This pre-print is an excerpt of a chapter accepted for publication in the 6th edition of The Handbook of Social Psychology. The chapter reviews the current state of theorizing and research in this interdisciplinary area, and sketches emerging themes and connections. The topics covered include conceptual issues, an overview of self-control models, preventive self-control, self-control strategy use, social influences on self-control and the connection between self-control and happiness. Some of the main conclusions are: (1) Self-control research has undergone quite some evolution in the last decade by transcending its initial focus on self-control as inhibitory capacity to include notions of preventive self-control, smart strategy selection, motivational quality, and meta-motivational skills. (2) Considering a large range of vexing societal problems such as obesity or unsustainable levels of consumption, self-control research may benefit from transcending its classical individual focus to better address the interplay among individual strivings and societal structures. (3) In terms of happiness implications, people appear to be happiest when they can steer clear of motivational conflict as much as possible, and this seems to distinguish those successful versus less successful at self-control. Avoiding conflict may not only be a matter of the right set of strategies, but also a matter of knowing what one truly wants in life, that is, aligning one’s motives in a self-concordant way so as to optimize autonomous and minimize controlled forms of motivation.