Akrasia

[nyuanshin]

"The Fremen were supreme in that quality the ancients called spannungsbogen -- which is the self-imposed delay between desire for a thing and the act of reaching out to grasp that thing."
-- from The Wisdom of Muad'Dib by the Princess Irulan
Take a random sample of a few hundred 4-year-olds. Put them in a room with a marshmallow on a plate and some

Comments

[_luaineach]

Have you read Walden II by B.F. Skinner? The parts of the book that appealed to me most were the parts that dealt with behavioral processes for the children. Namely, the concept of self-control engineered through a systematic development of a tolerance for frustration and the capacity to accept a delay of gratification.

The reading of this actual marshmallow experiment is new to me but is a page right out of Skinner's behavioral motif.

Thanks for another great post (and linking to it today so I had a chance to read it!)

(And I do recommend Walden II if you haven't read it.)

[nyuanshin]

Thanks for kind words.

Haven't read it, but regard Skinner in general as harmlessly insane. Not sure if entraining tolerance for frustration is necessarily a good thing.

Am apparently talking like Rorschach now. Must put a stop to this.

[_luaineach]

Ya, Skinner is someone I always think I would like to have over for a very long dinner and quite a few bottles of wine. On a facebook meme I scored as Leibniz -- who I also quite love, btw -- so I have an affinity for the seemingly mad. ;)

I don't expect you'd gain Great Philosophical Insight from Walden II at this point in your life but I still think it a very enjoyable read.

[nyuanshin]

Leibniz is the shit. Some of his ideas just sound wacky because he was so far ahead of his time, but the more time goes on the more of a genius he looks like.