We explore the cognitive effects of three common features of religious interactions: (1) demand for the expressive suppression of emotion; (2) exposure to goaldemoted and causally opaque actions; and (3) the presence of a charismatic authority. Using a cognitive resource model of executive function, we argue that these three features affect the executive system in ways that limit the capacity f...

Purpose The present study attempted to establish the causal status between optimism and executive functioning (selfregulation). Repeated acts of self-control draw from a limited general resource which, upon depletion, results in reduced capacity for continued self-regulation, a process termed ego depletion (Baumeister, Bratslavsky, Muraven, & Tice, 1998). The present study investigated whether:...

Considerable research demonstrates that the depletion of self-regulatory resources impairs performance on subsequent tasks that demand these resources. The current research sought to assess the impact of perceived resource depletion on subsequent task performance at both high and low levels of actual depletion. The authors manipulated perceived resource depletion by having participants 1st comp...