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Performance of overweight and normal‐weight girls on delay of gratification tasks
Author(s) -
Bourget Virginia,
White Donna Romano
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
international journal of eating disorders
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.785
H-Index - 138
eISSN - 1098-108X
pISSN - 0276-3478
DOI - 10.1002/1098-108x(198421)3:3<63::aid-eat2260030306>3.0.co;2-6
Subject(s) - delay of gratification , overweight , gratification , psychology , developmental psychology , endocrinology , obesity , social psychology , medicine
The purpose of the present study was to compare overweight and nonover‐ weight girls on each of three dimensions of self‐control: ability to delay gratification, behavioral strategies used to delay gratification, and preference for delay of gratification. Subjects were 36 middle‐class girls, 5 to 9 years of age. Half the sample was overweight according to height/weight norms adjusted for age and the judgment of trained observers; half the subjects were normal weight according to the same indicators. Subjects were assigned to one of two reward conditions—food or nonfood—and tested on ability to delay. Subjects were videotaped during the delay period and delay behaviors were analyzed. The preference for small immediate versus larger delayed rewards was assessed by questionnaire. Results indicated that overweight and normal‐weight girls did not differ in their ability to delay gratification or in preference for delayed rewards. However, overweight girls employed less effective self‐control strategies than did control subjects. This finding is discussed in terms of implications for development and treatment of obesity.