The Ego Depletion Theory: Are There Limited Mental Resources?

The ego depletion theory suggests that there is a state of psychic energy wasting so important, that it can impair the ability to self-regulate, at least temporarily.

Among other things, this theory has allowed us to answer questions such as: why is it more difficult to carry out a task after exposing ourselves to burnout or mental conflict? What are the events that generate ego depletion? Do efforts to contain behaviors lead to a decrease in our self-regulation?

Through numerous studies, the exhaustion model has allowed us to analyze the elements involved in our ability to make decisions and perform tasks that involve mental effort. In this article we will see what the above consists of and through which studies it has been explained, as well as some manifestations of this psychological phenomenon in everyday life.

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Ego Depletion Theory: Is Self-Regulation Limited?

One of the topics most studied by psychology has been self-regulation, considered as the ability of the "I" to alter its own behavior. This ability is very useful in adaptive terms, since

allows us to adjust our actions to the demands of the environment.

In this sense, self-regulation implies a set of decisions that we make to contain an impulse or a behavior. That is, there is an important component of "will", which in turn depends on the ability of the "I" to exercise it.

As early as the first psychoanalytic theories, the "I" (the "ego") has been described as a part of the psyche that must constantly deal with external reality, mediating between internal conflicts or desires and pressures from the Exterior. But this is not achieved out of nowhere. To achieve it, the ego has to make use of a significant level of psychic energy.

In more recent times, theories such as that of ego depletion confirm that there is a type of energy or psychic force involved in volitional acts. Thus, psychic energy is an indispensable resource for us to achieve self-regulation. But do we have unlimited reserves of such energy? If not, what happens to our will?

The theory of exhaustion suggests precisely that, depending on the energy available to us, we can initiate voluntary behaviors, or not (we will quickly desist from tasks due to lack of resources energetic). In other words, self-regulation can be modified if there has been prior exhaustion of psychic energy.

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Baumeister and other representative studies

The psychologist Roy Baumeister, a pioneer in this theory, defines "ego depletion" (ego depletion, originally) as a state in which the "I" does not have all the resources that it normally possesses. For the same reason, some of the executive functions What it takes care of (such as self-regulation, decision-making and behavioral activation), depend on how many of those resources have been consumed or are available.

This researcher proposes that an important part of the "I" has limited resources, which are used for all acts that involve self-will. That is to say that, being limited, the resources are not enough for all the acts, at least not if they are presented consecutively.

Thus, as a psychological phenomenon, the exhaustion of the ego makes the "I" temporarily less capable and less willing to function optimally, impairing subsequent tasks. In other words, after making a significant mental effort, the "I" is exhausted, generating a state of fatigue or relaxation in which it worsens the person's ability to self-regulate.

In fact, some studies have shown that the efforts we make to adapt to stressful situations imply such a high “psychic cost” that impairs or impairs subsequent activity (even if it is activities that are not related to the stress situation).

For example, the mental efforts made to contain behaviors that generate pleasure; as when we try hard to follow a diet, and at the first opportunity to enjoy a pleasant food, our self-regulation drops considerably (we overeat).

Another example is a study where it was shown that when a person tries not to think of a white bear, this self-regulation exercise generates so much exhaustion of the ego, that people give up faster when performing a later task (although apparently it has nothing to do with the white anagram).

Likewise, other research on ego depletion theory suggests that major mental efforts, such as cognitive dissonance and emotional repression, lead to ego depletion and have an impact on subsequent decision-making. In the same vein, some studies have suggested that the greater the exhaustion of the ego, the less sense of guilt and / or empathy. And with this, less probability of exercising prosocial behaviors.

How to recover the ego energy?

As we have seen, ego depletion is a phenomenon present in many of our daily activities. But this theory has not only allowed us to analyze the repercussions of the exhaustion of psychic energy in our decisions, capacities and behavior.

The ego depletion theory has also made it possible to analyze the importance of basic issues to compensate for fatigue, such as rest. Braumeister himself, together with his collaborators, have suggested that there are compensatory and restorative measures of the psychic force: the dream and the positive emotional experiences, mainly.

In the same vein, other researchers have studied compensation for ego depletion through pleasant and rewarding physiological experiences. For example, trying foods or drinks that are high in glucose.

In the same sense, an important activation of the heart rate has been observed in the face of high effort to exercise self-control (effort that is greater at a higher level of exhaustion), which means that the psychic effort has direct repercussions on our Body.

Bibliographic references:

• Baumeister, R. and Vohs, K. (2007). Self-Regulation, Ego Depletion and Motivation. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 1 (1): 115-128.
• Baumeister, R. (2002). Ego Depletion and Self-Control Failure: An Energy Model of the Self's Executive Function. Self and Identity, 1 (2): 129-136.
• Baumeister, R., Bratslavsky, E., Muraven, M. and Tice, D. (1998). Ego depletion: is the active self a limited resource? 74(5): 1252-1265.
• Bejarano, T. (2010). Self-regulation and freedom. Thémata. Philosophy Magazine. 43: 65-86.
• Hagger, M.S. and Chatzisarantis, N.L. (2013). The Sweet Taste of Success The Presence of Glucose in the Oral Cavity Moderates the Depletion of Self-Control Resources. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 39: 28-42.
• Xu, H., Bègue, L. and Bushman, B. J. (2012). Too fatigued to care: Ego depletion, guilt, and prosocial behavior. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 43 (5): 379-384.