A scientific squabble over how to define self-control draws from an unlikely source: A story from Greek mythology. Sailing home to Ithaca after the Trojan War, Odysseus longed to hear the Sirens’ ...

I was thinking of starting this post by asking you to cue the 1980s Laura Branigan hit “Self Control”—except this version of self-control won’t have you losing your mind in the middle of the night.

Self-control refers to the process of resisting temptations (e.g., eating junk food) that conflict with enduring goals that usually involve bigger but delayed rewards (maintaining a healthy weight and ...