The Science of Self-Control / / Howard Rachlin.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter HUP eBook-Package Backlist 2000-2013 (Canada)
• VerfasserIn: Rachlin, Howard,
• Place / Publishing House: Cambridge, MA : : Harvard University Press, , [2022]; ©2004
• Year of Publication: 2022
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (240 p.)

This book proposes a new science of self-control based on the principles of behavioral psychology and economics. Claiming that insight and self-knowledge are insufficient for controlling one's behavior, Howard Rachlin argues that the only way to achieve such control--and ultimately happiness--is through the development of harmonious patterns of behavior. Most personal problems with self-control arise because people have difficulty delaying immediate gratification for a better future reward. To avoid those problems, the author presents a strategy of "soft commitment," consisting of the development of valuable patterns of behavior that bridge over individual temptations.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Acknowledgments -- Contents -- Introduction -- CHAPTER 1 Habit and Willpower -- CHAPTER 2 Simple Ambivalence -- CHAPTER 3 Complex Ambivalence -- CHAPTER 4 The Lonely Addict -- CHAPTER 5 Soft Commitment -- CHAPTER 6 Rules and Probability -- CHAPTER 7 Self-Control and Social Cooperation -- Notes -- References -- Index