Academic delay of gratification

Academic delay of gratification (ADOG) refers to students' postponement of immediately available opportunities to satisfy impulses in favor of pursuing chosen important academic rewards or goals that are temporally remote but ostensibly more valuable. In Study 1, we developed a course-specific academic delay of gratification scale (ADOGS) with acceptable psychometric properties. Results of Study 2 supported the hypothesized association between ADOG and students' self-regulated learning, which consisted of academic motivation and the use of cognitive, metacognitive, and resource management learning strategies. Discriminant validity of the ADOGS is indicated by its stronger correlations with students' self-regulation than found for instruments that measure closely-related constructs (generalized deferment of gratification and impulsivity). The conceptual status of ADOG as a strategy and outcome of successful strategy use is discussed.