Allemand, M., Job, V., & Mroczek, D. K. (2019). Self-control development in adolescence
predicts love and work in adulthood. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,
117, 621–634. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000229
Allemand, M., Job, V., & Mroczek, D. K. (2018, December 13). Self-Control Development in
Adolescence Predicts Love and Work in Adulthood. PubMed Central (PMC).
https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000229
The above article examines the relationship between self-control development during
adolescence and its impact on love and work outcomes in adulthood. The study spans 23 years
involved 1,527 adults, 46.2% being females, with self-control measured annually from ages 12 to
16. The article’s theoretical problem is whether developmental changes in self-control during
adolescence predict adult outcomes in love and work. The research is designed through yearly
measurements of self-control during adolescence and assessments of love and work, and the final
outcome of the study is recorded at age 35. Interesting insights has been found in the study, one
of them being adolescent self-control was consistently measured across the adolescent years.
However, there was a mean-level increase in self-control during adolescence, with significant
individual differences. Finally, changes in adolescent self-control predicted better intimate
relationships. In this context, characteristics of an ideal relationship is that there is relative low
conflict and an elevated level of satisfaction in comparison with other relationships. The research
has highlighted long-term implications of developmental self-regulatory processes, showing that
changes in self-control during adolescence have significant consequences in critical life domains
beyond these years. Personally, I think that the strengths of this research include its longitudinal
design and the comprehensive tracking of self-control over critical developmental years, this
overall yield adequate information and provide a comprehensive result that is especially
important for studies that revolves around evolution of individuals, this will render the result to
be reliable. However, a major flaw that this study is subjected to is the presence of personal bias,
as participants might be inclined to answer questions in a socially desirably way. Nevertheless,
with the study being conducted throughout the span of 23 years, the biases could have been
minimized and that has allowed for an extensive examination of the development of self-control
from adolescence into adulthood and its impact on later life outcomes