
thought suppression doesn’t work
“white bears,”
Willpower Experiment
Accept Those Cravings—Just Don’t Act on Them
Feel What You Feel, But Don’t Believe Everything You Think
Surf the Urge
Turn Your “I Won’t” Into “I Will,”

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Kivetz, Ran
know thyself
Knutson, Brian
Kotchen, Matthew J.
Kurzban, Robert

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late-night snacker goes on TV diet
Laval University (Quebec)
L-dopa
Leary, Mark
Lemire, Deb
license to sin
bride-to-be gains weight
Under the Microscope
Are You Borrowing Credit From Tomorrow?
Are You Handing Out Halos?
Virtue and Vice
Who Do You Think You Are?
moral licensing
problem with progress
risks of going green
sex scandals
shopper seduced by savings spends more
vegetarian before dinner
when sin looks like virtue
when tomorrow licenses today
Willpower Experiment
To Revoke Your License, Remember the Why
A Tomorrow Just Like Today
Louisiana State University
low blood sugar levels

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Macquarie University (Australia.)
magic words
marshmallow test
Max Planck Institute
McDonald’s
McGill University (Montreal)
meditation
Five-Minute Brain-Training
self-control and failure at
mental fatigue
Middle Tennessee State University
mild prefrontal dysfunction
Miller, Dale
Milner, Peter
mimicry instinct
mind readings
mirror neurons
Mischel, Walter
Moctezuma
modern life
modern technology
Monin, Benoît
monitor
moral licensing
halo effect
logic of
optimism in future
progress and
risks of going green
tomorrow licenses today
Muraven, Mark

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National Bureau of Economic Research
National Sleep Foundation
near reward
negative thought suppression
neuromarketing
New York University
Noakes, Timothy
no-diet diet
Northeastern University
Northwestern University

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Oaten, Megan
Obama, Barack
obesity epidemic
Olds, James
olfactory receptors
operator
optimism in future
outer control

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parasympathetic nervous system
Parkinson’s disease
pause-and-plan response
Pavlov, Ivan
paying attention
pH blood level
physical exercise
physical fitness
physiological relaxation response
plane crashes
pleasure center (brain)
Polivy, Janet
precommitment
prefrontal cortex
pride power
primitive self
Princeton University
“ProcrasDonate” (program)
procrastinator dopaminizes her
procrastinators
progress
promise of reward
mistaking for happiness
upside of
Pronin, Emily
pursuit of happiness

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rational choice
rational self
recovering addicts
religion, and behavior change
reluctant exerciser
reward
blinded by
near
paradox of
promise of
mistaking for happiness
upside of
reward system neurobiology of “I Want,” 112–14
Romeo and Juliet effect
Rosen, Marc
Rosenheck, Robert
rule-breaking

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saber-toothed tigers
St. George’s University (London)
Sapolsky, Robert
scandals
Schelling, Thomas
science of willpower
“The Science of Willpower” (class)
Segerstrom, Suzanne
self-awareness
self-control
brain center for
catching
costs of too much
energy budget model of
failing at
hot
limits of
reality of
meditation and
muscle model of
norm and
public goods measure of
tiger vs. cheesecake
training for
self-criticism
self-forgiveness
self-knowledge
sense of entitlement
Seop, Lee Seung
September 11, 2001
sex scandals
shame
anticipatory
back taxes and
limits of
Shiv, Baba
shopper
feels anxiety, but keeps promise
seduced by savings spends more

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 “should” power
simple contagion
sleep deprivation
Slessareva, Elisaveta
smoking
extinguishing desire for
smoker under social influence
“Snack Well Syndrome,”
social anxiety disorder
social epidemics
social influence
social media
social proof
social self
social shaming
Spitzer, Eliot
Stanford University
Clinically Applied Affective Neuroscience Laboratory
“Dead Week,”
starvation
State University of New York
Stone Age
strategic risk-taking
strawberry cheesecake
stress
in America
cravings and
remembering what works
strategies for
stress hormones
substance abuse
Sunstein, Cass
supermarkets
surfing the urge
to complain
technique
Willpower Experiment
survival system
sympathetic nervous system

