Paper
The Bitter Truth About Sugar and Willpower
Published Jul 11, 2016 · M. Vadillo, Natalie Gold, M. Osman
Psychological Science
80
Citations
5
Influential Citations
Abstract
The idea behind ego depletion is that willpower draws on a limited mental resource, so that engaging in an act of self-control impairs self-control in subsequent tasks. To present ego depletion as more than a convenient metaphor, some researchers have proposed that glucose is the limited resource that becomes depleted with self-control. However, there have been theoretical challenges to the proposed glucose mechanism, and the experiments that have tested it have found mixed results. We used a new meta-analytic tool, p-curve analysis, to examine the reliability of the evidence from these experiments. We found that the effect sizes reported in this literature are possibly influenced by publication or reporting bias and that, even within studies yielding significant results, the evidential value of this research is weak. In light of these results, and pending further evidence, researchers and policymakers should refrain from drawing any conclusions about the role of glucose in self-control.
Meta-Analysis
Very Rigorous Journal
Highly CitedThe role of glucose in self-control is weakly supported by evidence, and researchers and policymakers should refrain from drawing conclusions based on this research until further evidence is available.
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