When Intertemporal Rewards Are Hedonic, Larger Units of Wait Time Boost Patience

Abstract

In intertemporal choices between smaller‐sooner (SS) and larger‐later (LL) rewards, five studies reveal that patience for the LL option is influenced by an interactive effect of the measurement units used to express wait time (large vs. small) and the type of the reward (hedonic vs. utilitarian). Specifically, larger time units boost patience, but more so when rewards are hedonic rather than utilitarian. In line with the numerosity heuristic, the effect of time units on patience is mediated by larger time units shrinking wait time perception. This effect arises because hedonic (vs. utilitarian) rewards promote a reliance on heuristics rather than systematic calculations. Therefore, a more calculative mindset diminishes the effect of units even for hedonic rewards and eliminates the hedonic‐utilitarian asymmetry. These results contribute to research on numerosity, intertemporal choice, and hedonic‐utilitarian differences, and offer a simple tool for practitioners to influence patience.

Framing attributes in similarity judgments and intertemporal choices

“…Similarly, the manner in which time delays are framed can affect impulsivity. People wait for the larger, later option more often when the delay is communicated in terms of calendar dates compared to units of delay (e.g., days and weeks, Read et al, 2005;LeBoeuf, 2006) and when the delay is presented in units that contain a smaller scale (e.g., weeks vs. days, Siddiqui et al, 2018). Thus, stakeholder who may want to nudge people into choosing options that will provide them with greater benefits in the long term may do well to present delays in either date format or smaller-scaled units to decrease the perception of wait time.…”

“…The date/delay effect suggests that people choose the larger, later option more when time is presented in calendar date format compared to delay period (Read et al, 2005;LeBoeuf, 2006;DeHart & Odum, 2015). Additionally, people prefer larger, later options when delays to hedonic rewards are expressed in larger compared to smaller units (e.g., days versus hours, Siddiqui et al, 2018).…”

“…The much smaller ratio for delays could have simply not been large enough to allow for the unit effect to be observed like for amounts. Research that found effects of unit framing on time delays used higher ratios of 1:24 for days vs. hours (Siddiqui et al, 2018). Thus, framing delays in units that would allow for larger ratios (e.g., hours vs. days or days vs. months) might result in stronger unit effects.…”

“…Thus, framing delays in units that would allow for larger ratios (e.g., hours vs. days or days vs. months) might result in stronger unit effects. Moreover, Siddiqui et al (2018) reported that the unit framing effect only applied to time delays when the reward was hedonic (compared to utilitarian) in nature. Therefore, another reason why we did not find a preference for the larger, later option when we framed delays in larger compared to smaller units could have been due to participants considering the nature of our dollar amount rewards utilitarian instead of hedonic.…”

$100 a Month or $1,200 a Year? Regulatory Focus and the Evaluation of Temporally Framed Attributes

“…In terms of contextual factors, research shows that consumers’ susceptibility to the numerosity heuristic can be affected by how information is presented to them. For instance, studies show that factors such as the type of product (Siddiqui et al, 2018), presence of comparative information (Gourville, 1999), reminders of alternative units (Pandelaere et al, 2011), whether the focal unit is seen as the default or not (Lembregts & Pandelaere, 2013), and ease of calculation (Bagchi & Li, 2011), can affect whether people exhibit the numerosity effect.…”