I found an article named "Self-Control - Or Lack of It - Is Contagious" on the MSNBC website. I found the article intriguing because it discussed how social interaction can affect your self-control. For example, the article stated if you live with people who are conscious about what they eat and exercise regularly, you are more likely to pick up on these habits. If your roommates or friends regularly eat unhealthy foods and do not exercise regularly, you are more likely to pick up those habits.
Although, the results were researched through 5 different studies over a 2-year period, the studies were done in a lab setting. However, the researchers do not want to blame social influences for good or bad habits. It is up to the person to decide to lead a healthy life; not to blame others for their unhealthy decisions.
I thought this article was very interesting and found some truth to the results. In high school I was active in a variety of sports and clubs. It was normal to work out after school every day for practice. However, when I came to college I was not required to exercise hard every day. Although I tried to exercise regularly, knowing the health benefits, something else would grab my attention. For the past two years, I have lived with girls who exercise regularly and are health conscious. I find myself getting motivated back into exercising and choosing healthier foods.
I thought this was an interesting quote from the article, "The take-home message of this study is that picking social influences that are positive can improve your self-control," said lead author Michelle vanDellen, a psychology professor at the University of Georgia. "And by exhibiting self-control, you're helping others around you do the same."
Does anyone else see himself or herself picking up his or her friends or roommates good or bad habits? Does anyone disagree with this article?
I very much agree with the idea that self-control is contagious. Our environment, including those around us, can have a profound impact on many of our daily behaviors (for either good or bad). I think some of it involves subconscious imitation of others. I believe this phenomenon does occur with smoking, eating, studying, and many other things.
This is another reason why it is wise not to “fall in with the wrong crowd.” Even if you merely want to hang out with people who are different from you, you can pick up some of their bad habits without realizing it. By taking the initiative in developing good habits, you can help yourself directly and indirectly through the reinforcement that will arise from your friends also developing those good behaviors (social support).
This phenomenon can potentially be a very good thing for college students – by adhering to a regular schedule of studying you can provide encouragement for others to study without actually having to lecture them on the reasons why they should be studying more.
As the article mentioned, however, this finding should not be used as an excuse to claim that the habits of others can make a person somehow less accountable for our actions. Whatever our individual circumstances may be, we need to try our hardest to overcome challenges.
Unfortunately, I also think there is undeniably a destructive domino effect in certain families – A couple years ago one of my aunts was trying very hard to eat healthy and exercise, but her husband kept buying large amounts of pop, ice cream, and other high fat foods. This was one of the main reasons she found it difficult to continue, and she remains relatively unhealthy today because she has not yet been able to make a change in her lifestyle. Situations like those can be very difficult because the person she spends most of her time with is having a real and harmful effect on her health.
Despite the common criticism that children are watching too much television, I think children in certain environments may benefit from television viewing. Even if they do not have a good role model within their own home, they may be inspired and receive encouragement to better themselves through the programs they watch.