Complex Numbers

Self-Control to Major Tom

Today, in Adventures in Confirmation Bias:

https://hbr.org/2020/01/the-dark-side-of-self-control

The Dark Side of Self-Control

An ability to override short-term impulses that conflict with long-term goals is a hallmark of successful people.

Okay, that's not confirmation bias; that's a tautology. When one defines "success" as "achievement of long-term goals," of course anything that delays or inhibits those long-term goals is subjectively bad.

Research has shown that people with strong self-control have better health, relationships, finances, and careers. They are also less likely to have problems with overeating, overspending, smoking, alcohol or drug abuse, procrastination, and unethical behavior.

Fine, but let's get to the chorus. Say it with me:

Correlation is not causation.

There, wasn't that easy?

I don't consider myself someone with a great deal of self-control. Let's look at the Seven Deadly Sins above and see how I rank:

1) Overeating - sure, I've had problems with this. Less so now. And, granted, that's the case because I sacrifice short-term happiness in pursuit of a goal.

2) Overspending - this is ill-defined. Once basic needs - food, clothing, shelter, etc. - are taken care of, overspending can be defined as spending beyond one's means. But means differ, and I can't always fault someone for overspending on basic needs alone. As for where I fall on this scale, well, that depends on what's meant by "means." My income is highly variable, but I watch every penny. Usually I watch them fly away. But I don't hold any interest-charging debts.

3) Smoking - tough call. I smoke cigars, yes, but I quit cigarettes cold turkey a long, long time ago, and didn't use any kind of tobacco for many years.

4) Alcohol abuse - some would call any amount of drinking "abuse." I have a brand to maintain, so I'm not going to go into detail, but I don't drink nearly as much as I sometimes project. Again, this is partly because I have a goal, and alcohol is high-calorie. I don't consider the occasional drink, and the even rarer bender, to be "abuse." I'm sure other people can argue that. I don't really care; I like beer.

5) Drug abuse - I'm just going to go ahead and assume that means "drugs other than alcohol" since the legal drug is separated out. I can't say I've never smoked weed, but that's all I've done, and then only rarely, and I have little interest in mind-altering substances other than booze. "Gateway drug," my fat nerdy ass.

6) Procrastination - Okay, guilty as charged.

7) Unethical behavior - I'm not sure I'm the best judge of my own decisions here. This category is simply too broad. I can say that I'm concerned about ethics and look at everything I do, not only for how it affects me, but also how it affects the people around me. Obviously, I'm not perfect, but I also don't work for a telemarketer or try to cheat people out of their money.

Enough of that, then. Let's look at the dark side of trying to do everything "right."

Self-control can restrict emotional experiences. One of the reasons why people high in self-control resist temptations is that they experience less tempting desires.

This tracks with other articles I've read. Who is more praiseworthy: someone who can walk past a box of donuts without ever wanting one, or someone who experiences temptation every time, but never gives in to it? I don't have a good answer to that. I have also asked a similar question about antisocial behavior, say, stealing. Person A walks into a store, picks up what they need, pays, and walks out. Person B is constantly thinking about how they might shoplift something, but never does; also pays and walks out. Both of them have avoided stealing anything, but Person B is the one with actual self-control.

Self-control may lead to long-term regret. When people reflect on their lives, they tend to regret exerting too much self-control (e.g., choosing work over fun) and missing out on the pleasures of life.

I retired early because I realized that, should I make it to anything resembling a "deathbed" rather than getting hit by a bus or shot by a mass murderer, I knew I wouldn't be thinking, "man, you know what? I really should have worked more."

Self-control can lead to increased workload. People tend to rely on others with high self-control, and this might make the latter feel burdened.

Not much to say about this, really. Too much hypothesizing.

Self-control can be used for ill. Self-controlled people seem to be more successful in whatever their endeavors are, including antisocial ones.

Which kind of contradicts the whole "people with less self-control are more unethical" assertion above.

Self-control isn’t for everyone. For some people, exerting self-control can feel alienating — as if they are required to suppress their true selves.

Seems self-evident to me.

Self-control can lead to bias. Lay people and policy makers often see complex social problems (overeating, overspending, smoking, alcohol or drug abuse, criminality, etc.) as primarily self-control problems. However, this emphasis on self-control might obscure the social, economic, or political sources of these problems. For example, the obesity epidemic is often seen as exclusively a self-control problem. Yet, we know that the roots of this problem also lie in factors such as reduced prices of processed foods, larger serving sizes, or increased sedentary nature of work and leisure. This one-sided emphasis on self-control, also referred to as “puritanical bias,” reflects an ideology that puts the blame for wrongdoing entirely on the individual and neglects the impact of broader societal factors.

I'm quoting more of this one because this is where we get to my Adventures in Confirmation Bias. I've railed against puritanical judgements in here before, and I'm just glad to see I'm not the only one. Again, I don't use illegal drugs, but I can kind of understand why some people do; external factors can overwhelm one's own self-interest (in terms of not going to jail, short and long-term health effects, etc.)

So I'm not entirely sure what the takeaway from this is. Partly it's because it's kinda fuzzy; "research has shown" isn't exactly precise science, and without knowing what research, how it was conducted, who funded it, the confidence levels, and other factors, it's basically junk science. I guess the bottom line, for me, is something that I've already internalized: that self-control is often overrated. But again, that's where the confirmation bias comes in. Still, I thought it's worth sharing just to present the viewpoint that everything has its pros and cons.