There is a debate about the factor structure of adults' ability to delay gratification and mixed findings concerning the relationship between delay of gratification and achievement. Three studies were conducted to show that delay of gratification had two components. In Study 1, exploratory factor analyses showed that the Generalizability of Deferment of Gratification Questionnaire had two facto...

BACKGROUND Choices requiring delay of gratification made during adolescence can have significant impact on life trajectory. Willingness to delay gratification can be measured using delay discounting tasks that require a choice between a smaller immediate reward and a larger delayed reward. Individual differences in the subjective value of delayed rewards are associated with risk for development...

In previous work, smokers showed steeper devaluation of delayed rewards than non-smokers. While the neural correlates of this link between nicotine dependence and delay of discounting are not established, altered activity in executive networks may relate to impaired delayed gratification. The goal of this study was to examine neural correlates of discounting and their relation to nicotine depen...

Three experiments investigated attentional and cognitive mechanisms in delay of gratification In each study preschool children could obtain a less preferred reward immediately or continue waiting indefinitely for a more preferred but delayed reward Experiment I compared the effects of external and cognitive distraction from the reward objects on the length of time which preschool children waite...

To encourage worker productivity, companies routinely adopt policies requiring employees to delay gratification. For example, offices might prohibit use of the internet for personal purposes during regular business hours. Recent work in social psychology, however, suggests that using willpower to delay gratification can negatively impact performance. We report data from an experiment where subj...

The Dark Triad (i.e., psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism) is a cluster of socially aversive personality traits that account for the “darker” side of human behavior. While traditional views have focused on the maladaptive nature of these traits, recent work in the field of evolutionary psychology suggests these traits may be adaptive in terms of self-serving behavior. The Dark Triad t...

Two studies examined whether the detrimental effects of attention to rewards on delay of gratification in waiting situations holds-or reverses-in working situations. In Study 1, preschoolers waited or worked for desired delayed rewards. Delay times increased when children worked in the presence of rewards but, as predicted, this increase was due to the distraction provided by the work itself. n...

NISAN, MORDECAI, and KORIAT, ASHER. The Effect of Cognitive Restructuring on Delay of Gratification. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1984, 55, 492-503. 2 experiments evaluated predictions derived from a cognitive-developmental approach to delay of gratification. In the first, kindergarten children expressed preference for either a small but immediate reward or a large but delayed reward. They were then told...