The power of goal-directed processes in the causation of emotional and other actions
Description: People often engage in behavior that is not in their best interest. For instance, they engage in unhealthy behaviors such as smoking, commit action slips such as taking a wrong habitual route, or they become aggressive even when they risk a high cost (e.g., retaliation or ruining a relationship). To make sense of these so-called suboptimal actions, theorists have come up with dual process models that distinguish between (a) a stimulus-driven process, in which a stimulus activates a response based on the person’s prior learning history or innate wiring and (a) a goal-directed process, which compares the values and likelihoods of the outcomes of different action options. Whereas traditional dual process models take suboptimal behavior to be caused by stimulus-driven processes, we propose an alternative model that attributes a more important role to goal-directed processes instead. We identify several reasons for why classic dual process models tend to over- vs. underestimate the role of stimulus-driven vs. goal-directed processes. In the current research proposal, we put forward a series of experiments that challenge traditional dual process models by testing whether seemingly stimulus-driven phenomena might be due to goal-driven processes after all. We do so by using state-of-the-art behavioral (reaction time) and neurological (TMS/MEP) techniques. Support for our alternative model has important implications for behavior change in clinical practice and society.
Funder: Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
Funding type: grant
Funder scheme: FWO research project (including WEAVE projects)
Start date: 2017-01-01
End date: 2020-12-31
Investigator: Agnes Moors
Institution: KULeuven
Funded outputs count: 27
Funder award ID: G073317N
OpenAlex ID: G2012515705