Why not wait?: A cognitive model of self-imposed delay termination.

Conducted 3 studies with 158 3rd graders to examine a cognitive model of how children terminate self-imposed delay of gratification when a preferred but delayed reward is pitted against an immediately available nonpreferred reward. According to this model, delay maintenance is primarily a function of the perceived value of the preferred reward, which is assumed to vary as a function of delay duration. In the 1st study, Ss devalued a physically present, delay-contingent preferred reward after a 10-min delay. Results of Study 2 reveal that the devaluation of the preferred reward observed in Study 1 occurred only when the preferred and nonpreferred rewards were initially highly similar in perceived value. Study 3 examined the effect of reward similarity and salience on children's actual delay behavior and found that delay times were shortest under those conditions in which reward devaluation had been most pronounced. Results support a general model of self-control in which interruptions in self-control are assumed to be preceded by temporally based changes in outcome evaluation. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Strategic attention deployment for delay of gratification in working and waiting situations.

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, not because attention to rewards motivated children to sustain work. analysis of spontaneous attention deployment showed that attending to rewards reduces delay time regardless of the working or waiting nature of the task. Fixing attention on rewards was a particularly detrimental strategy regardless of the type of task. Study 2 showed that when the work is not engaging, however, attention to rewards can motivate instrumental work and facilitate delay of gratification as long as attention deployment does not become fixed on the rewards. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Choosing problem-solving rewards and Halloween prizes: Delay of gratification and preference for symbolic reward as a function of development, motivation, and personal investment.

Conducted 3 experiments to generate and cross-validate a developmental account of reward preferences in the lifelike condition in which available rewards differ on both the immediate-delayed and material-symbolic dimensions. 429 children within a broad range of developmental levels (CA 2?–20 yrs) selected from arrays in which immediate-material, immediate-symbolic, delayed-material, and delayed-symbolic items were available. In each experiment more mature Ss delayed gratification to maximize reward magnitude and chose rewards symbolic of success more often than did less mature Ss. Analyses indicated that the 2 reward dimensions were both highly salient in Ss' thinking and that developmental effects on the 2 dimensions could be neatly integrated within a 3-stage developmental scale. Developmental effects on this scale and on the separate dimensions persisted across changes in the particular reward items available and changes in location from school testing room to more naturalistic Halloween settings. Findings indicate that preference for symbolic rewards tends to be more pronounced among the mentally retarded than the nonretarded but cast doubt upon previous interpretations of that group difference. Finally, children's Halloween prize choices suggested that preference for symbolic reward is a function of one's developmental level, the achievement being rewarded, and the extent of one's personal investment in that achievement. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of age and self-verbalization on children's ability to delay gratification.

Examined the effects of overt self-verbalizations on the ability to delay gratification in 80 kindergartners and 3rd graders. Ss were instructed to verbalize a statement that focused on task-oriented, reward-oriented, or irrelevant statements (counting) about the delay period. Results indicate that only in a no-verbalization control condition were 3rd-grade children better able to endure the delay period than kindergarten children. Task-oriented self-statements facilitated delay behavior for children of both ages while reward-oriented self-statements inhibited delay behavior of the 3rd graders and had no effect on kindergartners. (4 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Exposure to rewards and the delay of gratification.

Gave 111 children aged 6, 7, 8, and 9 yrs old a choice between an immediate reward and a larger, delayed reward. Half of the Ss in each age group saw the rewards before choosing, while the other half did not. Exposure to the rewards led to more choices of delayed reward for 7 yr olds. The 6 yr olds predominantly chose immediate rewards regardless of exposure, while the 8 and 9 yr olds predominantly chose the delayed reward regardless of exposure. 2 explanations are offered for the results for the 7 yr olds. In one, the results are attributed to the effect of exposure on value and/or expectancy of the delayed reward. In the other, it is suggested that exposure orients attention to the value, rather than the immediacy, of the alternatives. In this view, delay of gratification in young children reflects a form of decentration. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Overjustification and children's intrinsic motivation: Comparative effects of four rewards.

