Recruiting

Observational Study

Sponsor:

UCLA

Code:

NCT06605001

Conditions

The Ability to Delay Gratification

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 4 - 7

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Interventions

Delay of Gratification

Study Details

Brief summary:

The goal of this clinical trial is to test the associations of young children's early life experiences with delaying behaviors and links with later life outcomes. The main questions it aims to answer are:

  • Do experiences with waiting in early childhood predict delaying behavior in context-specific ways?
  • Are links between delaying behavior and life outcomes impacted by social conventions, effort and choices around delaying, or other behaviors?

Participants will:

  • Complete two delaying tasks with either a sweet or wrapped gift
  • Complete three "Simon says"-like games that measure inhibition, cognitive flexibility and proactive control
  • Answer a set of questions about academic readiness
  • Answer a set of questions about social conventions
  • Complete a waiting game on the computer while a camera records eye movements
  • Parents will answer questions about their child's behaviors and experiences at home
  • Participants will return after 1 year to repeat a subset of these measures

Conditions

The Ability to Delay Gratification

Study ID

NCT06605001

Start date

Aug 21, 2024

Status verified date

Apr, 2026

Completion date

Dec 31, 2026

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Dec 31, 2026

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 4 - 7

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Typically developing children will be recruited. Participants will be pre-screened for developmental disorders.

Study Design

Enrollment

200 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Basic Science

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Delay of Gratification - Treat

Reward presented is a sweet treat.

experimental: Delay of Gratification - Gift

Reward presented is a wrapped gift.

Interventions

Delay of Gratification

Children will complete a delay of gratification task with 1 of 2 rewards

Primary outcome measure

  • Choice Delay [ Time Frame: Immediately after and 1 year after intervention ]
  • Executive Functions [ Time Frame: Pre-intervention and 1 year after intervention ]
  • Social Conventions [ Time Frame: Immediately after and 1 year after intervention ]
  • Academic Readiness [ Time Frame: Immediately after and 1 year after intervention ]
  • Inhibitory Control (Go/No-Go) [ Time Frame: Immediately after and 1 year after intervention ]
  • Experiences Waiting at Home [ Time Frame: Pre-intervention and 1 year after intervention ]
  • Cognitive Flexibility (DCCS) [ Time Frame: Immediately after intervention and 1 year after intervention ]
  • Problem Behaviors [ Time Frame: Pre-intervention and 1 year after intervention ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Rachel Foster, B.S.

+1 530 754 4551refoster@ucdavis.edu

Yuko Munakata, PhD

ymunakata@ucdavis.edu

Locations

Center for Mind and Brain

Recruiting

Davis, California, United States, 95618

Contacts

Lab Manager

530-754-4562ciclm@ucdavis.edu

Principal Investigator:

Yuko Munakata, Ph.D.

More Information

Sponsor

University of California, Davis

Last update posted

Apr 15, 2026

Last verified

Apr, 2026

Keywords

  • Delay of Gratification
  • Waiting
  • Habits
  • Academic Outcomes

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-10. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of California, Davis on 2026-04-15.