ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a useful framework for thinking about the data rather than to provide a comprehensive review of them. Another goal is to critically evaluate the possible contributions of neuroscience to the study of self-control. The chapter begins by articulating several reasons why knowledge of brain function can improve psychological models of self-regulation. It describes classes of two models of self-control that have guided neuroscientific study, explains how the neuroscientific data from the models are largely convergent and outlines a few points of difference that need to be reconciled. Several families of definitions for self-control have emerged that overlap considerably but make diverging predictions about the mechanisms of self-control. One of the most substantive differences between opposition and valuation models of self-control is in their prescriptions for improving self-control. Opposition models suggest that strengthening top-down control will improve self-control. The chapter concludes by describing future directions for self-control research where neuroimaging could be particularly impactful.
