Walter Mischel (1930–2018)

I was motivated to read this book after finding references to the marshmallow experiments in multiple places. In the review I assume familiarity with them. Walter Mischel is the lead researcher behind many of those experiments, and this fact shows in the way to book is written. Mischel describes in detail the original experiments and the multiple variations on the experiment that he and others tried on different settings. Later on he introduces the hot-cold system model that explains the outcome and practical ways that seem to improve control.

There are two main theses to the book. The first is the explanatory model for the outcomes in the marshmallow test. The model is what Mischel describes as the 'hot' vs 'cold' systems of the mind. The first system is fast and impulsive, the second is slower and more calculating. This model has also been validated further by direct methods like brain imaging, roughly showing the hot system matches the brain's amygdala and the cold system matching the more recently formed pre-frontal cortex. The marshmallow experiment seems to measure the relative strengths of the hot and cold systems during hot situations. This balance between the hot and cold systems seems to underlie a lot of day to day decision making and explains things like steep future discounting and temptation.

The second thesis of the book is whether this hot-cold system balance is fixed or not, and what variables affect it. Mischel notes that as the test was repeated over decades with the same subjects, there were some who waited more and some who waited less than before. He explains that while genetics plays a role, there are many variables and feedback loops involved, and that some behavioral strategies have shown improvement at least in lab settings. The main strategy he has tested is the "IF X THEN Y execution plan". It consists on the following: First one identifies an undesired, but regular outcome Y that one wishes to change. Then one should find all hot cues X that seem to trigger the behavior Y, and then, ahead of time, thinking of an alternative Y' that could distract us from doing Y. What Y' should be is based on other strategies described in the book. By doing this exercise repeatedly, he believes it is possible to create lasting changes.

Mischel is careful in interpreting the outcomes of the experiments and qualifying his assertions. He is also far more careful than other writers in distinguishing his anecdotes from experiments: for example on page 47: "I have not measured it, but preschool boys seem to use more physical strategies, ... while girls seem to sing to themselves more... But that's my impression only, not a finding". I like this kind of writing because it makes it easier to keep facts vs opinions separate in the mind while reading. As a result, the book is also less flashy than others but more substantial.… (meer)

Interesting book, well written. Perhaps the most fascinating information is about the role of the Executive Function of the brain and how it can and does control the "hot" or primitive brain. Boiled down, we get the marshmallow test. Exponentially we get otherwise smart people doing dumb things. It's a question of just who is boss here? You actually get to choose, thanks to the plasticity of the brain. (And thank goodness were not all locked in from birth!). One of the more compelling scenarios has to do with those highly sensitive people who seem to take offense at everything and the strategies they can use to distance themselves from, well...themselves (vs. self-immersion as the author calls it) so they can function more happily in the world. This has tremendous implications for young children and schools. Worth a read.… (meer)

This is an interesting book on self control. It starts by explaining the principles behind the "Marshmallow Test' where a child is offered a treat that they can take now, or if they are prepared to wait for a short period of time then the proffered treat will increased. This simple test gives psychologists a tool to predict how a individual will behave much later in life and how successful they will be.

Mischel then expands into other studies on behaviour that he has been involved in and covers some of the work undertaken in schools to teach self control, and methods that you can use at home to achieve the same goals.

Was worth reading, and he covers a fascinating subject fairly well. But it does feel like you are reading a academic paper at times. I think that 2.5 stars is fair.… (meer)