Veronika Job
Biographic Data
| ID | 767409 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Veronika Job |
| GIVEN NAMES | Veronika |
| FAMILY NAME | Job |
| SIGNATURE | JOB V |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Zurich |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-4983-1644 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 25 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 67 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 25 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2009 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
Depression-Reframing: Recognizing the Strength in Mental Illness Improves Goal Pursuit Among People Who Have Faced Depression
Widespread narratives frame mental illness as a sign of inherent personal weakness—an alleged weakness that would permanently undermine people’s ability to pursue goals in life. Do these narratives have self-fulfilling consequences? To test this hypothesis, and to attain a practical way to support people in realizing their strengths, we developed a brief (~20 min), highly scalable exercise that highlights the strengths people show when contending…
The motivational consequences of boredom
Boredom is traditionally seen as an aversive state linked to impulsivity, overeating, and drug use. However, contemporary models suggest its negative outcomes stem from its role in motivating behavioural or cognitive shifts to find increased challenge or meaning in unstimulating situations. This study examined whether boredom promotes challenge-seeking, even when additional challenge offers no extrinsic value. In an experiment (N = 297), boredom …
The Strengths of People in Low-SES Positions: An Identity-Reframing Intervention Improves Low-SES Students’ Achievement Over One Semester
Students from low-socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds such as first-generation or low-income students are often portrayed as deficient, lacking in skills and potential to succeed at university. We hypothesized that such representations lead low-SES students to see their SES-identity as a barrier to success and impair achievement. If so, reframing low-SES students’ identity as a source of strength may help them succeed. Testing this hypothesis …
Not so different and not deficient: First‐ and continuing‐generation students' selves and self‐discrepancies
Previous research has often portrayed first‐generation college students – students whose parents do not have a four‐year university degree – through a deficit lens, depicting them as lacking in skills, knowledge or potential compared to continuing‐generation students. It, however, remains unknown how first‐generation and continuing‐generation students perceive themselves with respect to their own goals and obligations. Who do they want to be and …
Because it is fun! Individual differences in effort enjoyment belief relate to behavioral and physiological indicators of effort-seeking
2,338), participants either completed an Effort Enjoyment Belief Scale or were experimentally led to believe that effort is enjoyable or aversive. Across our studies, descriptive analyses of the Effort Enjoyment Belief Scale revealed no general tendency among participants to perceive effort as aversive; instead, some participants tended to endorse a belief that effort is enjoyable. Both measured and manipulated effort enjoyment belief predicted d…
The Willpower Paradox: Possible and Impossible Conceptions of Self-Control
Self-control denotes the ability to override current desires to render behavior consistent with long-term goals. A key assumption is that self-control is required when short-term desires are transiently stronger (more preferred) than long-term goals and people would yield to temptation without exerting self-control. We argue that this widely shared conception of self-control raises a fundamental yet rarely discussed conceptual paradox: How is it …
Who gets to see themselves as talented? Biased self-concepts contribute to first-generation students' disadvantage in talent-focused environments
Intellectual talent is commonly regarded as an important factor for success – i.e., “what it takes to succeed” in Western educational contexts. Yet, the differential experiences individuals have may not allow everyone to think of themselves as talented - i.e., as having “what it takes to succeed” - to the same degree. In five studies with 3584 students in Western countries, we show i) that first-generation students see themselves as less intellec…
Intended responses to romantic partners’ annoying behaviours vary with willpower beliefs
When a romantic partner behaves in an annoying way – for example, by leaving a mess – we might respond with frustration or understanding. Responses may vary with contextual factors, including whether the partner could be mentally fatigued or depleted. We hypothesized that limited willpower theorists – who believe self‐control diminishes with use – might be especially likely to consider their partner’s preceding mental exertion. Two preregistered …
The role of task similarity for ego depletion: A registered report
Is your health malleable or fixed? The influence of implicit theories on health-related attitudes and behaviour
