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Good things take time – but new research suggests mindfulness can make the wait easier

The Conversation · 🇦🇺 public Australia · · 781 words · By Amy Errmann
Mindfulness Meditation Delayed Gratification Psychological Research
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What to know about Mindfulness Meditation

The article discusses new research suggesting that the difficulty of delayed gratification is linked to how people perceive the passage of time rather than a lack of willpower. It presents evidence that mindfulness meditation can slow the subjective experience of time, making future rewards more attractive and easier to wait for.

Propaganda risk 10%
Claims checked 9
Techniques found 1
Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center100%
Right0%

2 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Ask someone if they’d rather take $5 today or $10 next week and they’ll know which option is better.

Why it matters

Yet that idea of “today” can have a magnetic pull.

Common ground

It’s precisely the reason many shoppers purchase things they can’t afford yet through “buy now, pay later” schemes – and often regret it afterwards.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

The article discusses new research suggesting that the difficulty of delayed gratification is linked to how people perceive the passage of time rather than a lack of willpower. It presents evidence that mindfulness meditation can slow the subjective experience of time, making future rewards more attractive and easier to wait for.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/good-things-take-time-but-new-research-suggests-mind…

analyticsAnalysis

10%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 95%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning
Loaded Language 70% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 9 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

info Single Source 5
verified Verified By Reference 2
check_circle Corroborated 1
help Insufficient Evidence 1
info
Claim 1: “In one study, people attending a mindful walking class chose between a $5 gift card immediately and a $10 gift card one week later. Before the class, only 36% chose to wait. After the mindful walk, 69% selected the larger, later reward.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The specific statistics (36% to 69%) are found only in the 'Good things take time' article. Other results about mindful walking do not mention this specific gift card study.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — IN, In or in may refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The inch (symbol: in or ″) is a unit of length in the British Imperial and the United States customary systems of measurement. It is equal to ⁠1/36⁠ yard or ⁠1/12⁠ of a foot. Derived from the Roman un…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inch
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United S…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killed_in_action
+ 3 more evidence sources
check_circle
Claim 2: “A 2024 study found that once children’s backgrounds were considered, how long they waited had little power to predict adult outcomes.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources (Mirage News and FineStreak) report that when controlling for socioeconomic status/background, the predictive power of the marshmallow test for adult outcomes is significantly reduced or nearly gone.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — 2024 (MMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, the 2024th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 24th year of the 3rd millennium and the 21st …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — A general election was held in the United Kingdom on 4 July 2024 to elect all 650 members of the House of Commons. The opposition Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer, won a landslide victory over the go…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_United_Kingdom_general_el…
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — IEEE 802.11be-2024 or 802.11be, dubbed Extremely High Throughput (EHT), is a wireless networking standard in the IEEE 802.11 set of protocols which is designated Wi-Fi 7 by the Wi-Fi Alliance. It is b…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi_7
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 3: “Stanford University’s famous marshmallow test reinforced that idea by turning waiting into a measure of self-control: disciplined children waited; impulsive children ate the treat.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The Wikipedia entry for the Stanford marshmallow experiment confirms the core methodology: offering a choice between one immediate reward or two rewards if the child waits, using it as a measure of self-control.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In this study, a child was offered a choice between one small, immediate reward, or two small rewards if they waited for a period of time. During this time, the researcher left the child in a room wit…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_marshmallow_experimen…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Stanford University's famous marshmallow test reinforced that idea by turning waiting into a measure of self-control : disciplined children waited; impulsive children ate the treat. But the marshmallo…
https://www.miragenews.com/mindfulness-eases-wait-study-find…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Keywords: Walter Michelle, Stanford University, Marshmallow Test, Delayed Gratification, Children, Self-Control, Psychological Experiment, Walter Michelle Experiment, Psychology Study. This is an AI-g…
https://www.tiktok.com/@socialneuro/video/728636071836503577…
verified