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Tanner, Robin
temptation
tempted self
money management for
ten-minute rule
terror management theory
texting
Thaler, Richard
thought bias
thought suppression
chocolate cravings
negative
why it doesn’t work
Time
To Do list
Tolstoy, Leo
Trinity University (San Antonio)
Tulane University
two minds
problem of
value of

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Under the Microscope
Are You Borrowing Credit From Tomorrow?
Are You Handing Out Halos?
Are You Too Farsighted for Your Own Good?
Are You Waiting for Future You?
But Ma, Everyone Else Is Doing It!
Choose Your Willpower Challenge
Highs and Lows of Willpower
How Are You Discounting Future Rewards?
Investigating Ironic Rebound
Is Your Exhaustion Real?
Meet Your Two Minds
Promise of Relief
Resolving to Feel Good
Stress and Self-Control
Stress of Desire
Virtue and Vice
What Gets Your Dopamine Neurons Firing?
What Is the Harder Thing?
What Is the Threat?
What’s on Your Most-Wanted List?
What’s Terrifying You?
When Setbacks Happen
Who Are You Mirroring?
Who Are You Most Likely to Catch Something From?
Who Do You Think You Are?
Who’s Manipulating Your Dopamine Neurons?
Your Social Network
unintentional mimicry
University of Arizona
University of California (San Diego)
University of Chicago
University of Groningen (Netherlands)
University of Melbourne
University of Pennsylvania
University of Pittsburgh
University of Toronto
University of Washington
Addictive Behaviors Research Center

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 University of Wisconsin (Madison)

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vegetarian before dinner
virtue vs. vice

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Wang, X.T.
Wansink, Brian
Wegner, Daniel
what-the-hell effect
breaking the cycle
guilt doesn’t work
late-night snacker goes on TV diet
Under the Microscope
Promise of Relief
Resolving to Feel Good
What’s Terrifying You?
When Setbacks Happen
remembering what works
resolving to feel good
self-forgiveness
stress makes us want
terror management theory
Willpower Experiment
Forgiveness When You Fail
Optimistic Pessimism for Successful Resolutions
Try a Stress-Relief Strategy That Works
writer challenges voice of self-criticism
white-bear phenomenon
willpower
biggest enemies of
body’s reserve of
bounded
brain and body on
case of lost
contagious nature of
failures
mirroring
first rule of
kicked out of tribe and
muscle model of
problem of two minds
remodeling brain for
science of
sleep and

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stress and
what it is
why it matters
why we have
willpower challenge
sleep as
Willpower Experiment
Accept Those Cravings—Just Don’t Act on Them
Breathe Your Way to Self-Control
Catch Self-Control
Dopaminize Your “I Will” Power Challenge
Feel What You Feel, But Don’t Believe Everything You Think
Five-Minute Brain-Training Meditation
Five-Minute Green Willpower Fill-up
Forgiveness When You Fail
Lower Your Discount Rate
Make It a Group Project
Meet Your Future Self
Optimistic Pessimism for Successful Resolutions
The Power of Pride
Precommit Your Future Self
Relax to Restore Willpower Reserve
To Revoke Your License, Remember the Why
Strengthen Your Immune System
Surf the Urge
Test the Promise of Reward
A Tomorrow Just Like Today
Track Your Choices
Try a Stress-Relief Strategy That Works
Turn Your “I Won’t” Into “I Will,”
Wait Ten Minutes
What’s Your “Want” Power?
Willpower Diet
Willpower Workout
ZZZZZZZZZZ
willpower instinct
pause-and-plan response
Wolfgang Koehler Primate Research Center
women, and chocolate
Woods, Tiger
would-be entrepreneur

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 writer challenges voice of self-criticism

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Yale University
School of Medicine
yoga

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1
This bias is not unique to willpower—for example, people who think they are the best at multitasking
are actually the most distractible. Known as the Dunning-Kruger effect, this phenomenon was first
reported by two Cornell University psychologists who found that people overestimate their abilities
in all sorts of areas, including sense of humor, grammar, and reasoning skills. The effect is most
pronounced among people who have the least skill; for example, those with a test score in the 12th
percentile would, on average, estimate themselves to be in the 62nd percentile. This explains, among
other things, a large percentage of