Social Rejection Reduces Intelligent Thought and Self-Regulation

Abstract This chapter reviews evidence that social rejection reduces intelligent thought and self-regulation. Correlational research has demonstrated that social rejection and low intellectual performance are related, as loneliness is associated with poor cognitive functioning. Experimental research has shed light on the correlational findings, as participants assigned to be rejected performed slowly and inaccurately on reasoning problems relative to participants assigned to control conditions. Hence, social rejection reduces intelligent thought. Evidence also indicates that rejection reduces self-control, as people who are rejected perform poorly on a wealth of self-control tasks.