Objective: Implicit theories of health describe the extent to which health is perceived as a fixed (entity theory) versus malleable (incremental theory) characteristic. In four studies, it was investigated how these theories correspond to health-related attitudes and behaviours.Design: In Study 1 (N = 130), the relationship of implicit theories of health and health-related behaviours was assessed via self-reports. To investigate their causal infl…
Too exhausted to go to bed: Implicit theories about willpower and stress predict bedtime procrastination
While most people are aware of the importance of sleep for their health, well-being, and performance, bedtime procrastination is a pervasive phenomenon that can be conceptualized as a case of self-control failure (Kroese et al., Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 2014, 1). Two daily diary studies (N1 = 185, N2 = 137) investigated beliefs about willpower and stress as interactive predictors of bedtime procrastination. Beliefs about willpower capture whet…
You seem tired, but so am I: Willpower theories and intention to provide support in romantic relationships
Although providing support in romantic relationships is important for the well-being of both partners, providing support can be effortful. People have varying implicit theories about the exertion of effort; limited willpower theorists believe that mental resources become exhausted with use, while nonlimited willpower theorists believe that exerting effort can even prepare you for future exertion. While limited willpower theorists are more likely …
Experience, Resistance, and Enactment of Desires: Differential Relationships With Trait Measures Predicting Self-Control
Self-control development in adolescence predicts love and work in adulthood
This longitudinal study over a 23-year time span examined predictive associations between self-control development in adolescence and love and work outcomes in adulthood. Participants were 1,527 adults aged 35 years (48.3% female). The predictor variable self-control was measured yearly at the ages of 12 to 16 years. Adult outcome variables were measured at the age of 35 years. Three important results stand out. First, the measure of adolescent s…
Does Self-Control Training Improve Self-Control? A Meta-Analysis
Self-control is positively associated with a host of beneficial outcomes. Therefore, psychological interventions that reliably improve self-control are of great societal value. A prominent idea suggests that training self-control by repeatedly overriding dominant responses should lead to broad improvements in self-control over time. Here, we conducted a random-effects meta-analysis based on robust variance estimation of the published and unpublis…
Implicit Theories About Willpower Predict Subjective Well‐Being
Lay theories about willpower—the belief that willpower is a limited versus nonlimited resource—affect self‐control and goal striving in everyday life (Job, Dweck, & Walton, 2010). Three studies examined whether willpower theories also relate to people's subjective well‐being by shaping the progress they make toward their personal goals. A cross‐sectional (Study 1) and two longitudinal studies (Studies 2 and 3) measured individuals’ willpower theo…
Reverse ego-depletion: Acts of self-control can improve subsequent performance in Indian cultural contexts
The strength model of self-control has been predominantly tested with people from Western cultures. The present research asks whether the phenomenon of ego-depletion generalizes to a culture emphasizing the virtues of exerting mental self-control in everyday life. A pilot study found that whereas Americans tended to believe that exerting willpower on mental tasks is depleting, Indians tended to believe that exerting willpower is energizing. Using…
Age and gender differences in implicit motives
The end is (not) near: Aging, essentialism, and future time perspective
Beliefs about aging influence how we interpret and respond to changes within and around us. Essentialist beliefs about aging are defined as views that link chronological age with inherent and immutable properties underlying aging-related changes. These beliefs may influence the experience of aging-related changes and shape people's outlook of the future. We hypothesized that people who endorse essentialist beliefs about aging report a more limite…
Implicit theories about willpower predict self-regulation and grades in everyday life
Laboratory research shows that when people believe that willpower is an abundant (rather than highly limited) resource they exhibit better self-control after demanding tasks. However, some have questioned whether this "nonlimited" theory leads to squandering of resources and worse outcomes in everyday life when demands on self-regulation are high. To examine this, we conducted a longitudinal study, assessing students' theories about willpower and…
Implicit theories about willpower predict the activation of a rest goal following self-control exertion
