The Marshmallow Test Book Summary - The Marshmallow Test Book explained in key points
Listen to the Intro
00:00

The Marshmallow Test summary

Walter Mischel

Mastering Self-Control

4.6 (66 ratings)
17 mins
Table of Contents

    The Marshmallow Test
    Summary of 8 key ideas

    Audio & text in the Blinkist app
    Key idea 1 of 8

    The “marshmallow test” was developed to understand how children control their urges.

    Have you ever teased a young child by offering her a treat, then saying she can’t eat it right away?

    If not, that’s alright, because scientists have done it for you in a clinical test! It was called the Marshmallow Test, and it provided us with some interesting insights on human behavior:

    For the test, children were first allowed to choose their favorite treat. A researcher would tell the child they could either have the treat now, or have two later after the researcher had left and come back. Then the researcher left the room, but told the child they could call them back if they couldn’t wait any longer. The child was then left alone with the treat on a tray in front of them.

    Researchers secretly watched the children to see how they would handle the situation. Naturally, some children ate the treat right away. Others waited a bit, then ate it. Some children, however, managed to resist the treat, and they all used the same strategy to do so. The children who successfully resisted eating their treats managed it by distracting themselves from it.

    They used different strategies for this. Some sang songs, and others tilted and played with their chairs.

    The kids came up with those strategies themselves, but then the experimenters tried teaching the children distraction techniques beforehand. This turned out to help the children a great deal.

    Before the test, researchers taught the children if-then plans. For example, if my hand moves towards the treat, then I will start singing a song. When the children reminded themselves of what they were doing each time they went for the treat, they found it easier to wait.

    The Marshmallow Test seems simple, but it actually has profound implications, as you’ll see in the following blinks.

    Want to see all full key ideas from The Marshmallow Test?

    Key ideas in The Marshmallow Test

    More knowledge in less time
    Read or listen
    Read or listen
    Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.
    Find your next read
    Find your next read
    Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.
    Shortcasts
    Shortcasts New
    We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.

    What is The Marshmallow Test about?

    The Marshmallow Test explains why being able to delay gratification and exercise our self-control is essential for living a successful life. Using insights gained from several psychological studies, it explains how exactly our self-control skills function, and what we can do to improve them.

    Best quote from The Marshmallow Test

    The power resides in the prefrontal cortex, which, if activated, allows almost endless ways of cooling hot, tempting stimuli by changing how they are appraised.

    —Walter Mischel
    example alt text

    Who should read The Marshmallow Test?

    • Anyone who wants to improve his or her self-control
    • Anyone interested in psychology
    • Anyone hoping to help children develop good self-control skills, especially parents

    About the Author

    Walter Mischel is a renowned psychologist and writer. He invented the “marshmallow test” when studying child psychology in the 1960s, and he was educated at New York University, City College of New York and Ohio State University.

    Categories with The Marshmallow Test

    Books like The Marshmallow Test

    People ❤️ Blinkist
    Sven O.

    It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.

    Thi Viet Quynh N.

    Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.

    Jonathan A.

    Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.

    Renee D.

    Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.

    People also liked

    Start growing with Blinkist now
    28 Million
    Downloads on all platforms
    4.7 Stars
    Average ratings on iOS and Google Play
    91%
    Of Blinkist members create a better reading habit*
    *Based on survey data from Blinkist customers
    Powerful ideas from top nonfiction

    Try Blinkist to get the key ideas from 7,000+ bestselling nonfiction titles and podcasts. Listen or read in just 15 minutes.

    Start your free trial