Open Access

According to dual-process models, human behavior is the result of an interaction between automatic and controlled processes. Although automatic processes often lead to positive results, they can also lead to severely negative consequences. The current dissertation investigated via 4 studies the effect of self-control depletion, mindsets, framing, and preference for consistency on the usage of automatic processes in decision tasks where heuristics (e.g., reinforcement heuristic) can either conflict or be aligned with Bayesian updating. In particular, Study 1 hypothesized that when a reinforcement heuristic opposed Bayesian updating, ego-depletion would influence the reliance on automatic processes. Three sub-studies (1a, 1b and 1c) were conducted using different depletion manipulations plus controls. Although the manipulation checks indicated successful ego-depletion induction, only Study 1a found the predicted effect. It seems that the ego depletion effects in complex decision-making tasks are less robust than previously reported in the literature.