ERIC Number: EJ875647
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Feb
Pages: 21
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0096-3445
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Psychological Connectedness and Intertemporal Choice
Bartels, Daniel M.; Rips, Lance J.
Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, v139 n1 p49-69 Feb 2010
People tend to attach less value to a good if they know a delay will occur before they obtain it. For example, people value receiving $100 tomorrow more than receiving $100 in 10 years. We explored one reason for this tendency (due to Parfit, 1984): In terms of psychological properties, such as beliefs, values, and goals, the decision maker is more closely linked to the person (his or her future self) receiving $100 tomorrow than to the person receiving $100 in 10 years. For this reason, he or she prefers his or her nearer self to have the $100 rather than his or her more remote self. Studies 1 and 2 showed that the greater the rated psychological connection between 2 parts of a participant's life, the less he or she discounted future monetary and nonmonetary benefits (e.g., good days at work) over that interval. In Studies 3-5, participants read about characters who undergo large life-changing (and connectedness-weakening) events at different points in their lives and then made decisions about the timing of benefits on behalf of these characters. All 5 studies revealed a relation between perceived psychological connectedness and intertemporal choice: Participants preferred benefits to occur before large changes in connectedness but preferred costs to occur after these changes. (Contains 4 footnotes, 3 tables, and 4 figures.)
Descriptors: Value Judgment, Costs, Time Perspective, Self Concept, Identification, Theory Practice Relationship, Experience, Change, Decision Making, Cost Effectiveness, Psychological Testing
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
IES Funded: Yes
Grant or Contract Numbers: R305A080341
Author Affiliations: N/A