Delayed Gratification: One marshmallow now or TWO LATER.
G’day all,
Today we will be looking at delayed gratification.
In our face paced world, we are often overtaken by the desire to have what we want…and NOW.
One button pizza delivery, ask Google or Alexa for anything we want to know or more.
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With things like ‘Zip’ and ‘AfterPay’ we can buy what we want and pay it off later.
Our culture encourages us to seek temporary solutions that we can do now such as ‘get-rich-quick’ schemes, fast fat loss programs and even the arguably over-prescription of drugs to quickly solve our issues.[i]
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For many of us in the Western world, we are so lucky to have these conveniences at our fingertips.
But what about delayed gratification, then?
What is Delayed Gratification?
It is as simple as it seems, it is the tendency to give up an immediate reward in order to pursue a long-term reward.[ii]
The Marshmallow Experiment
We cannot talk about delayed gratification without talking about the hallmark Marshmallow Experiment.
For those who haven’t heard of this, have a look at YouTube videos on this. They are a great watch.
Essentially, psychologist Dr Walter Mischel, PhD, played what may seem like a cruel experiment on some four year olds (keep reading, the kids aren’t hurt). Experimenters placed a marshmallow in front of them. They were told they could eat the one marshmallow now or wait until the experimenter returned. If they waited they would get TWO marshmallows.[iii]
The study then followed these kids to see if there were any differences between those who at the marshmallow and those who waited (showed delayed gratification).
The Benefits of Delayed Gratification
These follow-ups showed kids that waited for the second marshmallow were far more successful than those who ate the first marshmallow. They had:
Better social skills,
Responded to stress better,
Were less likely to be obese,
Had higher SAT scores, and
Even showed a more developed prefrontal cortex.[iv]
Other studies have found similar results with a study of high school teachers finding those who showed higher levels of delayed gratification had more job satisfaction and less stress.[v]
Can We Improve Our Ability to Delay Gratification?
While originally, the ability was seen as innate and a personality trait (we were born with it and it could not be changed). There has been some thought, more recently, that this might not be the case. Recent studies have shown that self-control exercises can lead to improvements in self-control.[vi]
These findings have shown that self-control makes it harder to exhibit self-control later (it tires like a muscle) and it is proposed that self-control exercise may improve the stamina of this ‘muscle’.[vii] There is still much to learn here, though.
Conclusion
Delayed gratification seems to be linked with many benefits and research is starting to suggest that we can actually improve out ability to do it.
How well do you exhibit self-control and delayed gratification? Would you eat the marshmallow straight away or wait to get two?
[i] https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/your-emotional-meter/201712/the-benefits-delaying-gratification
[ii] Gerhart, J. I., Heath, N. M., Fitzgerald, C., & Hoerger, M. (2013). Direct and indirect associations between experiential avoidance and reduced delay of gratification. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 2(1-2), 9-14.
[iii] https://www.apa.org/monitor/2014/12/marshmallow-test
[iv] https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/the-age-overindulgence
[v] Mohsin, F. Z., & Ayub, N. (2014). The relationship between procrastination, delay of gratification, and job satisfaction among high school teachers. Japanese Psychological Research, 56(3), 224-234.
[vi] Muraven, M., Baumeister, R. F., & Tice, D. M. (1999). Longitudinal improvement of self-regulation through practice: Building self-control strength through repeated exercise. The Journal of social psychology, 139(4), 446-457.
[vii] Ibid.