Claim 4: “Customers watched either a short mindful-eating video or an ordinary food video before choosing between a smaller coupon immediately and a larger coupon two weeks later. After the mindfulness video, 78% waited for the larger coupon, compared with 51% in the other group.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia entries for 'Bakery' and unrelated bakery websites; no evidence was found that confirms the specific mindful-eating video study or the 78% vs 51% statistics.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — IN, In or in may refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The inch (symbol: in or ″) is a unit of length in the British Imperial and the United States customary systems of measurement. It is equal to ⁠1/36⁠ yard or ⁠1/12⁠ of a foot. Derived from the Roman un…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inch
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United S…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killed_in_action
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
Claim 5: “In another study, people who watched the mindfulness video were more likely to choose US$30 in four months over US$20 immediately.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The specific finding regarding $30 in four months vs $20 immediately is only reported in the 'Good things take time' article.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is divided into 33 province-level divisions, including two special administrative regions. Beijing is the capital,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Green Party, also known as the Green Party UK, was a Green political party in the United Kingdom. Prior to 1985, it was called the Ecology Party; before that, it was also named PEOPLE. In 1990, it…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Party_(UK)
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The term "the people" refers to the public or common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for cla…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
Claim 6: “Other researchers similarly found that even a brief meditation session measurably slowed people’s sense of time passing.”
SINGLE SOURCE
This claim appears in the same source as claim 2. Other results discuss meditation and time perception generally but do not provide a specific corroborating study for 'brief meditation sessions' measurably slowing time.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In our research, we found that mindfulness — deliberately paying attention to the present, including breathing, bodily sensations, sounds and thoughts — appears to slow the subjective passage of time.…
https://phys.org/news/2026-08-good-mindfulness-easier.html
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — You may not be able to warp space-time, but you can use these two psychological processes to slow your perception of time.
https://www.fastcompany.com/3064113/how-to-trick-your-brain-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 8 Types of Meditation to Find Your Calm.
https://www.verywellmind.com/types-of-meditation-to-find-you…
help
Claim 7: “Yet mindfulness made no difference when we increased the size of the future reward.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to support or refute this claim.
info
Claim 8: “In our research, we found that mindfulness – deliberately paying attention to the present, including breathing, bodily sensations, sounds and thoughts – appears to slow the subjective passage of time.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The claim is found verbatim in a specific article ('Good things take time...'), but other search results discuss time perception generally without confirming this specific research finding.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In our research, we found that mindfulness — deliberately paying attention to the present, including breathing, bodily sensations, sounds and thoughts — appears to slow the subjective passage of time.
https://phys.org/news/2026-08-good-mindfulness-easier.html
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The perception of time is a fascinating aspect of human experience, one that intertwines biology, psychology, and lifestyle choices. In this exploration of time perception, I'll cover.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/slowing-down-time-fulfilling-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In our research, we found that mindfulness – deliberately paying attention to the present, including breathing, bodily sensations, sounds and thoughts – appears to slow the subjective passage of time …
https://www.nationaltribune.com.au/good-things-take-time-but…
info
Claim 9: “When we extended the waiting period from three months to six months, delayed choices fell in the control group but remained steady among mindful participants.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The search results provided for this claim are completely irrelevant (discussing Riot Games and Reddit posts), providing no evidence for the claim about waiting periods and mindful participants.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Misinformation about Riot's recent controversy with their kernel level anti cheat "Vanguard"
https://www.reddit.com/r/PedroPeepos/comments/1926jho/misinf…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Man won $900,000 from the state of California after being psychologically tortured by police during a 17-hour interrogation which lead him to falsely confess to killing his father, who was actually al…
https://www.reddit.com/r/all+/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Mar 16, 2023 · 661 votes, 162 comments. 315K subscribers in the paris community. Tout sur Paris, le Grand Paris et ses habitants
https://www.reddit.com/r/paris/comments/11t6xpj/riots/
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.