Limited Resources for Self-Regulation: A Current Overview of the Strength Model

This chapter provides an overview of my efforts to develop a new model of self-regulation over the past 25. years. The strength model sees self-regulation as dependent on a limited energy resource, and self-regulatory capacity functions like a physical muscle: It seems to get tired after use, it conserves energy for upcoming challenges or when fatigued, and it gets stronger with regular exercise. The same resource is used for decision-making. Recent findings and theoretical challenges have pointed the way toward a new and better theory but in my view have not provided a viable alternative to the limited resource model. Integrating recent work on selective allocation, motivational changes, subjective beliefs, and bodily processes has greatly improved our understanding of self-regulation as a limited capacity.