The Marshmallow Experiment- Self Regulation
Introduction
Imagine yourself driving down the freeway and this guy comes up behind you speeding at 90mph, cuts you off, and in the process of cutting you off, he hits your car, and yet you manage not to slap him for being such a reckless driver. For that moment, you demonstrated self-regulation; you wanted to slap him, but you chose and managed to restrain yourself from doing so. Self-regulation is a complex process that involves initiating, inhibiting, or modulating the following aspects of function: (1) internal feeling states (the subjective experience of emotion); (2) emotion-related cognitions (thoughts about what one wants to one’s interpretation of a situation; (3) emotion-related physiological processes (heart rate, hormonal or other physiological reactions that can change as a function of regulating one’s feeling states and thoughts); (4) emotion-related behavior (actions or facial expression related to one’s feelings) (Siegler, 2006). No one is born with the ability to regulate their emotions. It is a long, slow process before any self-regulation is emerged. So, where does it all begin? Childhood.
Pre-school is a great place to start teaching self-regulation. An experiment that I believe to be a useful demonstration of educating children on their self-regulation is group games that promote leadership skills.
Materials Needed for Experiment:
• Pilot’s hats
Procedure
To begin this experiment the marshmallow test must be administered to the kids and the results must be recorded. We then separate the kids into two different groups. One of the groups will be the control group where the kids will be allowed to play freely. The second group will be the experimental group; this is the where the kids will have to follow a special set of instructions to play games. While the control group in the room next door is playing, a few teachers will then give out instructions to the experimental group. The teachers will divide the kids into groups of four; each
Imagine yourself driving down the freeway and this guy comes up behind you speeding at 90mph, cuts you off, and in the process of cutting you off, he hits your car, and yet you manage not to slap him for being such a reckless driver. For that moment, you demonstrated self-regulation; you wanted to slap him, but you chose and managed to restrain yourself from doing so. Self-regulation is a complex process that involves initiating, inhibiting, or modulating the following aspects of function: (1) internal feeling states (the subjective experience of emotion); (2) emotion-related cognitions (thoughts about what one wants to one’s interpretation of a situation; (3) emotion-related physiological processes (heart rate, hormonal or other physiological reactions that can change as a function of regulating one’s feeling states and thoughts); (4) emotion-related behavior (actions or facial expression related to one’s feelings) (Siegler, 2006). No one is born with the ability to regulate their emotions. It is a long, slow process before any self-regulation is emerged. So, where does it all begin? Childhood.
Pre-school is a great place to start teaching self-regulation. An experiment that I believe to be a useful demonstration of educating children on their self-regulation is group games that promote leadership skills.
Materials Needed for Experiment:
• Pilot’s hats
Procedure
To begin this experiment the marshmallow test must be administered to the kids and the results must be recorded. We then separate the kids into two different groups. One of the groups will be the control group where the kids will be allowed to play freely. The second group will be the experimental group; this is the where the kids will have to follow a special set of instructions to play games. While the control group in the room next door is playing, a few teachers will then give out instructions to the experimental group. The teachers will divide the kids into groups of four; each
Cited: Siegler, R. (2006). How Children Develop. New York: Worth Publishers.