New Study on Resisting Temptations

How confident are you in your ability to resist temptation? Loran Nordgren, senior lecturer of management and organizations at Northwestern University studied the question. His answers will be published in the journal Psychological Science, but you can find an introduction on LiveScience.com.

In the article he says, "People are not good at anticipating the power of their urges, and those who are the most confident about their self-control are the most likely to give into temptation."

For example, in one experiment people who thought they could resist smoking were twice as likely to indulge in a cigarette as those who were not sure of their abilities to resist.

The conclusion of Nordgren's work is to not put oneself in danger of succumbing to a temptation. He says, "People have less self-restraint than they think, a false belief that often leads people to expose themselves to more temptation than they can handle."

For Catholics, this study is not too earth shattering. We are taught to avoid the near occasion of sin. Now, the secular science backs up that teaching. God's grace helps us when we are in temptation. Try praying, while getting out of the situation. "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."