Contact: Suzanne Williams, Shreve Williams Public Relations 908.375.8159 / [email protected] THE MARSHMALLOW TEST: Mastering Self-Control By Walter Mischel

“Walter Mischel is one of the most influential psychologists of the 20th century, and The Marshmallow Test will make him one of the most influential in this century, too.” —Steven Pinker

“The discoveries that grew out of the marshmallow studies add up to one of the most insightful research stories in the history of psychology. Whatever it is now, your view of human nature will change profoundly as you read this brilliant book.” —Daniel Kahneman

“Mischel has written a wonderful book, engaging, enlightening, and profound.” —Daniel Goleman

“This marvelous book is unique, and beautifully written from beginning to end. The range that Walter Mischel covers—from creative cognitive science to neuroscience to genetics—is breathtaking. This speaks for science at its best. Bravo!” —Eric R. Kandel, MD

“Mischel, the renowned psychologist behind the now-famous marshmallow tests of the 1960s, shares the culmination of over fifty years of research on willpower and self-control in this expansive, eye-opening book…This stimulating book encourages us to make mindful decisions.” —Publishers Weekly

Renowned psychologist Walter Mischel’s marshmallow experiment and its implications have captivated the public imagination for nearly half a century. Now, in his groundbreaking book THE MARSHMALLOW TEST: Mastering Self-Control (Little, Brown; September 23, 2014; $29.00), Mischel integrates more than fifty years of in-depth research, reporting on the original subjects of his experiment and examining how their responses relate to measures of success in the years to follow. He explains how self-control can not only be an indicator of later successes, but can be learned and applied to everyday life, requiring us to rethink our views on human nature.

Here’s how the experiment works: A child sits in front of a tray with one marshmallow on one side and two on the other. He is told that he can either eat the one now or wait and get the two later. What will he do?

In THE MARSHMALLOW TEST, Mischel asks and answers:

 What does the Marshmallow Test really show?

 What are the implications of the test later in life?

 Is the ability to delay gratification prewired?

 How can self-control be taught at any stage in life?

Mischel has proven that the ability to delay gratification is critical for a successful life, predicting higher SAT scores, better social and cognitive functioning, a healthier lifestyle, and a greater sense of self-worth.

THE MARSHMALLOW TEST draws on decades of compelling research and life examples to explore the nature of willpower, identifying the cognitive skills and mental mechanisms that enable it, and showing how these can be applied to challenges in everyday life, from managing weight to quitting smoking, overcoming heartbreak, making major decisions, and planning for retirement. But, he asks, is self-control prewired, or can it be taught? He discusses what willpower is and is not, the conditions that undo it, the cognitive skills and motivations that enable it, and the consequences of having it and using it.

With profound implications for the choices we make in parenting, education, public policy, personal success, and more, THE MARSHMALLOW TEST will change the way we think about who we are and what we can be.

About the Author: Walter Mischel is the world’s leading expert on self-control and one of the highest-ranked living psychologists of the 20th century, according to the American Psychological Association. Mischel holds the Robert Johnston Niven chair as Professor of Humane Letters in Psychology at Columbia University. He is the author of more than two hundred scientific papers as well as the coauthor of Introduction to Personality, now in its eighth edition. He has been elected to the National Academy of Arts and Sciences and has won the Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award of APA and the Grawemeyer Award for Psychology. He divides his time between New York and Paris.

THE MARSHMALLOW TEST: Mastering Self-Control Walter Mischel Little, Brown and Company September 23, 2014 / $29.00 / 336 pages / 978-0-316-23087-2