Can a child’s self-control predict future success?

In psychologist Michel’s experiment, 4-year-old children showed delayed gratification, the ability to wait for a marshmallow without eating it. Fifteen years later, it was found that this ability led to higher academic achievement and life satisfaction. Delayed gratification plays an important role in psychoanalysis, cognitive development, and social learning theories, all of which suggest that children learn to inhibit impulses and pursue long-term goals.

 

Michel, a psychologist, conducted an experiment on children’s self-control. She took a group of 4-year-olds into a room, handed them each a marshmallow, and told them that if they didn’t eat it by the time the teacher returned, they would get another one as a reward. Some children ate as soon as the teacher left, some ate halfway through, and some waited until the end. And when the children in the experiment were revisited 15 years later, the ones who waited longer had higher academic achievement and higher life satisfaction. Dr. Michel calls the children’s behavior in this experiment “delayed gratification”-the ability to delay immediate gratification or reward and to tolerate frustration along the way.

 

 

Delayed gratification is more than just self-control. It plays an important role in many aspects of life and is directly related to an individual’s ability to achieve long-term goals. In the modern world, we are constantly tempted to seek instant gratification, which makes the ability to control ourselves and pursue long-term goals even more important.
In psychoanalytic theory, the ability to delay gratification arises when the reality principle of the ego, which considers utility, prevails over the pleasure principle of the id, which follows impulsive desires. In development, the ability to delay gratification is shaped more by the strength of the ego’s drive to inhibit impulses than by cultural influences. As the child matures and develops voluntary self-control, the ability to delay gratification develops. The role of parents and teachers is also very important in this process. They can provide consistent rules and limits for the child and help the ego grow with positive reinforcement and support.
Cognitive developmental theory explains that children choose immediate rewards because they are unable to consider the value of delayed rewards, which may be more valuable. The theory also sees a stronger ability to delay gratification as a reflection of a child’s cognitive growth: the cognitive ability to consider both aspects of a choice situation – a small immediate reward and a larger reward that will be received after a period of time – at the same time, as well as the ability to structure events and understand reality. In this way, children learn to control their current desires in favor of long-term goals.
So, how does social learning theory view the ability to delay gratification? According to this theory, through social reinforcement, children become aware that delayed gratification behaviors are more valuable and appropriate. Specifically, the expectation or sense of trust that the delayed reward will be realized relies heavily on past experiences with promise fulfillment. In addition to direct experience, delayed gratification skills are learned by observing the behavior of social models such as peers, parents, and teachers. The role of social models is crucial in this process. They model positive behaviors for the child, allowing the child to imitate and internalize them.
Research on delayed gratification shows that the developmental foundations for an individual’s academic achievement and social adaptation are laid at an early age. In a modern world full of harmful stimuli, it is important to teach children to control their impulses and internalize forward-looking and achievement-oriented values. Delayed gratification is therefore a key developmental task in childhood. Developing delayed gratification skills in children requires consistent instruction and guidance both at home and at school. This will help them learn to control themselves and, in turn, lead successful and fulfilling lives as adults.