Studied the relative overjustifying effects of various types of rewards on 30 boys' and 30 girls' (mean ages 72.6 and 72.4 mo, respectively) intrinsic motivation. Four reward procedures were examined—tangible, verbal, symbolic, and self-administered symbolic (self) rewards. Ss attempted to solve mazes under 1 of 5 training conditions and were then given a free-play period in which to engage in further maze play or try other materials. Ss receiving tangible rewards and those who self-administered symbolic rewards (self-reward) showed less subsequent intrinsic motivation than Ss in the control, verbal reward, and symbolic reward conditions. Moreover, internal locus-of-control expectancies (Stanford Preschool Internal–External Scale) were inversely related to intrinsic motivation for Ss in the self-reward condition. Results are discussed from 2 perspectives—the intrinsic–extrinsic reward continuum and E. L. Deci's (1975) distinction between the controlling (detrimental) and informational (competence- and motivation-enhancing) aspects of rewards. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intact selective attention in rats with lesions of the dorsal noradrenergic bundle.

Tested S. T. Mason's hypothesis (1980) that lesions of the dorsal noradrenergic bundle (DNB), which induce depletion of forebrain noradrenaline, alter performance of discrimination tasks because they retard habituation to naturally attractive, but instrumentally irrelevant, stimuli. Exp I used 100 male Wistar rats in groups with either vehicle or 6-hydroxydopamine injections into the DNB. Groups were assigned to 5 discrimination tasks in a cross-maze. Lesions of the DNB did not alter performance of any of the tasks. In Exp II, control and noradrenaline-depleted Ss were trained in a task of light–dark discrimination followed by shift to position discrimination in a Y-maze. At the onset of training, Ss of both groups reliably avoided the bright goal arm and responded to the dark arm, thus demonstrating predominant attention for the relevant brightness stimuli rather than the irrelevant position stimuli. DNB lesions impaired acquisition of brightness discrimination only when the positive stimulus was the illuminated goal arm, and they did not alter shift performance. These results do not support Mason's hypothesis; but on the other hand they do indicate that DNB lesions in the rat can impair habituation of light avoidance. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Delay of gratification, motivation for the prohibited gratification, and responses to temptation.

Yielding to temptation, in a situation in which attainment of achievement rewards is contingent upon deviant (cheating) behavior, was conceptualized to be a function of (a) the strength of the motivation to attain the prohibited gratification, and (b) the inability to delay immediate gratification. 6th-grade boys participated in an experimentally controlled "shooting gallery" game of skill in which attainment of achievement rewards (prizes) was contingent upon the child's falsifying his own scores. Motivation for the prohibited gratification was inferred from "n Achievement" scores: preference for immediate, smaller (ImR) or delayed, larger (DelR) rewards in choice situations was the index of the ability to delay gratification. Achievement motivation was related to the S's producing sufficiently deviant scores to obtain an achievement reward, and preference for DelR was related negatively to the amount of cheating and positively to the latency of cheating, i.e., the number of trials before the occurrence of the 1st deviation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sensitivity of paranoid patients to nonverbal cues.

To test the hypothesis of a special sensitivity on the part of paranoid patients to nonverbal cues, 2 videotapes were prepared for viewing by 24 hospitalized paranoid patients and 24 normal Ss. Half of each group saw a videotape of genuine stimuli, and half saw a videotape of simulated stimuli. The stimuli consisted of 40 6-sec shots of the same 4 persons on each tape. The faces of the persons were shown as they watched 2 lights serving as signals. For the genuine tape, electric shock was administered to the stimulus person at the cessation of a red light, but none after a white light; for the simulated tape, stimulus Ss posed their expectation. Viewing Ss judged whether, at each presentation, the stimulus person on the videotape expected or did not expect to receive an electric shock. Paranoid Ss demonstrated significantly higher accuracy than normals for genuine stimuli, while normal Ss were significantly more accurate than patients for simulated stimuli. Normal Ss were more accurate for simulated stimuli than they were for genuine stimuli, while patients were not. Data support the hypothesis. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Biographical and self-report correlates of female guilt responses to visual erotic stimuli.

Divided 60 female undergraduates into high- and low-sex guilt groups on the basis of their responses to D. L. Mosher's True-False Guilt Inventory. All Ss reported an increase in state of sexual arousal after viewing erotic stimuli. None of the Ss reported any significant difference in state of guilt after viewing the stimuli. Low-sex guilt Ss rated the masturbation, coitus, and petting stimuli as more sexually arousing, better, more pleasant, safer, and more appealing than did high-sex-guilt Ss. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Delay of gratification as a function of incentive preference and race of experimenter.

