The question of whether to choose $40 in seven days or $60 in 30 days may not just be a matter of patience or impulsivity, but also how the choice is presented. A study published in Nature Communications found that when the time delay is revealed first, people tend to prefer the shorter-term option, while revealing the greater reward of the longer-term option encourages people to choose the patient option of waiting to receive more money. The amount of time given to make a decision also influences choices, with some people being more patient when they have less time to decide.
Ian Krajbich, an associate professor of psychology at UCLA, and his colleagues asked 353 college student volunteers to choose between patient and impatient alternatives, such as receiving $40 in seven days or $60 in 30 days. Participants had to make their decisions in two seconds, unlimited time, or after waiting for 10 seconds. The study revealed that more than half of the participants chose the larger reward option, with those given the least time making the most patient decisions. Time pressure had different effects on different people, magnifying inherent biases.
The researchers found that they could manipulate decision-making biases by changing how the information was presented. When the rewards were shown first, participants tended to choose the larger reward option, while showing the time delay first led to more people choosing the smaller, immediate reward. People were more patient when rewards were presented before delays, indicating a preference for focusing on the amounts before the time factor in decision-making processes.
Research on decision-making suggests that people tend to focus on one dimension of a choice at a time due to limited attention span. In the experiments conducted, participants often considered the rewards before the delays, leading to more patient choices. Those who were less patient tended to focus on the delays first. Understanding which dimension people focus on first can help determine how to encourage patience in decision-making, whether by slowing down or speeding up the decision-making process.
These findings have implications for encouraging people to make long-term beneficial decisions, such as eating healthier, exercising, or saving for retirement. By emphasizing future rewards and downplaying the time factor, individuals may be more likely to make patient choices. Presenting reward information before time delays could help people focus on the benefits of waiting for larger rewards, potentially leading to more beneficial long-term decision-making.
