ABSTRACT
This chapter presents an–admittedly brief and necessarily selective–overview of the relationship between mindfulness and self-control. After introducing the central concepts, it examines how mindfulness may have a potentially causal influence on self-control before reviewing evidence on the effects of mindfulness interventions on self-controlled behavior in the domains of eating behavior, alcohol consumption, and aggression. It discusses several psychological processes that may contribute to beneficial effects of mindfulness on self-control and also examines whether mindfulness necessarily fosters self-control and outline some circumstances in which it may not. The chapter explores to self-control as the control of dominant responses such as thoughts, emotions, impulses, and action tendencies in the service of other, often long-term goals. Effects of mindfulness interventions on self-regulatory behavior have been reported in various domains. Increasing evidence suggests that mindfulness trainings can lead to more self-controlled behavior. The psychological processes underlying the effects of mindfulness on self-regulatory behavior are not fully understood.
