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Rituals Improve Children's Ability to Delay Gratification
Author(s) -
Rybanska Veronika,
McKay Ryan,
Jong Jonathan,
Whitehouse Harvey
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/cdev.12762
Subject(s) - psychology , gratification , delay of gratification , copying , intervention (counseling) , developmental psychology , function (biology) , task (project management) , executive functions , social psychology , cognition , management , evolutionary biology , psychiatry , neuroscience , political science , law , economics , biology
To be accepted into social groups, individuals must internalize and reproduce appropriate group conventions, such as rituals. The copying of such rigid and socially stipulated behavioral sequences places heavy demands on executive function. Given previous research showing that challenging executive functioning improves it, it was hypothesized that engagement in ritualistic behaviors improves children's executive functioning, in turn improving their ability to delay gratification. A 3‐month circle time games intervention with 210 schoolchildren ( M age = 7.78 years, SD = 1.47) in two contrasting cultural environments (Slovakia and Vanuatu) was conducted. The intervention improved children's executive function and in turn their ability to delay gratification. Moreover, these effects were amplified when the intervention task was imbued with ritual, rather than instrumental, cues.