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Group influences on self-control, Expt 2 /
Group Influences on Engaging Self-control: Children Delay Gratification and Value It More When Their In-Group Delays and Their Out-Group Doesn’t
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Description: Self-control emerges in a rich sociocultural context. Do group norms around self-control influence the degree to which children use it? We tested this possibility by assigning 3-5 year-old children to a group, and manipulating their beliefs about in-group and out-group behavior on the classic marshmallow task. Across two experiments, children waited longer for two marshmallows when they believed their in group waited and their out-group did not, compared to children who believed their in-group did not wait and their out-group did. Group behavior influenced children to wait more, not less, as indicated by comparisons with a control condition that was assigned to a group but received no information about groups’ delay behavior (Expt 1). Children also subsequently valued delaying gratification more if their in-group waited and their out-group did not (Expt 2). Childhood self-control behavior and related developmental outcomes may be shaped by group norms around self control, which may be an optimal target for interventions.