Volitional action and self-control—feelings of acting according to one's own intentions and in
being control of one's own actions—are fundamental aspects of human conscious
experience. However, it is unknown whether high-level cognitive control mechanisms are
affected by socially salient but nonconscious emotional cues. In this study, we manipulated
free choice decisions to act or withhold an action by subliminally presenting emotional faces:
In a novel version of the Go/NoGo paradigm, participants made speeded button-press …

This film is a very well-made family drama. But I have a confession to make—family drama is
not my preferred genre. I originally watched the film because my wife had seen it in the
theater with a friend and she wanted the two of us to watch it on DVD. As someone who
usually prefers the action–adventure and science fiction genres, I was surprised to find
myself highly absorbed and transported by the film (Green & Brock, 2002). In addition, as a
social psychologist, I found this to be a nice demonstration of the impact of affect in our lives …