Wait for it: Delay-discounting and academic performance among an Irish adolescent sample |
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| Authors: | Yseult Freeney Michael O'Connell |
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| Institution: | 1. Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute , Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Roanoke, Virginia;2. Addiction Recovery Research Center, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Roanoke, Virginia;3. Human Neuroimaging Laboratory, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Roanoke, Virginia;1. Department of Psychiatry, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA;2. Research Imaging Institute, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA;3. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA;1. Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1601 23rd Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212, United States;2. Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 2200 Children''s Way, Nashville, TN, 37232, United States;3. Department of Psychology, Vanderbilt University, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, PMB 407817, Nashville, TN 37240, United States;4. Department of Psychology, Yale University, Box 208205, New Haven, CT 06520, United States;5. Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 215 Light Hall, Nashville, TN 37232, United States;6. Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1161 Medical Center Drive, Medical Center North, Suite CCC-1100, Nashville, TN 37232, United States;1. Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China;2. Institute of Psychology and Behavior, School of Education, Henan University, Kaifeng, China;3. Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, China |
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| Abstract: | Beyond cognitive ability and family background, are there other significant determinants of educational attainment? From research in psychology, economics, education and criminology, one powerful influence is the ability to delay gratification, operationalised in this paper as ‘delay-discounting’. It is intuitively plausible that the ability to subordinate short-term appetites in order to obtain long-term goals could have positive consequences for academic achievement. A representative sample of 1131 students preparing for a state examination were offered a series of hypothetical options in which prize winnings, and the interval before the winnings could be collected, were varied. Greater willingness to wait was rewarded with increments in winnings. Participants were also given a short test of cognitive ability, asked about their academic achievement, and family and community status. A multivariate analysis indicated that, while controlling for cognitive ability and economic deprivation, delay-discounting made a significant prediction of attainment. Policy implications for children's learning are discussed. |
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