Deferred gratification underlies self-discipline and grit — putting off what you enjoy until you finish what you don’t, writes Alfie Kohn for Education Week. Proponents of grit often point to a study by Stanford psychologist Walter Mischel, in which preschool-aged children were left alone and told they could get a small treat (a marshmallow or pretzel) by ringing a bell at any time, but if they held out until the psychologist returned, they’d get a bigger treat (two marshmallows or pretzels). It’s usually represented that children able to wait for an extra treat scored better on measures of cognitive and social skills years later and had higher SAT scores. In fact, Mischel’s central question was how children go about trying to wait, not whether they waited at all. Kids generally waited longer when distracted by a toy. What worked best wasn’t (in Mischel’s words) “self-denial and grim determination,” but doing something enjoyable while waiting, so self-control wasn’t really needed. When participants were tracked down 10 years later, those who’d waited didn’t have more self-control or willpower, only greater ability to distract themselves, which correlated with higher scores on tests of intelligence. This flies in the face of the current contention that intelligence and self-discipline are different things, and we must cultivate the latter in children. More

Source:  Public Education News Blast

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