Past research indicates that peoples' implicit theories about the nature of willpower moderate the ego-depletion effect. Only people who believe or were led to believe that willpower is a limited resource (limited-resource theory) showed lower self-control performance after an initial demanding task. As of yet, the underlying processes explaining this moderating effect by theories about willpower remain unknown. Here, we propose that the exertion…
The Role of Deliberative Versus Implemental Mindsets in Time Prediction and Task Accomplishment
The Model of Action Phases ( Gollwitzer, 1990 , 2012 ) distinguishes an implemental mindset evoked by planning goal-directed actions, from a deliberative mindset evoked by pondering pros/cons of adopting a particular goal. The present research demonstrates that mindsets affect time predictions. In Study 1 (N = 151), participants in an implemental mindset made shorter time predictions with respect to completing personal goals than participants in …
Ego Depletion—Is It All in Your Head?: Implicit Theories About Willpower Affect Self-Regulation
Much recent research suggests that willpower—the capacity to exert self-control—is a limited resource that is depleted after exertion. We propose that whether depletion takes place or not depends on a person’s belief about whether willpower is a limited resource. Study 1 found that individual differences in lay theories about willpower moderate ego-depletion effects: People who viewed the capacity for self-control as not limited did not show dimi…
Discrepancies Between Implicit and Explicit Motivation and Unhealthy Eating Behavior
Many people change their eating behavior as a consequence of stress. One source of stress is intrapersonal psychological conflict as caused by discrepancies between implicit and explicit motives. In the present research, we examined whether eating behavior is related to this form of stress. Study 1 ( N =53), a quasi‐experimental study in the lab, showed that the interaction between the implicit achievement motive disposition and explicit commitme…
Get a Taste of Your Goals: Promoting Motive–Goal Congruence Through Affect‐Focus Goal Fantasy
Studies show that motive-goal congruence is an important predictor of well-being (Baumann, Kaschel, & Kuhl, 2005; Brunstein, Schultheiss, & Grässmann, 1998). However, little is known about the factors that promote congruence between implicit motives and goals. Relying on McClelland's (1985) concept of implicit motives and the theory of fantasy realization (Oettingen, 1999), we postulated that goal fantasies focusing on motive-specific affective i…
Reverse ego-depletion: Acts of self-control can improve subsequent performance in Indian cultural contexts
The strength model of self-control has been predominantly tested with people from Western cultures. The present research asks whether the phenomenon of ego-depletion generalizes to a culture emphasizing the virtues of exerting mental self-control in everyday life. A pilot study found that whereas Americans tended to believe that exerting willpower on mental tasks is depleting, Indians tended to believe that exerting willpower is energizing. Using…
The end is (not) near: Aging, essentialism, and future time perspective
Beliefs about aging influence how we interpret and respond to changes within and around us. Essentialist beliefs about aging are defined as views that link chronological age with inherent and immutable properties underlying aging-related changes. These beliefs may influence the experience of aging-related changes and shape people's outlook of the future. We hypothesized that people who endorse essentialist beliefs about aging report a more limite…
Implicit theories about willpower predict self-regulation and grades in everyday life
Laboratory research shows that when people believe that willpower is an abundant (rather than highly limited) resource they exhibit better self-control after demanding tasks. However, some have questioned whether this "nonlimited" theory leads to squandering of resources and worse outcomes in everyday life when demands on self-regulation are high. To examine this, we conducted a longitudinal study, assessing students' theories about willpower and…
Implicit theories about willpower predict the activation of a rest goal following self-control exertion
Past research indicates that peoples' implicit theories about the nature of willpower moderate the ego-depletion effect. Only people who believe or were led to believe that willpower is a limited resource (limited-resource theory) showed lower self-control performance after an initial demanding task. As of yet, the underlying processes explaining this moderating effect by theories about willpower remain unknown. Here, we propose that the exertion…
Self-control development in adolescence predicts love and work in adulthood
This longitudinal study over a 23-year time span examined predictive associations between self-control development in adolescence and love and work outcomes in adulthood. Participants were 1,527 adults aged 35 years (48.3% female). The predictor variable self-control was measured yearly at the ages of 12 to 16 years. Adult outcome variables were measured at the age of 35 years. Three important results stand out. First, the measure of adolescent s…
Who gets to see themselves as talented? Biased self-concepts contribute to first-generation students' disadvantage in talent-focused environments
