Hugh: When it comes to waiting for food, chimps are more patient than human teenagers

A recent study found your teen might be less patient than a chimp!

A University of Michigan study found that given two options, both adolescent humans and chimps opted for riskier behavior. However, when it came to waiting for food to receive more of it, the chimp displayed more patience.

Unsurprising to most parents, human teens were more likely to grab one snack right away instead of waiting for three. Young and adult chimps were both willing to wait longer for a greater reward, but young chimps threw more tantrums as they had to wait.

“Chimpanzees are quite patient compared with other animals,” researcher Alexandra Rosati said. “Our study shows that their ability to delay gratification is already mature at a fairly young age, unlike in humans.”