The Influence of Positive Affect on Regulatory Depletion

Three studies examine the influence of positive affect on the regulatory depletion effect, which refers to the reduction in the performance on a persistence task after completing an initially depleting task. This effect was eliminated when participants experienced positive affect prior to engaging in the persistence task (Study 1) and when they experienced positive affect in the presence of a co-actor (Study 2). The presence of positive affect concurrent with the performance of a persistence task also eliminated the regulatory depletion effect (Study 3). And positive affect participants exposed to a non-depleting initial task exhibited less persistence on a subsequent task than did those in a neutral affect control condition (Studies 1-2). These outcomes are explained in terms of a resource monitoring process.