Cuttlefish show they re as smart as kids in marshmallow test study
The marine mollusks demonstrate they re able to delay gratification for the reward of a better snack. Listen - 01:52
At Australia s Great Barrier Reef in 2015, a broadclub cuttlefish hunts for a pretzel stick. Or was it a marshmallow? Reinhard Dirscherl/Getty Images
Treats can be hard to resist, no matter what your age or species. But a new study reveals that cuttlefish yes, the marine mollusk can adapt to a well-known psychological test given to human children, and learn to defer gratification in order to snag a better snack.
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According to a new study, cuttlefish can pass the Stanford marshmallow test, delaying the gratification of an immediate reward for a better reward later.
In an amazing show of self-control, cuttlefish can resist the impulse to eat a morsel of food if it means getting to eat two morsels later on, a new study shows.
In experiments, the marine molluscs passed a variation of the marshmallow test – originally used in the 1970s to measure a child s ability to delay gratification.
In the original Stanford experiment, pre-school kids were given one marshmallow and told they could eat it straight away, or, if they waited 20 minutes, have two marshmallows instead.
For this new study, scientists performed a fishy version of the legendary experiment using shrimp instead of marshmallows.
The surprising health benefits of giving things up
If you are able to exercise self-control instead of giving in to temptations there are range of physical, psychological and social outcomes
Anyone can increase self-control with practice
Credit: krisanapong detraphiphat
Did you decide to give something up for Lent?
Whether for religious reasons or because you just felt like testing yourself, last week many of us pledged to give up something we enjoy temporarily. Psychologically, is this a good thing?
Definitely.
Delaying gratification – that is, exercising self-control by choosing to wait – is associated with wide-ranging physical, psychological and social benefits. A joint study carried out by Terrie Moffitt at Duke University and international colleagues followed 1,000 New Zealanders from birth to 32. Those who showed good self-control during childhood had better physical health, greater financial success and were less likely to commit criminal offences as adults.