From Ego Depletion to Vitality: Theory and Findings Concerning the Facilitation of Energy Available to the Self

Vitality, or the energy available to the self, is a salient and functionally significant indicator of health and motivation. Previous models (e.g., Baumeister & Vohs, 2007) have suggested how such energy can be depleted but have focused less on how it can be maintained or enhanced. In this article, we describe a model of energy and vitality based on self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000). We review substantial evidence that, whereas the self-controlling regulation of behavior depletes vitality and energy, the autonomous self-regulation of behavior does not. A growing number of experimental and field studies also suggest that vitality and energy are enhanced by activities that satisfy basic psychological needs for relatedness, competence, and autonomy. Lifestyles focused on extrinsic goals are less conducive to need satisfaction and thus engender less vitality. We conclude that social psychological factors associated with need satisfaction have important implications for health and vitality and for informing interventions. Most models of psychological energy, both past (Freud, 1923; Selye, 1975) and present (Baumeister & Vohs, 2007), have been primarily occupied with the blocking and expenditure of energy rather than the maintenance and enhancement of it. Although these models of depletion and energy cost are informative, knowing how psychological energy can be maintained or gained is equally important. Over the past several years, we have been exploring factors associated with the maintenance and enhancement of energy or vitality using the perspective of self-determination theory (SDT; Deci & Ryan, 2000; Ryan & Deci, 2000). SDT argues that, whereas efforts to control oneself do indeed drain psychological energy and vitality, autonomous self-regulation does not. This means that autonomous or truly volitional forms of selfregulation will not result in ego depletion. Moreover, because vitality concerns the energy available to the self rather than activation per se, we predict that satisfactions associated with the basic needs of the self should maintain or enhance vitality and sustain self-regulatory capacities. SDT