

The Struggles of a Psychologist Studying Self-Control - grej
http://www.newyorker.com/science/maria-konnikova/struggles-psychologist-studying-self-control

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araes
Interesting article. I have done something similar to the delayed
gratification techniques described in it for years, but I never knew they had
a name for the concept. Usually I just think about it like "tricking" myself.

Like, when I was smoking a lot more, I would tell myself, "I'll have a smoke
after I finish this task" and would then start something that I knew would
distract me until the craving passed. Or with a friend of mine's Dad, I still
see him visiting their apartment while wheezing as he struggled to open his
lungs enough to get a breath. Died a week later, and she still smokes a pack a
day. Boggles my mind, as for me, that was absolutely terrifying, and I almost
can't not hear that sound when someone offers me a cig.

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schalab
In my experience, the intensity of desire and the subsequent pleasure produced
varies widely across different people.

The facets of the marshmallow experiment used to accredit certain kids as
having picked up highly mature techniques in delaying gratification, can
perhaps be equally explained by their desire levels not exceeding the
threshold required to overpower their cognitive functions.

Certain kids love marshmallows to the point that they disobey orders, while
certain kids do not. That to me is just as feasible an explanation.

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alex_duf
I think the full experiment give the choice of the treat.

"Mischel’s team would present a child with a treat (marshmallows were just one
option) and tell her that she..."

