Kids Who Can Pass This Classic Test Are Destined For Success In Adulthood, According To Research
Yulia Prizova | Shutterstock The Marshmallow experiments were a series of tests that began in the early 1960s and were dreamed up by psychologist Dr. Walter Mischel. His goal was to examine how kids handled delayed gratification, a trait often associated with success.
You know how there are kids who still have Halloween candy in July? That wasn't me; I didn't even have leftover candy in November. So, if, as a four- or five-year-old, I'd been brought into a plain room by an adult I trusted and given the choice to have one marshmallow now, or wait 20 minutes and get 2 marshmallows (or another delicious treat), my choice would've been clear: don't wait and eat the marshmallow immediately. Delayed gratification has never been a talent of mine.
Kids who can pass the marshmallow test are destined for success in adulthood.
Josie Garner | Shutterstock
These experiments are still going strong and are constantly updated, as Dr. Mischel has kept tabs on the subjects to see what kind of lives they ended up having.
The children who didn't eat their marshmallows were found (over the course of their lives) to have a lower BMI, lower rates of addiction, a lower divorce rate, and higher SAT scores.
Dr. Mischel told the American Psychological Association, "kids who are good at self-control and delay of gratification become grown-ups who are good at self-regulation and self-control, and that there are substantial differences in outcomes that show that self-control is an extremely important cognitive and emotional skill set."
Kids who passed the marshmallow test distracted themselves to maintain self-control.
Dr. Mischel's book "The Marshmallow Test: Mastering Self-Control" describes why the Marshmallow Test illustrates willpower, delayed gratification, temptation, and determination. "We were interested in creating an intense conflict for the child," Mischel told CNN.
During the experiment, Mischel observed that the children who were able to wait for two marshmallows displayed creative ways to distract themselves. "I'm going to push this stuff as far away from myself as I can. I'm going to distance myself. I'm going to turn around in my chair and look the other way so that I don't see the stuff. I'm going to distract myself strategically. I'm going to sing little songs," said Mischel, explaining the thought process of the delayers.
In almost the same way children are taught to self-soothe, these kids were taught to restrain themselves and see the bigger picture. Mischel told the APA, "If you want your children to have self-control, you need to model it. If you make promises, you need to keep them. You can't expect kids to delay gratification if you're breaking your own promises to them. Kids also need to learn that their behavior has consequences. If they behave in constructive and creative ways, the consequences are good. And if they behave in destructive ways, the consequences are not so good. They need to become aware that there's a relationship between what they're doing and what happens to them so that they can develop a sense of agency, a sense of mastery and a sense that they can control their own behavior."
A motivational speaker recreated the test internationally and procured the same results.
Motivational Speaker Joachim de Posada and author of the book "Don't Eat the Marshmallow ...Yet!" created his own version of the Marshmallow test with children in Colombia, and the results mirrored Dr. Mischel's.
Only 1/3 of the children tested patiently waited to get their second marshmallow, but by 18, they were all on the path to success. The 2/3 who couldn't wait had lower grades, poorer relationships, and fewer plans for the future.
"I have no doubt that self-control skills ... are imminently teachable," said Mischel. And anybody, no matter what their age, can master the same cognitive skills kids use to distract themselves from the treat. "[For adults] you can turn something that's very appealing into something that's very aversive."
Patience is a virtue we should be teaching all children, whether it's with a marshmallow or not. But it might not be a bad idea to test yourself as well. Brush up on your delayed gratification skills; it just might help you more than you realize.
I'm still not good at delayed gratification, and I'm sure I'd eat the marshmallow right away.
Christine Schoenwald is a writer, performer, and astrology lover. She's had articles in The Los Angeles Times, Salon, and Woman's Day.
