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The Ironic Processes of Mental Control
Wegner, Daniel M. Psychological Review. Vol 101(1), Jan 1994, 34-52.
Abstract A theory of ironic processes of mental control is proposed to account for the intentional and counterintentional effects that result from efforts at self-control of mental states. The theory holds that an attempt to control the mind introduces 2 processes: (1) an operating process that promotes the intended change by searching for mental contents consistent with the intended state and (2) a monitoring process that tests whether the operating process is needed by searching for mental contents inconsistent with the intended state. The operating process requires greater cognitive capacity and normally has more pronounced cognitive effects than the monitoring process, and the 2 working together thus promote whatever degree of mental control is enjoyed. Under conditions that reduce capacity, however, the monitoring process may supersede the operating process and thus enhance the person’s sensitivity to mental contents that are the ironic opposite of those that are intended.
(PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved)
Posted on March 10, 2010
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why is it that trying so hard sometimes seems to guarantee not just a failure of control but its ironic reversal?
Posted on March 10, 2010 with 1 note
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There are a couple of universal triggers that make most smokers want to light up. Namely, something really good happening and the opposite, something really bad happening. Annoyingly enough, these are also the triggers that tend to make people have a few drinks (or in the case of the latter, quite a few drinks).
Posted on December 5, 2009
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6 Bullshit Facts About Psychology That Everyone Believes
Posted on September 22, 2009
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5 Ways To Hack Your Brain Into Awesomeness
Posted on September 22, 2009
"an elegant tapestry of quotations, musings, aphorisms, and autobiographical reflections"
and lots of bad music.
I'm interested in the interactions of mediated culture and psychological constructions of the self, obsessed with mental disorders and psychology while being painfully aware of my own inadequacies. I am a prototypical non-conformist with a vaguely leftist doctrine of beliefs. I'm guiltily self-absorbed and I quietly compete with others for brief moments of self-aggrandizing brilliance. I'm a slave to the capitalist dogma I spend every moment of my waking life bitching about. Also, I'm an up-talker?
Currently, I'm a graduate student in the Department of Telecommunications at Indiana University. My research interests encompass many areas of media studies and psychology:
- the role of the internet on everyday life
- the way increasingly mediated lifestyles change social relations
- psychosocial uses and effects of media on identity construction among adolescents and young adults
I graduated with honors from the University at Buffalo in 2006, receiving a BS in Psychology and a BA in Film Studies. I used to work as Project Director for a youth media program and as Senior Research Analyst for a couples study.
In my spare time, I can be found making all sorts of crafts and listening to music.
IUB TComm
