Positive Affect, Intertemporal Choice, and Levels of Thinking: Increasing Consumers' Willingness to Wait

Abstract

Six studies examine the influence of positive affect on self-control in intertemporal choice (consumers' willingness to wait for desired rewards) and the cognitive processes underlying this effect. Two studies measure participants' levels of thinking in two different ways, showing that positive affect can promote forward-looking, high-level thinking. Two studies using a delay-of-gratification paradigm demonstrate this forward-looking thinking and show it to be a mindful process. Participants in positive (vs. neutral) affect were more likely to choose a larger mail-in rebate over a smaller instant rebate when the reward differences were moderate (but not when they were small). Two studies demonstrate the impact of positive affect on intertemporal preference in another way, showing that participants in positive affect do not discount the value of delayed outcomes as much as people in neutral affect do (decreased present bias). Together, the results indicate that positive affect promotes cognitive flexibility and fosters a higher level of thinking and a more future-oriented time perspective, without obscuring practical considerations and other needed detail, including context and opportunity costs, when evaluating intertemporal options.

Positive Emotions Broaden and Build

“…Second is bolstering generalizability; across studies she and her colleagues used a wide range of techniques to induce positive emotions, ranging from having participants read a list of positive words, view cartoons or a short comedy clip, hear success feedback, or having them receive a small bag of candy as an unexpected gift. From Isen's experiments, we can conclude that people experiencing positive emotions show patterns of thought that are notably unusual (Isen, Johnson, Mertz, & Robinson, 1985), flexible and inclusive (Isen & Daubman, 1984; see also Bolte, Goschke, & Kuhl, 2003;Compton, Wirtz, Pajoumand, Claus, & Heller, 2004;Dreisbach & Goschke, 2004), creative (Isen, Daubman, & Nowicki, 1987; see also Phillips, Bull, Adams, & Fraser, 2002;Rowe, Hirsh, & Anderson, 2007), integrative (Isen, Rosenzweig, & Young, 1991), open to information (Estrada, Isen, & Young, 1997), forward-looking and high-level (Pyone & Isen, 2011), and efficient (Isen & Means, 1983;Isen et al, 1991). Isen and colleagues' work also provides evidence that positive emotions broaden people's action urges, with experiments showing increased preferences for variety and openness to a wider array of behavioral options (Kahn & Isen, 1993; see also Renninger, 1992).…”

Time, money, and happiness: How does putting a price on time affect our ability to smell the roses?

“…As a consequence, individuals prompted to think about their hourly wage are more likely to experience impatience when this goal is obstructed and they feel that their time is being unprofitably wasted. Although impatience has generated substantial academic interest recently (Bartels & Urminsky, 2011;Chen, Ng, Rao, 2005;Li, 2008;Pyone & Isen, 2011;Van den Bergh, Dewitte, & Warlop, 2008;Zhong & DeVoe, 2010), it remains a loosely defined construct. For the purposes of the present investigation, we adopt a working definition consistent with the vernacular usage of the word: "Impatience" is used here to mean the sense of frustration with, or intolerance of, anything which causes delay.…”

The Financial Costs of Sadness

“…Field studies, natural experiments, and laboratory experiments report discounting that far exceeds market-based interest rates (Frederick, et al, 2002). Given that emotion has been posited as a main driver for irrational impatience in intertemporal choices (Loewenstein & Prelec, 1992;Loewenstein, Read, & Baumeister, 2003), it is not surprising that at least two papers have examined the effects of positive emotion on intertemporal choice (Ifcher & Zarghamee, 2011;Pyone & Isen, 2011), finding that positive affect makes people more patient. What is surprising is that, to our knowledge, no papers have examined the potential causal role of negative emotions on time discounting.…”