What Causes Delay Discounting?
dc.contributor.author | Angott, Andrea M. | en_US |
dc.date.accessioned | 2011-01-18T16:05:34Z | |
dc.date.available | NO_RESTRICTION | en_US |
dc.date.available | 2011-01-18T16:05:34Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2010 | en_US |
dc.date.submitted | en_US | |
dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/78754 | |
dc.description.abstract | Delay discounting is the devaluing of future outcomes relative to present outcomes. The work in this dissertation aimed to contribute to answering the question: What are the psychological drivers of delay discounting behavior? Applicable literature was reviewed for clues to this question. Several hypotheses, previously largely empirically neglected, were examined: economic reasons, uncertainty about the future, pain of abstinence, differences in construal level, optimism, intrapersonal empathy gap, present utility, and future self as other. Additionally, a synthesis of relevant data from the literature led to the proposal of a novel hypothesis, dual-system competition. Eight empirical studies were performed to test some of the candidate causes of delay discounting. Studies 1 and 2 had mixed results that may imply that differences in construal level play a role in discounting behavior. Studies 3 and 4 tested the notion that self control is required to resist discounting, but failed to support this idea. Study 5 returned mixed results that may indicate that people fail to adequately anticipate their future wants and needs (intrapersonal empathy gap hypothesis). Study 6 indicated that anticipated changes in income do not motivate delay discounting behavior. Study 7 showed that field dependence is not related to discount rates. Finally, Study 8 suggested that discounting behavior may depend upon the activation of the fast/automatic cognitive system relative to the slow/effortful cognitive system. | en_US |
dc.format.extent | 727831 bytes | |
dc.format.extent | 1373 bytes | |
dc.format.mimetype | application/pdf | |
dc.format.mimetype | text/plain | |
dc.language.iso | en_US | en_US |
dc.subject | Delay Discounting | en_US |
dc.subject | Temporal Discounting | en_US |
dc.subject | Decision Making | en_US |
dc.title | What Causes Delay Discounting? | en_US |
dc.type | Thesis | en_US |
dc.description.thesisdegreename | PhD | en_US |
dc.description.thesisdegreediscipline | Psychology | en_US |
dc.description.thesisdegreegrantor | University of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studies | en_US |
dc.contributor.committeemember | Yates, J. Frank | en_US |
dc.contributor.committeemember | Gonzalez, Richard D. | en_US |
dc.contributor.committeemember | Joyce, James M. | en_US |
dc.contributor.committeemember | Shah, Priti R. | en_US |
dc.subject.hlbsecondlevel | Psychology | en_US |
dc.subject.hlbtoplevel | Social Sciences | en_US |
dc.description.bitstreamurl | http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78754/1/aangott_1.pdf | |
dc.owningcollname | Dissertations and Theses (Ph.D. and Master's) |
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