Intellectual talent is commonly regarded as an important factor for success – i.e., “what it takes to succeed” in Western educational contexts. Yet, the differential experiences individuals have may not allow everyone to think of themselves as talented - i.e., as having “what it takes to succeed” - to the same degree. In five studies with 3584 students in Western countries, we show i) that first-generation students see themselves as less intellec…
You seem tired, but so am I: Willpower theories and intention to provide support in romantic relationships
Although providing support in romantic relationships is important for the well-being of both partners, providing support can be effortful. People have varying implicit theories about the exertion of effort; limited willpower theorists believe that mental resources become exhausted with use, while nonlimited willpower theorists believe that exerting effort can even prepare you for future exertion. While limited willpower theorists are more likely …
Age and gender differences in implicit motives
Because it is fun! Individual differences in effort enjoyment belief relate to behavioral and physiological indicators of effort-seeking
2,338), participants either completed an Effort Enjoyment Belief Scale or were experimentally led to believe that effort is enjoyable or aversive. Across our studies, descriptive analyses of the Effort Enjoyment Belief Scale revealed no general tendency among participants to perceive effort as aversive; instead, some participants tended to endorse a belief that effort is enjoyable. Both measured and manipulated effort enjoyment belief predicted d…
The Role of Deliberative Versus Implemental Mindsets in Time Prediction and Task Accomplishment
The Model of Action Phases ( Gollwitzer, 1990 , 2012 ) distinguishes an implemental mindset evoked by planning goal-directed actions, from a deliberative mindset evoked by pondering pros/cons of adopting a particular goal. The present research demonstrates that mindsets affect time predictions. In Study 1 (N = 151), participants in an implemental mindset made shorter time predictions with respect to completing personal goals than participants in …
The role of task similarity for ego depletion: A registered report
Too exhausted to go to bed: Implicit theories about willpower and stress predict bedtime procrastination
While most people are aware of the importance of sleep for their health, well-being, and performance, bedtime procrastination is a pervasive phenomenon that can be conceptualized as a case of self-control failure (Kroese et al., Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 2014, 1). Two daily diary studies (N1 = 185, N2 = 137) investigated beliefs about willpower and stress as interactive predictors of bedtime procrastination. Beliefs about willpower capture whet…
Experience, Resistance, and Enactment of Desires: Differential Relationships With Trait Measures Predicting Self-Control
Get a Taste of Your Goals: Promoting Motive–Goal Congruence Through Affect‐Focus Goal Fantasy
Studies show that motive-goal congruence is an important predictor of well-being (Baumann, Kaschel, & Kuhl, 2005; Brunstein, Schultheiss, & Grässmann, 1998). However, little is known about the factors that promote congruence between implicit motives and goals. Relying on McClelland's (1985) concept of implicit motives and the theory of fantasy realization (Oettingen, 1999), we postulated that goal fantasies focusing on motive-specific affective i…
Ego Depletion—Is It All in Your Head?: Implicit Theories About Willpower Affect Self-Regulation
Much recent research suggests that willpower—the capacity to exert self-control—is a limited resource that is depleted after exertion. We propose that whether depletion takes place or not depends on a person’s belief about whether willpower is a limited resource. Study 1 found that individual differences in lay theories about willpower moderate ego-depletion effects: People who viewed the capacity for self-control as not limited did not show dimi…
Discrepancies Between Implicit and Explicit Motivation and Unhealthy Eating Behavior
Many people change their eating behavior as a consequence of stress. One source of stress is intrapersonal psychological conflict as caused by discrepancies between implicit and explicit motives. In the present research, we examined whether eating behavior is related to this form of stress. Study 1 ( N =53), a quasi‐experimental study in the lab, showed that the interaction between the implicit achievement motive disposition and explicit commitme…
Implicit theories about willpower predict self-regulation and grades in everyday life
Laboratory research shows that when people believe that willpower is an abundant (rather than highly limited) resource they exhibit better self-control after demanding tasks. However, some have questioned whether this "nonlimited" theory leads to squandering of resources and worse outcomes in everyday life when demands on self-regulation are high. To examine this, we conducted a longitudinal study, assessing students' theories about willpower and…
