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Time Discounting: The Delay Effect and Procrastinating Behavior

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  • Shunichiro Sasaki
  • Shiyu Xie
  • Shinsuke IkedaAuthor-Name:
  • Jie Qin
  • Yoshiro Tsutsui

Abstract

The delay effect, that people discount the near future more than the distant future, has not been verified rigorously. An experiment conducted by us in China confirms that, by separating the delay from the interval, the delay effect exists only within a short delay. The results are reliable, because the rewards paid were very large, in order to elicit the subjects' true preferences. The interval and magnitude effects are also confirmed. Finally, subjects' procrastinating behavior, as reported in the questionnaire conducted at the end of the experiment, is explained by the time discount rates and the degree of the delay effect revealed in the experiment.

Suggested Citation

  • Shunichiro Sasaki & Shiyu Xie & Shinsuke IkedaAuthor-Name: & Jie Qin & Yoshiro Tsutsui, 2008. "Time Discounting: The Delay Effect and Procrastinating Behavior," ISER Discussion Paper 0726, Institute of Social and Economic Research, Osaka University.
    • Handle: RePEc:dpr:wpaper:0726
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    File URL: https://www.iser.osaka-u.ac.jp/library/dp/2008/DP0726.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    4. Read, Daniel & Roelofsma, Peter H. M. P., 2003. "Subadditive versus hyperbolic discounting: A comparison of choice and matching," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 91(2), pages 140-153, July.
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    7. Kirby, Kris N. & Marakovic, Nino N., 1995. "Modeling Myopic Decisions: Evidence for Hyperbolic Delay-Discounting within Subjects and Amounts," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 22-30, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Yamane, Shoko & Yoneda, Hiroyasu & Takahashi, Taiki & Kamijo, Yoshio & Komori, Yasuhiro & Hiruma, Fumihiko & Tsutsui, Yoshiro, 2013. "Smokers, smoking deprivation, and time discounting," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 47-56.

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