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They call it the "marshmallow test." A four-to-six-year-old-child sits alone in a room at a table facing a marshmallow on a plate. The child is told: "If you don't eat this treat for 15 minutes you can have both it and a second one." Kids on average wait for five or six minutes before eating the marshmallow. The longer a child can resist the treat has been correlated with higher general competency later in life.
人们称之为“棉花糖测试”：一名四五岁左右的孩子独自坐在房间里的桌子前，桌上摆着装有一根棉花糖的盘子。这个孩子被告知：“如果等足15分钟再吃，我会奖励你第二根棉花糖”。平均每个孩子等五六分钟就忍不住吃起来。孩子抵住美味诱惑的时间越长，在今后人生中表现出的综合能力也就越高。
Now a study shows that ability to resist temptation isn't strictly innate—it's also highly influenced by environment.
目前一项研究证明抵制诱惑的能力并不完全是天生的，也深受环境的影响。
Researchers gave five-year-olds used crayons and one sticker to decorate a sheet of paper. One group was promised a new set of art supplies for the project—but then never received it. But the other group did receive new crayons and better stickers.
研究人员给五岁大的孩子们旧蜡笔和贴纸用来装饰纸张，并承诺会给其中一组孩子一套新的绘画用具，但之后并没有兑现。但是另一组却得到了新的蜡笔和更漂亮的贴纸。
Then both groups were given the marshmallow test. The children who had been lied to waited for a mean time of three minutes before eating the marshmallow. The group that got their promised materials resisted an average of 12 minutes.
之后对这两组孩子进行棉花糖测试。被骗的那组孩子平均只等了3分钟就把棉花糖吃掉了。另一组孩子则平均等了12分钟。
Thus, the researchers note that experience factors into a child's ability to delay gratification. When previous promises have been hollow, why believe the next one?
因此研究人员指出，判断孩子们克制欲望的能力也需要考虑到经验的因素。当希望落空时，谁还会相信下一个承诺呢？
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