Book
McGonigal K. The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What You Can Do to Get More of It. New York: Avery; 2012. 275 p.
Why we cite it
Provides an accessible synthesis of willpower research spanning psychology, neuroscience, economics, and medicine. While the underlying research appears in primary citations elsewhere in this library (ego depletion, self-compassion, what-the-hell effect, ironic rebound), McGonigal’s framework — the three willpower types (“I will,” “I won’t,” “I want”), the pause-and-plan response, and the willpower-as-muscle metaphor — provides pedagogical structure used across several companions. Uniquely integrates moral licensing, delay discounting, and social contagion into a single willpower framework.
About the author
Kelly McGonigal, PhD, is a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University. She received the Walter J. Gores Award, Stanford’s highest teaching honor, for her teaching. Her “Science of Willpower” course became one of the university’s most popular offerings, which she transformed into this book. She is also known for her work on stress, mind-body science, and the psychology of behavior change.
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