Cardiovascular Response to a Behavioral Restraint Challenge: Urge Magnitude Influence in Men and Women

• Main Author: Mlynski, Christopher
• Other Authors: Wright, Rex A.
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: University of North Texas 2017
• Subjects: Effort; Cardiovascular Response; Behavioral Restraint; Inhibitory Control; Cardiovascular system > Psychophysiology.; Impulse.; Struggle.; Fatigue.
• Online Access: https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc984125/

Agtarap, Wright, Mlynski, Hammad, and Blackledge took an initial step in providing support for the predictive validity of a new conceptual analysis concerned with behavioral restraint, defined as active resistance against a behavioral impulse or urge. The current study was designed to partially replicate and extend findings from their study, employing a common film protocol and a procedure for inducing low- and high levels of fatigue. Analyses on key data indicated that the fatigue manipulation was ineffective. On the other hand, they supported the suggestion that behavioral restraint should be proportional to the strength of an urge being resisted so long as success is perceived as possible and worthwhile. Analyses also provided evidence of gender differences for this behavioral restraint task. Women showed relatively enhanced CV responses to my manipulation of urge magnitude, performed less well, rated the behavioral restraint challenge as harder, and rated success on the more difficult behavioral restraint task as more important. A broad indication is that men and women can differ in the strength of impulses they experience in response to stimulus presentations as well as in the importance they place on resisting the impulses.