Offered 14 incentive items to 133 black and 85 white 7-12 yr olds. Each S could choose 1 of 4 "inexpensive" items ($.05-.08) to receive at the end of the school day on which the test was given, or 1 of 10 "expensive" items ($.25-.35) to receive 3 wks later. The black and the white Ss differed in their preferences for expensive incentive objects. No statistically reliable differences were found between the black and the white Ss in ability to delay gratification. Results are contrasted with those obtained by B. R. Strickland (see record 1972-24694-001). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Delay of gratification in psychopathic and nonpsychopathic offenders.

Delay of gratification is a prototypical measure of self-control that merits systematic investigation in psychopaths. White male prisoners were provided with repeated opportunities to select an immediate response with uncertain reward or a delayed response with a higher rate of reward under 1 of 3 incentive conditions. Psychopaths' performance depended on their level of trait anxiety and incentive condition: Whereas low-anxious psychopaths were relatively unwilling to delay when omission of expected rewards also incurred monetary punishments, they displayed relative superior performance when the task involved rewards only. Findings complement those for passive avoidance learning in psychopaths and suggest that inhibitory self-control in low-anxious psychopaths is somewhat impaired under conditions involving a combination of monetary rewards and punishments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Some ego functions associated with delay of gratification in male delinquents.

Compared 2 groups of 20 institutionalized adolescent delinquent males, matched for age and IQ, on measures of (a) foresight and planning ability, (b) impulsiveness, (c) verbal delay of gratification, (d) internal vs. external control, and (e) adjustment ratings, using the nonverbal Porteus Maze Tests. The experimental group consisted of Ss who had chosen to live in a special cottage and attend public school even though this choice was made with the understanding that it would delay their release from the institution. The control group consisted of Ss from the remaining cottages. The 2 groups differed in the hypothesized direction on measures of impulsiveness, verbal delay of gratification, and internal vs. external control, but not on measures of foresight and planning ability or adjustment ratings. (17 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Observing response acquisition: Preference for unpredictable appetitive rewards obtained under conditions predicted by DMOD.

To investigate the preference for unpredictable rewards predicted by the present author and J. T. Daly's (see record 1983-20275-001) modification, known as the DMOD model, of R. A. Rescorla and A. R. Wagner's (1972) previous model of reinforcement, the present author conducted 5 E-maze experiments with 144 male Holtzman rats. In Exps I–V, Ss were given a choice between receiving reward and nonreward in a situation in which stimuli were correlated with reward outcome (predictable situation) vs a situation in which the stimuli were uncorrelated with reward outcome (unpredictable situation). Preference for the unpredictable situation occurred under the following conditions: small (1 37-mg pellet) immediate rewards, small delayed (15-sec) rewards when the cues correlated with reward outcome were absent during the delay interval, large (15 pellets) immediate rewards when a difficult discrimination was required, and when the stimulus predicting nonreward was present at the choice point. Preference for the predictable situation was strongest if reinforcement was delayed and large or if the stimulus predicting reward was present at the choice point. A weaker preference for the predictable situation occurred if reinforcement was immediate, large, and required a simple discrimination or if reinforcement was large and delayed and the cues that correlated with reward outcome were absent during the delay interval. Findings support the predictions of the DMOD model of appetitive learning. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effects of two cognitive strategies on pain threshold.

While 1 arm was immersed in ice water, each of 48 female student nurses were asked either to imagine a situation that, if real, would be inconsistent with pain (relevant strategy) or imagine a situation unrelated to pain (irrelevant strategy), or they were not given special instructions (control group). Ss were further divided into those with high and low pain thresholds based on a pretest. The use of strategies (relevant or irrelevant) did not alter the pain thresholds for Ss with low thresholds. Among those Ss with high thresholds, use of a relevant strategy led to a greater increase in threshold than an irrelevant strategy, which, in turn, led to a greater increase than the control condition. Ss who were highly involved in their imaginings showed greater increases in pain threshold than those who were not. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Alcohol, sexual arousal, and self-control.

