The Importance of Delayed Gratification

Delayed gratification is the idea that putting off temporary pleasure in the moment will lead to greater contentment once we have met our longer-term targets. The research may be best represented by the famous Marshmallow Test, in which children were asked to resist eating one marshmallow immediately with the promise of enjoying two marshmallows a quarter of an hour later. Those who had succeeded in the marshmallow test got better grades at school and progressed more quickly in their careers. But does delayed gratification always lead to better wellbeing? Signs that this might not be the case were already apparent in the 1990s.