biological area (Casey) Flashcards
background
the video is an example of the marshmallow test
aims experiment 1
To see if low delayers on the marshmallow test at age 4 years (i.e. people who found it hard to delay gratification at that age) still struggled with resisting temptation in adulthood.
aims experiment 2
To examine activity in areas of the brain thought to be associated with the ability to resist temptation.
sample
562 four year old took part in the initial marshmallow test
followed up in there 20s - several dropped out using self report
followed up again in their 30s using self report
final sample
now in their 40s participants were contacted and asked to take part in the study
only those who were consistently high or low delayers were contacted
low delayers
were participants who consistently gave into temptation (could not resist eating the marshmallow and reported low levels of self control as adults).
high delayers
were participants who consistently resisted temptation and could delay gratification for longer periods of time.
procedure cool task
Participants completed an impulse control task called the Go/No-Go task
They would have to press a button when they saw one stimulus (e.g. a female face) and NOT press a button when they saw the other stimulus (e.g. a male face)
procedure hot task
This time the two stimuli were happy or fearful faces
Participants had to press a button when they saw one type of emotion (e.g. fearful faces) and NOT press the button when they saw the other emotion.
results
There was no difference between high delayers and low delayers on the COOL task - both groups made a similar number of errors
BUT on the HOT TASK, the low delayers made more errors than the high delayers
conclusions exp 1
Low delayers (people who struggled to resist temptation as 4-year olds) showed more difficulty suppressing responses to happy faces in their forties.
Suggests that low/high self-control is a fairly constant trait in individuals
experiment 2
Very similar procedure to experiment 1 but this time the researchers wanted to investigate brain activity while completing this task
Inferior frontal gyrus
This should be more active when the brain is resisting temptation
ventral striatum
This should be more active when the brain desires a temptation.
fMRI results
The LOW DELAYERS showed LOWER activity in the right inferior frontal gyrus than the HIGH DELAYERS.
The LOW DELAYERS showed HIGHER activity in the ventral striatum than the HIGH
conclusions exp 2
Being able to delay gratification is a useful ability that can help with long term decision making and goals
Low delayers showed less activity in inferior frontal gyrus and more in ventral striatum – which suggests a biological reason why some people have better self-control than others