Investigated the effects of alcohol on self-regulation using delay of gratification for viewing time for an erotic film as the primary dependent measure. Other measures included reflection–impulsivity, locus of control, sexual-guilt scores, and continuous recording of Ss' penile tumescence. Using a balanced placebo design with 50 undergraduate men, Ss were led to believe that they had consumed an alcoholic or a nonalcoholic beverage, and half of each of these 2 groups received either alcohol or tonic water. In addition, the effects of 3 doses of alcohol (placebo, low dose, high dose) were investigated. Instructional set, regardless of drink content, resulted in longer delay times and increased thoughts with sexual content. Although there was no significant relation between increasing dose of alcohol and delay time, there was an interaction between scores on Rotter's Internal–External Locus of Control Scale and alcohol dose. Externalizers showed an inverse linear relation between increasing dose of alcohol and delay time. Internalizers showed the opposite trend. Results support other research showing that expectations about drinking can be more potent predictors of behavior than the pharmacological impact of alcohol. Implications for the self-regulation of sexual behavior under the influence of alcohol are discussed. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stimulus selection and irrelevant stimuli in discrimination learning by pigeons.

Studied discrimination learning in 2 experiments with 32 and 16 White Carneaux pigeons. Exp. I confirmed that Ss trained in a free-operant situation produce a sharper gradient of generalization around a specific irrelevant stimulus if they are given true discrimination (TD) training than if given pseudodiscrimination (PD) training. An additional pair of groups, however, showed that this difference could be eliminated if, after initial training but before the test for generalization, both TD and PD Ss were given TD training on an entirely independent set of stimuli. This suggests that the normally flat PD gradient may represent a test effect: control by the specific irrelevant stimulus is masked by other more powerful irrelevant stimuli that are only suppressed by TD training. Exp. II demonstrated that in a discrete-trial situation, PD training results in a sharper gradient than does TD training, suggesting that the other unidentified irrelevant stimuli are present only in free-operant situations. (15 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mitigating the imitation of aggressive behaviors by changing children's attitudes about media violence.

In 2 experiments, 169 1st- and 3rd-graders selected because of their high exposure to TV violence, were randomly divided into an experimental and a control group. Over 2 yrs, the experimental Ss were exposed to 2 treatments designed to reduce the likelihood of their imitating the aggressive behaviors they observed on TV. The treatments involved teaching the Ss that (a) TV violence is an unrealistic portrayal of the real world, (b) aggressive behaviors are not as acceptable in the real world as they appear on TV, and (c) one should not behave like the aggressive characters seen on TV. The control group received comparable neutral treatments. By the end of the 2nd yr, the experimental Ss were rated as significantly less aggressive by their peers, and the relation between violence viewing and aggressiveness was diminished in the experimental group. (35 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dorsal noradrenergic bundle and selective attention in the rat.

Tested the role for the dorsal noradrenergic bundle (DNB) in selective attention and stimulus filtering in 4 experiments with 138 male Wistar rats. The DNB was damaged by stereotaxically guided injection of 4 μg of the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA). The latent inhibition effect was blocked by 6-OHDA-induced depletion of forebrain noradrenaline, whereas nonreversal shift performance was better in noradrenaline-depleted Ss than controls. Data indicate that Ss with DNB lesions are impaired in ignoring irrelevant stimuli. In situations in which control Ss did not learn to ignore irrelevant stimuli, no lesion-induced difference was found. Thus, controls and DNB lesioned Ss learned equally about each of 2 dimensions of a multiple-redundant discrimination task. This was assessed both by interpolated trials with only 1 dimension present and by shifts in which only 1 of the previous 2 dimensions remained relevant. It is concluded that the DNB lesion does not increase stimulus sampling globally but that it impairs performance only in those cases in which normal rats learn to ignore irrelevant stimuli. (53 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive person variables in the delay of gratification of older children at risk.

The components of self-regulation were analyzed, extending the self-imposed delay of gratification paradigm to older children with social adjustment problems. Delay behavior was related to a network of conceptually relevant cognitive person variables, consisting of attention deployment strategies during delay, knowledge of delay rules, and intelligence. A positive relationship was demonstrated between concurrent indexes of intelligence, attention deployment, and actual delay time. Moreover, attention deployment, measured as an individual differences variable during the delay process, had a direct, positive effect on delay behavior. Specifically, as the duration of delay and the frustration of the situation increased, children who spent a higher proportion of the time distracting themselves from the tempting elements of the delay situation were able to delay longer. The effect of attention deployment on delay behavior was significant even when age, intelligence, and delay rule knowledge were controlled. Likewise, delay rule knowledge significantly predicted delay time, even when age, attention deployment, and intelligence were controlled. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)