會不會成爲罪犯 三歲就有定論？

It's worrying news for any parent who's struggled with a headstrong young child.

But scientists claim that children who have low levels of self-control at three are more likely to have health and money problems and a criminal record by the age of 32, regardless of background and IQ.

Researchers from Britain, the US and New Zealand analysed data from two large studies in which children completed a range of physical tests and interviews to assess genetic and environmental factors that can shape their lives.

They found that children with low self-control were more likely to have health problems in later life including high blood pressure, being overweight, breathing problems and sexually transmitted infections.

They were also more likely to be dependent on substances such as tobacco, alcohol and drugs, more likely to be single parents, have difficulty managing money and have criminal records.

'Mastering self-control and managing impulses are some of the earliest demands that society places on children,' said lead researcher Dr Terrie Moffitt, of King's College London and Duke University in the US.

'Our study shows, for the first time, that willpower as a child really does influence your chances of a healthy and wealthy adulthood.'

The researchers firstly looked at data from around 1,000 children born in New Zealand between April 1972 and March 1973.

The participants' self-control was assessed by teachers, parents, observers and the children themselves and included things like having low frustration tolerance, lacking persistence in reaching goals, being over-active and acting before thinking.

Dr Moffitt's team then found that when the participants reached their early 30s, this impulsivity and relative inability to think about the long-term gave them more problems with finances, including savings, owning a home and credit card debt.

The children with lower self-control scores also scored highest for things like sexually transmitted diseases, weight problems, having high cholesterol and high blood pressure.

The findings were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal.

對於那些被任性小孩搞得焦頭爛額的父母來說，下面這個消息將讓他們感到憂心。

科學家稱，不管成長背景和智商如何，如果一個孩子在三歲時表現出偏弱的自制力，那麼他在32歲以前有金錢和健康問題、甚至犯罪記錄的可能性會更高。

英國、美國和新西蘭的研究人員分析了兩項大型研究中的數據後得出以上結論。在這兩項研究中，研究人員要求接受調查的孩子完成一系列體能測試和麪談，以評估影響他們生活的基因和環境因素。

科學家們發現，自制力弱的孩子在日後的生活中患高血壓、肥胖、呼吸系統疾病和性傳染病等健康問題的可能性更大。

這些孩子同時也更容易依賴菸酒和毒品等藥物、更有可能成爲單身父母、在金錢管理方面更容易出現問題、有犯罪記錄的可能性也更大。

同時在倫敦國王學院和美國杜克大學任職的首席研究員特里•莫菲特博士說：“剋制自己和抑制衝動是社會對孩子們的一些最早的要求。”

他接着說：“我們的研究第一次發現，孩子們的意志力確實會影響到他們成年後的健康和財富。”

研究人員首先分析了約1000個於1972年4月到1973年3月間出生在新西蘭的孩子們的資料。

參與者的自控能力由老師、父母、觀察員和孩子自己作出評估。自控能力差的表現包括挫折容忍度低、實現目標時缺乏毅力、過分活躍、以及沒想好就行動等。

後來，莫菲特博士的團隊發現，當參與者到了三十出頭時，這種易衝動的性格和做長遠打算的能力的欠缺會給他們帶來更多的金錢問題，包括存款、買房以及信用卡債務。

在自控方面得分較低的孩子在性傳染病、體重問題、患高膽固醇和高血壓方面的得分也最高。

以上研究成果發表在《美國國家科學院學報》上。

Vocabulary:

headstrong: a headstrong person is determined to do things their own way and refuses to listen to advice（固執的；倔強任性的）