Marshmallow Test (1972-)

A Marshmallow Test (1972-) is a delayed gratification assessment that can be used to create impulse control evaluation systems (that support self-control measurement tasks).

• Context:
  • Marshmallow Test Input: marshmallow test stimulus presentation, marshmallow test instructions
    • Optional Marshmallow Test Input: marshmallow test environmental conditions, marshmallow test demographic information
  • Marshmallow Test Output: marshmallow test delay durations, marshmallow test behavioral responses
  • Marshmallow Test Performance Measure: marshmallow test reliability metrics such as marshmallow test temporal stability, marshmallow test inter-rater reliability, and marshmallow test predictive validity
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  • It can typically assess Delayed Gratification Capacity through marshmallow test waiting period measurement.
  • It can typically evaluate Self-Control Development through marshmallow test age-appropriate protocols.
  • It can typically measure Impulse Regulation Ability through marshmallow test behavioral observation.
  • It can typically determine Future-Oriented Thinking through marshmallow test reward preference analysis.
  • It can typically analyze Emotional Self-Regulation through marshmallow test coping strategy observation.
  • It can typically track Executive Function Development through longitudinal marshmallow test administration.
  • ...
  • It can often predict Academic Achievement through marshmallow test delay duration correlations.
  • It can often indicate Social Competence Development through marshmallow test behavioral pattern analysis.
  • It can often assess Cognitive Control Maturation through marshmallow test performance evaluation.
  • It can often support Clinical Assessment through marshmallow test diagnostic protocols.
  • It can often facilitate Research Study through marshmallow test experimental design.
  • ...
  • It can range from being a Simple Marshmallow Test to being a Complex Marshmallow Test, depending on its marshmallow test procedural complexity.
  • It can range from being a Individual Marshmallow Test to being a Group Marshmallow Test, depending on its marshmallow test administration format.
  • It can range from being a Laboratory Marshmallow Test to being a Field Marshmallow Test, depending on its marshmallow test environmental setting.
  • It can range from being a Traditional Marshmallow Test to being a Digital Marshmallow Test, depending on its marshmallow test delivery method.
  • ...
  • It can integrate with Psychological Assessment Battery for comprehensive marshmallow test evaluation.
  • It can connect to Longitudinal Study Design for marshmallow test developmental tracking.
  • It can support Educational Assessment System for marshmallow test academic prediction.
  • It can interface with Video Recording System for marshmallow test behavioral analysis.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Original Stanford Marshmallow Tests, such as:
    • Walter Mischel Stanford Experiment (1972) for preschool marshmallow test delayed gratification assessment.
    • Bing Nursery School Study (1960s-1970s) for marshmallow test longitudinal self-control evaluation.
  • Replication Marshmallow Tests, such as:
    • University of Rochester Marshmallow Test (2012) for marshmallow test environmental reliability assessment.
    • NYU Marshmallow Test Replication (2018) for marshmallow test demographic factor analysis.
    • Cross-Cultural Marshmallow Test Studies (1990s-2000s) for international marshmallow test validity evaluation.
  • Modified Marshmallow Tests, such as:
    • Choice-Based Marshmallow Test (1980s) for marshmallow test decision-making assessment.
    • Hot-Cool Marshmallow Test Variation (1990s) for marshmallow test cognitive strategy evaluation.
    • Virtual Marshmallow Test (2000s) for digital marshmallow test administration.
  • Clinical Application Marshmallow Tests, such as:
    • ADHD Marshmallow Test Assessment (1990s) for marshmallow test attention deficit evaluation.
    • Autism Spectrum Marshmallow Test (2000s) for marshmallow test developmental disorder assessment.
    • Preschool Screening Marshmallow Test (1980s) for marshmallow test early intervention identification.
  • Contemporary Marshmallow Tests, such as:
    • iPad Marshmallow Test (2010s) for technology-enhanced marshmallow test delivery.
    • Multi-Reward Marshmallow Test (2000s) for complex marshmallow test choice evaluation.
    • Cultural Adaptation Marshmallow Tests (1990s-present) for cross-cultural marshmallow test validity assessment.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Balloon Analogue Risk Tasks, which assess risk-taking behavior rather than marshmallow test delayed gratification capacity.
  • Iowa Gambling Tasks, which evaluate decision-making under uncertainty rather than marshmallow test impulse control ability.
  • Go/No-Go Tasks, which measure response inhibition rather than marshmallow test sustained delay tolerance.
  • Immediate Gratification Tests, which assess instant reward preference rather than marshmallow test future-oriented self-control.
  • Cognitive Flexibility Tasks, which evaluate mental set-shifting rather than marshmallow test delay endurance.
• See: Delayed Gratification, Self-Control, Impulse Control, Executive Function Assessment, Psychological Assessment Measure, Developmental Psychology Test, Longitudinal Study, Predictive Validity, Preschool Assessment.

