The Marshmallow Test

I just saw that and was thinking of posting!



Hit "quote" to see how I did it. (I added "youtube" tags.)

Here's an article about that test that appeared in the New Yorker a while ago, really interesting:

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/18/090518fa_fact_lehrer
DON'T: The secret of self-control

HA!

I love that wee girl that ate all around it, and put it back on the plate.

"no one will know"

This reminds me of a show I saw a long time ago. Kids were led into a room absolutely crammed full of candy and were told to eat all the candy they wanted.

One group of kids were never allowed to eat any candy at home, the other group of kids were allowed to eat candy at home.

The no candy kids ate almost twice as much candy as the regualr candy eating kids.

I'll have to see if I can find that study.....

My goodness in some states this would classify as torture. I love the kids nibbling around and then putting it back - like they aren't going to notice.

It seems so torturish I'm going to do it to my kids tonight! Can't wait.

atta girl.

My first thought (before I even read the New Yorker article and found this statement) was, 'What if someone only wanted one marshmallow?' Did they screen these kids to see if they wanted two and hoped to do what they had to to achieve two?
Also, had all the kids eaten within the same time period? Could some of them have been hungrier than others?

I wish they'd have shown what those twins ended up doing in the video. They, in this study, reminded me so much of my younger sister and I who looked like twins, but had totally opposite temperaments. If someone gave both of us two cookies, I'd have eaten both of mine and asked for one of hers while she was still chewing her first bite of the first one. Interestingly enough though - we received almost identical grades in school and our SAT scores were within ten points of each other's. I became a teacher and she became a school social worker.

I wouldn't do this experiment on my kids. I think it'd set them up for unrealistic expectations- and anyway is wanting more of something always better than wanting something now? I can see pros and cons in either or both of those inherent attitudes.

What child would only want one marshmellow????

I don't want to experiment on my children (I would not think that would be an accurate test of their abilities) - I simply want to torture them.

Mo hates marshmallows.

I would love to see him do a study like this though -- where someone presented him a marshmallow as being something he should want.

If I gave him a marshmallow he wouldn't eat it but I'm willing to bet is someone else did that he would.

Thanks sozobe, although, I know the quote part I don't know what you mean by "youtube" quotes.

aidan, you're thinking like an adult. What child wants just one sweet? Even if they're full?

[youtube]http://www.youtu be.com/watch?v=6EjJsPylEOY&NR=1[/youtube]

ah. thank you.

My kids must be weird or something, but if you put a marshmallow or an apple in front of either one of them - they'd both choose the apple.
If you gave them directions not to touch the apple until an adult came in the room however - my son would immediately eat the apple and my daughter would wait compliantly until the adult came back in the room.
In terms of school success, they're about equal - my son because he's a self-directed and independent thinker and my daughter because she goes by the book - and a lot of teachers like that.
I think there are a lot of variables to personality and school success. I think this can be looked at in many different ways.

I can think of at least two I've known pretty well - my sister and my daughter- and my son barely eats any sweets at all - and never has - hungry or not.

Okay, here's the longer version with an ending. The resolution isn't as good but it's so cute.

I like the little red-haired girl who ate it before the proctor even left the room - she's like, 'F*** this - I want this and I'm eating it....'
That's a go-getter attitude if ever there was one.

Watching this video again, I think boredom is a component of this. I think they should have given them some distraction- like a book to read or something- to see if they'd still have the same amount of difficulty following the direction not to eat, and delaying gratification - because obviously it was harder for the kids to ignore the marshmallow when there was nothing else to do.
It'd be interesting to see if the kids who gave in to the boredom and ate the marshmallow grew up to be heavy - or people who eat when there's nothing else to do and they're bored.

I think your kids are unusual in prefering fruit over candy.

Yeah - maybe - but lucky me and lucky them. No cavities - no health issues. My daughter constantly orders salad when we go out to eat - with chicken or salmon for protein.
For a snack she eats pita bread and humus - I'm not kidding.
I have the sweet tooth in our family.

But neither one of them have ever been huge, stuff yourself eaters of anything.
But they're both athletic. I think that has a lot to do with it.