How social exclusion shapes intertemporal choice: Self-control resources as the central bridge

Intertemporal decision-making is crucial for social functioning, and social exclusion has been linked to a stronger preference for short-term gains. However, it remains unclear which psychological processes most proximally link exclusion to myopic intertemporal choice. We reanalyzed data from two complementary studies using psychological network analysis to examine the structural role of self-control resources (SCR) relative to trait self-control, impulsivity, and affect. In Experiment 1 ( N = 144), participants reported chronic social exclusion, SCR, trait self-control, impulsivity (BIS subscales), positive and negative affect, and completed a monetary intertemporal choice task. In Experiment 2 ( N = 96), acute exclusion was manipulated using the Cyberball paradigm. Across both experiments, the estimated networks retained a positive association between social exclusion and temporal discounting, whereas higher SCR was associated with more patient intertemporal choices. SCR had the largest absolute two-step bridge expected influence in both networks. Together, these findings highlight the association of momentary self-control resources with intertemporal choice in the context of social exclusion.