Abstract
Can we perform behavioral self-control when our negative affect is aroused? To answer this question, the present study examined the influence of aroused negative affect on self-monitoring ability. Participants, 38 female university students who scored high or low on the neuroticism dimension of personality, were randomly assigned to either the affect-arousal (A) group or the neutral (N) group. They observed a videotape in which a model performed complex motor responses (sign language), and then were asked to reproduce the modeled responses. Videotaped affect-arousing or neutral stimuli were presented between the pre- and posttests. The measures were self-monitoring ability score, calculated by subtracting each participant's perceived score from her objective score on degree of reproduction, and reproduction time. The results indicated that the participants' self-monitoring ability in the arousal group deteriorated more than that in the neutral group. This suggests that people cannot adequately exercise behavioral self-control when their negative affect is aroused. The results were discussed from the viewpoints of the theory of allocation of attentional resources and two-process theory.
