RD BK MARSHMALLOW TEST

THE HOT EMOTIONAL SYSTEM

The limbic system consists of primitive brain structures located under the cortex on top of the brain

stem, which developed early in our evolution. These structures regulate basic drives and emotions

essential for survival, from fear and anger to hunger and sex.

THE COOL COGNITIVE SYSTEM

Closely interconnected with the brain’s hot system is its cool system, which is cognitive, complex,

reflective, and slower to activate. It is centered primarily in the prefrontal cortex (PFC). This cool,

controlled system is crucial for future-oriented decisions and self-control efforts of the kind identified

in the Marshmallow Test.

Age matters. Most children younger than four are unable to sustain delay of gratification on the

Marshmallow Test.

THE EFFECTS OF STRESS: LOSING THE COOL SYSTEM WHEN

YOU NEED IT MOST

The experience of short-term stress can be adaptive, mobilizing you into action. Stress can become

harmful, however, even toxic if it is intense and persists—for example, in people who become

enraged at every frustration, from traffic jams to checkout lines, or who feel overwhelmed under

extreme and enduring conditions of danger, turbulence, or poverty.

IF SNACK ATTACK - THEN WILL EAT FRUITS AND NUTS

GXE who we are emerges from a tightly intertwined dance between our

environment and our genes that simply can’t be reduced to either part alone.

In the first year of life, the prefrontal cortex begins to develop in ways that are essential for selfcontrol

and self-generated change. In the metaphor of the hot and cool systems, this marks the

beginning of the cool system that in time slowly enables self-control. Between the ages of about three

and seven, this development increasingly allows children to shift and focus their attention, to regulate

emotions adaptively, and to inhibit unwanted responses in order to pursue their goals more

effectively

GXE  Our genes influence how we deal with the environment. The environment affects which parts of our

DNA are expressed and which are ignored. What we do, and how well we control our attention in the

service of our goals, becomes part of the environment that we help create and that in turn influences

us. This mutual influence shapes who and what we become, from our physical and mental health to the

quality and length of our life.

OPTIMISM: EXPECTATIONS OF SUCCESS

Optimism is an inclination to anticipate the best possible outcome. Psychologists define it as the

extent to which individuals have favorable expectations for their future. These are expectations of

what they really believe will happen—more like faith than just hope—and they are closely linked

with the “I think I can!” mind-set. The positive consequences of optimism are dazzling, and would be

hard to believe if they were not so well supported by research. For example, Shelley Taylor and her

colleagues showed that optimists cope more effectively with stress and are better protected against its

adverse effects. They take more steps to protect their health and future well-being, generally stay

healthier, and are less likely to become depressed compared with those who are low in optimism.

THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE: COOL THE “NOW”; HEAT THE

“LATER”

Regardless of age, the core strategy for self-control is to cool the “now” and heat the “later”—push

the temptation in front of you far away in space and time, and bring the distant consequences closer in

your mind. My colleagues and I demonstrated this in the experiments with tobacco and food cravings

described in Chapter 10. When we cued participants to focus on “later” and the long-term

consequences of eating (“I may get too fat”), they experienced reduced food cravings, both in what

they felt and in what their brains registered. Likewise, when heavy smokers focused on “later” and

the long-term consequences of cigarette smoking (“I may get lung cancer”), their tobacco cravings

diminished. Focusing on “now” and the immediate, short-term effect (“It will feel good”) of course

had the opposite effect, making the cravings impossible to resist.

Outside the lab, when our hot system makes us focus on the present

Your future in a Marshmallow.”