Implicit theories about willpower predict the activation of a rest goal following self-control exertion
Past research indicates that peoples' implicit theories about the nature of willpower moderate the ego-depletion effect. Only people who believe or were led to believe that willpower is a limited resource (limited-resource theory) showed lower self-control performance after an initial demanding task. As of yet, the underlying processes explaining this moderating effect by theories about willpower remain unknown. Here, we propose that the exertion…
The Role of Deliberative Versus Implemental Mindsets in Time Prediction and Task Accomplishment
The Model of Action Phases ( Gollwitzer, 1990 , 2012 ) distinguishes an implemental mindset evoked by planning goal-directed actions, from a deliberative mindset evoked by pondering pros/cons of adopting a particular goal. The present research demonstrates that mindsets affect time predictions. In Study 1 (N = 151), participants in an implemental mindset made shorter time predictions with respect to completing personal goals than participants in …
Age and gender differences in implicit motives
The end is (not) near: Aging, essentialism, and future time perspective
Beliefs about aging influence how we interpret and respond to changes within and around us. Essentialist beliefs about aging are defined as views that link chronological age with inherent and immutable properties underlying aging-related changes. These beliefs may influence the experience of aging-related changes and shape people's outlook of the future. We hypothesized that people who endorse essentialist beliefs about aging report a more limite…
Does Self-Control Training Improve Self-Control? A Meta-Analysis
Self-control is positively associated with a host of beneficial outcomes. Therefore, psychological interventions that reliably improve self-control are of great societal value. A prominent idea suggests that training self-control by repeatedly overriding dominant responses should lead to broad improvements in self-control over time. Here, we conducted a random-effects meta-analysis based on robust variance estimation of the published and unpublis…
Implicit Theories About Willpower Predict Subjective Well‐Being
Lay theories about willpower—the belief that willpower is a limited versus nonlimited resource—affect self‐control and goal striving in everyday life (Job, Dweck, & Walton, 2010). Three studies examined whether willpower theories also relate to people's subjective well‐being by shaping the progress they make toward their personal goals. A cross‐sectional (Study 1) and two longitudinal studies (Studies 2 and 3) measured individuals’ willpower theo…
Reverse ego-depletion: Acts of self-control can improve subsequent performance in Indian cultural contexts
The strength model of self-control has been predominantly tested with people from Western cultures. The present research asks whether the phenomenon of ego-depletion generalizes to a culture emphasizing the virtues of exerting mental self-control in everyday life. A pilot study found that whereas Americans tended to believe that exerting willpower on mental tasks is depleting, Indians tended to believe that exerting willpower is energizing. Using…
Experience, Resistance, and Enactment of Desires: Differential Relationships With Trait Measures Predicting Self-Control
Self-control development in adolescence predicts love and work in adulthood
This longitudinal study over a 23-year time span examined predictive associations between self-control development in adolescence and love and work outcomes in adulthood. Participants were 1,527 adults aged 35 years (48.3% female). The predictor variable self-control was measured yearly at the ages of 12 to 16 years. Adult outcome variables were measured at the age of 35 years. Three important results stand out. First, the measure of adolescent s…
Is your health malleable or fixed? The influence of implicit theories on health-related attitudes and behaviour
Objective: Implicit theories of health describe the extent to which health is perceived as a fixed (entity theory) versus malleable (incremental theory) characteristic. In four studies, it was investigated how these theories correspond to health-related attitudes and behaviours.Design: In Study 1 (N = 130), the relationship of implicit theories of health and health-related behaviours was assessed via self-reports. To investigate their causal infl…
Too exhausted to go to bed: Implicit theories about willpower and stress predict bedtime procrastination
While most people are aware of the importance of sleep for their health, well-being, and performance, bedtime procrastination is a pervasive phenomenon that can be conceptualized as a case of self-control failure (Kroese et al., Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 2014, 1). Two daily diary studies (N1 = 185, N2 = 137) investigated beliefs about willpower and stress as interactive predictors of bedtime procrastination. Beliefs about willpower capture whet…
You seem tired, but so am I: Willpower theories and intention to provide support in romantic relationships
