The Marshmallow Test (Day 6)

Schedule

8:00-9:15 Motivation lecture

11:00-12:15 Psychopharmacology lecture

2:00-3:15 Cognitive neuroscience lecture

3:30-5:30 Work

I have the same professor for my motivation and psychopharmacology class, and I am pretty sure that she may become one of my favorites at UCSB. Normally, I despise having classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays because they are an hour and fifteen minutes in length (as opposed to the fifty minute lectures held on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays). However, this professor is so cool that she manages to keep my attention for the entire length of both classes (one of which is at 8:00 AM).

In this morning's motivation lecture, we discussed delayed gratification and "the marshmallow test", in which a child was given the option of eating one marshmallow immediately or waiting with a promise of another marshmallow. I had not seen a video detailing this experiment, so I browsed YouTube to find a good one.

Warning: Extremely cute!

In the original study, the test was performed on two- and four-year-olds. Almost all of the former were unable to wait the 15 minutes to receive a second marshmallow. Contrastingly, approximately half of the four year olds were successful and were rewarded with a second marshmallow. What is the significance of the difference between four-year-olds? In a follow-up study, it was shown that the children who demonstrated self-control in this test were more likely to get good grades, stay out of trouble, etc... 

I wonder what I would have done. My self-control really depends on the circumstances. As a vegetarian who loves meat, I think I have pretty good self-control. However, when it comes to chocolate, I am a lost cause (which is why I was only vegan for ten days... stupid homemade brownies).

Tangential Note

When did 8:00 AM class become such a horrid thing? In elementary school, class began at 8:25 AM (or something like that... my driver/mom was always running late). In junior high, my "zero period" choir class began at 7:00 AM (of course, that did not last long after I learned that I would have to sing in front of people... crazy talk, I know). Even after that, class began promptly at 8:00 AM. In high school, I had to rise even earlier to attend morning water polo practices. If you think an 8:00 AM lecture is unappealing, imagine jumping into a body of water at 6:30 AM... *Sigh* Those were the days...