Self-Control: Can there be too much of a good thing?
Posted on 17. May, 2011 by Charles Elder in Uncategorized
Professor Tom Lynch will consider 'Self-Control: Can there be too much of a good thing?' during his keynote in Bournemouth
Professor Tom Lynch of Southampton University will focus on ‘Self Control’ during his keynote presentation at the UDMH conference in Bournemouth.
Professor Lynch, a world-leading researcher and senior trainer of dialectical behavior therapy (DPT) from Southampton’s School of Psychology will consider the question ‘Can there be too much of a good thing?’. He will concentrate on the illusory benefits of self-control—including an introduction to the understudied problem of emotional over-control (EOC). A brief overview of new approaches for treating EOC and chronic depression, including rigidity, interpersonal aloofness, emotion inhibition, and perfectionism will be presented.
Based on 16 years of research, EOC is a novel biosocial theory and will be presented positing that heightened threat sensitivity and diminished reward sensitivity transact with early family experiences emphasizing “mistakes as intolerable” and “self-control as imperative” results in an emotionally over-controlled coping style that limits opportunities to learn new skills and exploit positive social reinforcers.
“Self-control—the ability to inhibit competing urges, behaviours, or desires—is highly valued by societies,” says Professor Lynch. “The frequent dramatic consequences accompanying poor self-control easily capture the lime-light and are hard to ignore. However, too much self-control can be equally problematic. Though less eye-catching, emotional over-control (a form of self-control) has begun to be recognized as an important factor associated with social isolation, poor interpersonal functioning, and the development of severe and difficult-to-treat mental health problems (e.g., anorexia nervosa, chronic depression). Due to the high value placed on regulation of potentially destructive emotions or impulses, not surprisingly, problems associated with over-control have received little attention or been misunderstood—making recognition difficult.
“Moreover, recognizing problems with our coping style can be a bit like a fish recognizing that they are swimming in water—emerging research suggests that if you think you have fewer problems your peers think you have more, and peer reports of pathology are more accurate predictors of later difficulties.,“ he concludes.
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