The Mediating Role of Monitoring in the Association of Religion With Self-Control Evan C. Carter 1 , Michael E. McCullough 1 , and Charles S. Carver 1 Abstract Religiosity is related to a variety of positive outcomes and the nature of this relationship has long been a topic of inquiry. Recently, it was proposed that an important piece of this puzzle may be the propensity for religious beliefs to promote self-control, a trait that is linked to a range of benefits. How religion translates into self-control, however, remains unclear. We examined the extent to which religiosity’s relationship with self-control is mediated by self-monitoring, perceived monitoring by God, and perceived monitoring by other people. Results revealed that more religious people tended to monitor their standing regarding their goals (self-monitoring) to a greater degree, which in turn related to more self-control. Also, religious people tended to believe that a higher power was watching them, which related to greater self-monitoring, which in turn was related to more self-control. Keywords religion, self-control, self-regulation, self-monitoring, self-focus Religious belief and behavior have a variety of robust links to mental health, well-being, and social behavior. To note a few, religion has been associated with longer life spans (McCullough, Hoyt, Larson, Koenig, & Thoresen, 2000), higher frequency of health behaviors such as visiting health care professionals (Hill, Burdette, Ellison, & Musick, 2006), less depression (Smith, McCullough, & Poll, 2003), higher academic achievement (Regnerus, 2000), higher marital satisfaction (Mahoney, Pargament, Tarakeshwar, & Swank, 2001), and less criminal activity (Baier & Wright, 2001). McCullough and Willoughby (2009) proposed that the link from religion to these other variables stems at least partly from religion’s ability to promote self-control. The finding that reli- gion is linked to self-reported self-control—the overriding of prepotent responses (e.g., emotions or motivations; Baumeister, Vohs, & Tice, 2007)—is well established (for a review, see McCullough & Willoughby, 2009). For example, in a nationally representative sample of U.S. students, Desmond, Ulmer, and Bader (2008) found that religiosity was positively correlated with self-reported self-control. Similarly, in a sample of Muslim teenagers, French, Eisenberg, Vaughan, Purwono, and Suryanti (2008) found that an index of self-control composed of parent- and self-report was positively correlated with an index of religi- osity that was based on parent-and self-reports. Monitoring, Self-Regulation, and Self-Control What are the component processes by which religion relates to self-control? One potential mediating mechanism is self- monitoring. Self-control is a subset of the broader phenomenon of self-regulation, the process by which behavior is brought into conformity with standards (Carver & Scheier, 1998). Self-regulation as a negative feedback process requires at least three elements: (a) goals, (b) monitoring of current conditions, and (c) outputs. Goals give the system a reference value for comparison, monitoring reveals any existing discrepancies between the current state and that reference value, and outputs vary in ways that keep sensed discrepancies minimized. Monitoring has been conceptualized as a state of self- awareness about how one is behaving relative to a norm or standard (‘‘What am I doing and what should I be doing?’’). The finding that increased self-focus (e.g., via the placement of a mirror in the laboratory) causes behavior to more closely approximate salient standards is well replicated (e.g., Carver, 1974, 1975; Gendolla, Richter, & Silvia, 2008; Gibbons, 1978; Macrae, Bodenhausen, & Milne, 1998; Scheier, Fenigstein, & Buss, 1974; Wicklund & Duval, 1971). Therefore, greater focus on one’s current status with respect to one’s goals should lead to more successful self-control (i.e., greater inhibition of standard- inappropriate responses). One hypothesis, then, is that religion might act to increase people’s monitoring of their behavior, thus affecting self-control. Religion might also promote self-control by fostering the belief that one is being monitored by God or by other people 1 Department of Psychology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA Corresponding Author: Michael E. McCullough, Department of Psychology, University of Miami, 5665 Ponce de Leon Boulevard, Coral Gables, FL, 33124, USA Email: mikem@miami.edu Social Psychological and Personality Science 3(6) 691-697 ª The Author(s) 2012 Reprints and permission: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1948550612438925 http://spps.sagepub.com at UNIV OF MIAMI on April 29, 2013 spp.sagepub.com Downloaded from