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References

2015

• (Wikipedia, 2014) ⇒ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impulsivity#Marshmallow_test
  • One widely recognizable test for impulsivity is the delay of gratification paradigm commonly known as the 'marshmallow test'. Developed in the 1960s to assess 'willpower' and self-control in preschoolers, the marshmallow test consists of placing a single marshmallow in front of a child and informing them that they will be left alone in the room for some duration. The child is told that if the marshmallow remains uneaten when the experimenter returns, they will be awarded a second marshmallow, both of which can then be eaten. Despite its simplicity and ease of administration, evidence from longitudinal studies suggests that the number of seconds preschoolers wait to obtain the second marshmallow is predictive of higher SAT scores, better social and emotional coping in adolescence, higher educational achievement, and less cocaine/crack use.

2014

• (Wikipedia, 2014) ⇒ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_marshmallow_experiment Retrieved:2014-9-15.
  • The Stanford marshmallow experiment was a series of studies on delayed gratification in the late 1960s and early 1970s led by psychologist Walter Mischel, then a professor at Stanford University. In these studies, a child was offered a choice between one small reward (sometimes a marshmallow, but often a cookie or a pretzel, etc.) provided immediately or two small rewards if he or she waited until the tester returned (after an absence of approximately 15 minutes). In follow-up studies, the researchers found that children who were able to wait longer for the preferred rewards tended to have better life outcomes, as measured by SAT scores, educational attainment, body mass index (BMI) and other life measures.

1989

• (Mischel et al., 1989) ⇒ Walter Mischel, Yuichi Shoda, and Monica I. Rodriguez. (1989). "Delay of Gratification in Children." In: Science, 244(4907). doi:10.1126/science.2658056
  • ABSTRACT: To function effectively, individuals must voluntarily postpone immediate gratification and persist in goal-directed behavior for the sake of later outcomes. The present research program analyzed the nature of this type of future-oriented self-control and the psychological processes that underlie it. Enduring individual differences in self-control were found as early as the preschool years. Those 4-year-old children who delayed gratification longer in certain laboratory situations developed into more cognitively and socially competent adolescents, achieving higher scholastic performance and coping better with frustration and stress. Experiments in the same research program also identified specific cognitive and attentional processes that allow effective self-regulation early in the course of development. The experimental results, in turn, specified the particular types of preschool delay situations diagnostic for predicting aspects of cognitive and social competence later in life.

1972

• (Mischel et al., 1972) ⇒ Walter Mischel, Ebbe B. Ebbesen, and Antonette Raskoff Zeiss. (1972). "Cognitive and Attentional Mechanisms in Delay of Gratification." In: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 21(2).
  • QUOTE: … relationship between an individual's cognitive activity and his overt self-control behavior continues to … nated screen behind the cover] is a pretzel and marshmallow [or pennies … substantially enhanced, rather than decreased, the length of time that subjects delayed gratification. …

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