
The big problem with one of the most popular assumptions about the poor - zzheng
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/06/08/the-problem-with-one-of-the-most-popular-assumptions-about-the-poor/
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_nalply
As far as I have understood: Some poor kids don't wait for the second
marshmallow because they don't trust the promise they will get the second
marshmallow if they wait. They aren't impulsive. They consider carefully the
risks and decide it's better to have a marshmallow now, because what if the
adult just takes the marshmallow away when he returns? After all this is what
they experience every day: non-trustworthy adults.

This is both sad and fascinating. Sad because it's a terrible world for
children not to trust people. Fascinating because the conclusion is a lot more
deep than I would have expected. Half a year ago I tried this experiment with
my three year old son. He waited for the second cookie. Now I realize that I
also tested his trust. He was trusting me and therefore willing to wait for
the second cookie.

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Hnrobert42
A fascinating article. Thank you for posting.

Foolishly, I read some of the comments. It's sad to see so many people use the
article as a fulcrum for their pet issue without having read, or at least
understood, the article.

