Temporal Discounting: Basic Research and the Analysis of Socially Important Behavior

Abstract

Recent basic research on human temporal discounting is reviewed to illustrate procedures, summarize key findings, and draw parallels with both nonhuman animal research and conceptual writings on self-control. Lessons derived from this research are then applied to the challenge of analyzing socially important behaviors such as drug abuse, eating and exercise, and impulsiveness associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Attending to the broader temporal context in which behavior occurs may aid in the analysis of socially important behavior. Applying this perspective to the study of behavior in natural environments also highlights the importance of combining methodological flexibility with conceptual rigor to promote the extension of applied behavior analysis to a broader array of socially important behaviors.

Domain-general and domain-specific aspects of temporal discounting in children with ADHD and autism spectrum disorders (ASD): A proof of concept study

“…Preprocessing of the data was based on procedures described by Scheres et al (2006) and Critchfield and Kollins (2001). As a first step, subjective values for the delayed rewards were calculated for each delay.…”

“…Then, subjective values were determined for each delay by two independent raters based on the following procedure. The subjective value of the delayed reward was estimated by averaging the switch points in the ascending and descending choice sequences (Critchfield & Kollins, 2001). These switch points are defined as the magnitudes of the small immediate reward for which the participant shows indifference in a choice against the large delayed reward (Scheres et al, 2006).…”

“…The decrease of subjective-reward value that occurs as a function of increasing delay is referred to as temporal discounting (TD; Critchfield & Kollins, 2001). TD is a natural phenomenon that can be observed in both humans and animals (Green & Myerson, 2004).…”

“…It appears altered in a number of mental health conditions (Ahn et al, 2011;Bickel & Marsch, 2001;Reynolds, 2006). Steeper TD has been associated with impulsivity and hyperactivity (Barkley, Edwards, Laneri, Fletcher, & Metevia, 2001;Critchfield & Kollins, 2001;Scheres, Lee, & Sumiya, 2008). Individuals with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) show higher rates of TD of money, preferring immediate (monetary) rewards over larger delayed rewards to a greater extent than typically developing controls (Barkley et al, 2001;Demurie, Roeyers, Baeyens, & Sonuga-Barke, 2012;Marco et al, 2009;Paloyelis, Asherson, Mehta, Faraone, & Kuntsi, 2010;Scheres, Tontsch, Thoeny, & Kaczkurkin, 2010;Sonuga-Barke, Taylor, Sembi, & Smith, 1992;Wilson, Mitchell, Musser, Schmitt, & Nigg, 2011).…”

Endogenous Opioid Blockade and Impulsive Responding in Alcoholics and Healthy Controls

“…The order of trial types did not vary across subjects; however, the delayed amount, delay time, and discount rate were randomly selected on each trial. The decision to use hypothetical rewards was based on results from numerous studies comparing choices for real vs hypothetical monetary rewards in discounting paradigms (Critchfield and Kollins, 2001;Johnson and Bickel (2002); Madden et al, 2003;Madden et al, 2004;Lagorio and Madden, 2005).…”