Although providing support in romantic relationships is important for the well-being of both partners, providing support can be effortful. People have varying implicit theories about the exertion of effort; limited willpower theorists believe that mental resources become exhausted with use, while nonlimited willpower theorists believe that exerting effort can even prepare you for future exertion. While limited willpower theorists are more likely …
Intended responses to romantic partners’ annoying behaviours vary with willpower beliefs
When a romantic partner behaves in an annoying way – for example, by leaving a mess – we might respond with frustration or understanding. Responses may vary with contextual factors, including whether the partner could be mentally fatigued or depleted. We hypothesized that limited willpower theorists – who believe self‐control diminishes with use – might be especially likely to consider their partner’s preceding mental exertion. Two preregistered …
The role of task similarity for ego depletion: A registered report
The Willpower Paradox: Possible and Impossible Conceptions of Self-Control
Self-control denotes the ability to override current desires to render behavior consistent with long-term goals. A key assumption is that self-control is required when short-term desires are transiently stronger (more preferred) than long-term goals and people would yield to temptation without exerting self-control. We argue that this widely shared conception of self-control raises a fundamental yet rarely discussed conceptual paradox: How is it …
Who gets to see themselves as talented? Biased self-concepts contribute to first-generation students' disadvantage in talent-focused environments
Intellectual talent is commonly regarded as an important factor for success – i.e., “what it takes to succeed” in Western educational contexts. Yet, the differential experiences individuals have may not allow everyone to think of themselves as talented - i.e., as having “what it takes to succeed” - to the same degree. In five studies with 3584 students in Western countries, we show i) that first-generation students see themselves as less intellec…
The motivational consequences of boredom
Boredom is traditionally seen as an aversive state linked to impulsivity, overeating, and drug use. However, contemporary models suggest its negative outcomes stem from its role in motivating behavioural or cognitive shifts to find increased challenge or meaning in unstimulating situations. This study examined whether boredom promotes challenge-seeking, even when additional challenge offers no extrinsic value. In an experiment (N = 297), boredom …
The Strengths of People in Low-SES Positions: An Identity-Reframing Intervention Improves Low-SES Students’ Achievement Over One Semester
Students from low-socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds such as first-generation or low-income students are often portrayed as deficient, lacking in skills and potential to succeed at university. We hypothesized that such representations lead low-SES students to see their SES-identity as a barrier to success and impair achievement. If so, reframing low-SES students’ identity as a source of strength may help them succeed. Testing this hypothesis …
Not so different and not deficient: First‐ and continuing‐generation students' selves and self‐discrepancies
Previous research has often portrayed first‐generation college students – students whose parents do not have a four‐year university degree – through a deficit lens, depicting them as lacking in skills, knowledge or potential compared to continuing‐generation students. It, however, remains unknown how first‐generation and continuing‐generation students perceive themselves with respect to their own goals and obligations. Who do they want to be and …
Because it is fun! Individual differences in effort enjoyment belief relate to behavioral and physiological indicators of effort-seeking
2,338), participants either completed an Effort Enjoyment Belief Scale or were experimentally led to believe that effort is enjoyable or aversive. Across our studies, descriptive analyses of the Effort Enjoyment Belief Scale revealed no general tendency among participants to perceive effort as aversive; instead, some participants tended to endorse a belief that effort is enjoyable. Both measured and manipulated effort enjoyment belief predicted d…
Depression-Reframing: Recognizing the Strength in Mental Illness Improves Goal Pursuit Among People Who Have Faced Depression
Widespread narratives frame mental illness as a sign of inherent personal weakness—an alleged weakness that would permanently undermine people’s ability to pursue goals in life. Do these narratives have self-fulfilling consequences? To test this hypothesis, and to attain a practical way to support people in realizing their strengths, we developed a brief (~20 min), highly scalable exercise that highlights the strengths people show when contending…
Psychology (22 works) · Social Psychology (22 works) · Behavioral Health and Interventions (15 works) · Developmental psychology (13 works) · Self-control (10 works) · Control (management) (7 works) · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion (6 works) · Ego Depletion (6 works) · Social Psychology (6 works) · Cognitive psychology (5 works)