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Parenting

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Original poster

The Stanford Marshmallow test for a four year old

22 replies

MaggieBee · 30/05/2009 16:51

This is the test where you say to a four year old "would you like one marshmallow now? or two in 20 minutes?". This obviously tests ability to delay gratification and achievement and can be an indication of how well a child will apply him/herself to studying and saving and so on later in life.

WELL anyway, I asked my 7 yr old and no surprise she said, 2 in 2 minutes, but can I have the whole bag in an hour?! I said ok shuddup now we try this on the wild thing...

I explained it to him carefully, checking he understood, he nodded to confirm that he understood, and then said "one now".

What!? ran through it all again with him,,,, asked him the question again, and he still maintained that he'd prefer one NOW.

Feel a bit depressed about htat.. He's only 3 and a half mind you, so I'll repeat it in 6 months. (Only because it's interesting, I'm not hothousing him, far from it!).

Can you all go and do this test on your four year olds please and tell me what happens!

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hercules1 · 30/05/2009 16:53

Just asked my 5 year old and she said with a big smile - now!

Original poster

MaggieBee · 30/05/2009 16:54

oh that makes me feel slightly better !!

OP posts:

AlistairSim · 30/05/2009 17:01

I tried it on my four year old.

She said "I'm a dinosaur. I only eat meat. Rooooaaaarrrrr!!!"

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Original poster

MaggieBee · 30/05/2009 17:03

phew! thought I was raising a low-achieving quitter!

OP posts:

Twims · 30/05/2009 17:03

rofl AlistairSim

ScummyMummy · 30/05/2009 17:05

I would choose one now. Waiting is SOOOO boring. What if they were horrid and you'd waited all that time for nothing? Plus would be confident that I could persuade the marshmallow giver to give me more if they were yummy (esp if they were my mum). Perhaps your boy is just an optimist?

HuffwardlyRudge · 30/05/2009 17:11

Tried it on my 3-yr-old.

After some discussion about whether the marshmallows were ducky shaped, and whether or not she would have to have her nose drops first, she opted for one now.

Original poster

MaggieBee · 30/05/2009 17:11

I think so Scrummy! Wishing away the next twenty minutes for the sake of 1gm of fluffed up sugar wasn't great management of his time, so he made an intellectual decision to liberate himself for the rather pointless waiting that would have been involved in choosing two marshmallows. Get mummy's silly game over with ASAP.

OP posts:

PortAndLemon · 30/05/2009 17:46

I don't have any actual marshmallows to test his veracity with, but DS (4.4) is very definite that he would prefer a whole bag in an hour or, failing that, two in twenty minutes, over one now.

Horton · 30/05/2009 18:29

Tried it on my nearly three year old who agreed that she'd like two but then immediately asked 'is it twenty minutes now?' and continued to ask for the next twenty minutes until I gave her the marshmallows. So I think it's fair to say that she didn't understand the question.

Original poster

MaggieBee · 30/05/2009 18:58

ha ha! say four peppa pigs! That's how I would express 20 minutes to my almost four year old. Everything is in units of peppa pig.

OP posts:

DontCallMeBaby · 30/05/2009 19:05

DD (5) claims she would opt for two in 20 minutes ... but she IS in the middle of eating an enormous ice lolly, so perhaps not feeling too urgent about marshmallows.

wb · 30/05/2009 19:10

Dunno about my 3 year old but I would rather have one now - a lot can happen in 20 minutes. And I'm great at saving money (its not sweet) so I wouldn't worry on that score either.

Original poster

MaggieBee · 30/05/2009 19:17

You're right. The whole bag could accidentally fall into Mummy Pig's mouth in 20 minutes. Who knows?

OP posts:

suwoo · 30/05/2009 19:28

My 7 year old DD would rather have the one now. I must say, I am a bit disappointed with her response.

KingCanuteIAm · 30/05/2009 19:33

My 4yo said two later, but she does have a good handful of older siblings which may have honed her reasoning/bargaining skills

Original poster

MaggieBee · 30/05/2009 20:01

Maybe by 7 the test is flawed because a mere marshmallow isn't that big a deal either way.

OP posts:

TrinityRhino · 30/05/2009 20:04

9 year old said 2 later in a flash but the just four year old said one now

dh said one now cause he doesn't like marshmallows

Original poster

MaggieBee · 30/05/2009 20:10

ask your husband would he rather have one cool lager now or two in 20 minutes. wow. that's hard. i want a cool lager now.

OP posts:

TrinityRhino · 30/05/2009 20:11

dh said one now
but he is drunk and hot

Horton · 30/05/2009 21:59

I must say, I would rather have one glass of wine now than two in twenty minutes. Because the second one would get warm by the time I'd drunk the first and also one glass is really my limit if I don't want to embarrass myself. I have actually had one and a half glasses over the past couple of hours so I should probably go to bed.

Nighbynight · 30/05/2009 22:58

How did marshmallows turn into glasses of wine??

My children are in bed, but if past behaviour is anything to go by, they would probably say "can I have 4 now?"

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