How do we - societies and individuals alike - (sometimes) manage to act in line with our high priority goals when faced with tempting-yet-conflicting alternatives? In other words, how do we (sometimes) resolve a conflict between a superordinate, global goal and a subordinate, local one, and do so in favor of the global goal? These types of self-control dilemmas can be found in many contexts and may be described at many levels of analysis. Examples include the dilemmas faced by groups fostering cooperation among their members, when defection is more beneficial for each individual; dieters resisting a tempting cake, and the cognitive system trading off speed for accuracy in conflict tasks like the Stroop.
This book presents social, cognitive and neuroscientific approaches to the study of self-control, connecting recent work in cognitive and social psychology with recent advances in cognitive and social neuroscience. It consists of three sections: The Social, The Mental, and The Brain. The "Mental" section is the book's anchor, examining within-individual self-control processes at all levels: from low-level attention to motivation and motivational systems. The "Social" section looks at group processes, broadly defined, and how groups and societies (attempt to) resolve conflicts between their global goals and the individual's self interest. The "Brain" section explores the brain processes that underlie self control attempts and speak directly to mental-level processes.
In bringing together multiple perspectives on self-control dilemmas from internationally renowned researchers within various allied disciplines, this will be the first single-reference volume to illustrate the richness, depth, and breadth of the research in the new field of self control.

This informative volume presents the first comprehensive review of research and theory on dual-process models of social information processing. These models distinguish between qualitatively different modes of information processing in making decisions and solving problems (e.g., associative versus rule-based, controlled versus uncontrolled, and affective versus cognitive modes). Leading contributors review the basic assumptions of these approaches and review the ways they have been applied and tested in such areas as attitudes, stereotyping, person perception, memory, and judgment. Also examined are the relationships between different sets of processing modes, the factors that determine their utilization, and how they work in combination to affect responses to social information.

This volume provides an authoritative synthesis of a dynamic, influential area of psychological research. Leading investigators address all aspects of dual-process theories: their core assumptions, conceptual foundations, and applications to a wide range of social phenomena. In 38 chapters, the volume addresses the pivotal role of automatic and controlled processes in attitudes and evaluation; social perception; thinking and reasoning; self- regulation; and the interplay of affect, cognition, and motivation. Current empirical and methodological developments are described. Critiques of the duality approach are explored and important questions for future research identified.