A closer look
In the late 60s, researchers at Stanford sat preschoolers down with a single marshmallow and gave them an ultimatum: eat it now, or wait 15 minutes and get two. For decades, psychology peddled the narrative that the kids who held out for the second treat possessed superior self-control and were destined for higher SAT scores. Modern replications completely ruined the magic. It turns out the test mostly just measured socioeconomic status. A kid from a stable environment trusts the researcher will actually bring the second marshmallow; a kid used to scarcity knows you eat the damn candy before it disappears.
