Tuesday Afternoon Diversion: Marshmallows!

By Kevin Robinson in Arts & Entertainment on Oct 23, 2012 8:30PM

In the early 1970's researchers at Stanford conducted an experiment on delayed gratification in young children that eventually became the standard for understanding impulsiveness in children. Researchers from the University of Rochester's Baby Lab wanted to see if impulsive behavior in young children was influenced by the reliability of the environment they were in.

The Rochester experiment put young children in one of two groups: a reliable group, where the adult caregiver could consistently be believed to deliver on promises made, and an unreliable group, where the adult caregiver could not be counted on to deliver on promises. What the researchers found was that young children that learned adults were unreliable were more like to act impulsively in situations where personal benefit could be maximized through such impulsiveness.

And while the researchers at the University of Rochester have demonstrated the influence of nurture over nature with this seemingly simple experiment, they've also produced an incredibly cute video for the English speaking world to enjoy. For science!