Abstract
A within-subject design, using human participants, compared delay discounting functions for real and hypothetical money rewards. Both real and hypothetical rewards were studied across a range that included $10 to $250. For 5 of the 6 participants, no systematic difference in discount rate was observed in response to real and hypothetical choices, suggesting that hypothetical rewards may often serve as a valid proxy for real rewards in delay discounting research. By measuring discounting at an unprecedented range of real rewards, this study has also systematically replicated the robust finding in human delay discounting research that discount rates decrease with increasing magnitude of reward. A hyperbolic decay model described the data better than an exponential model.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 129-146 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | Journal of the experimental analysis of behavior |
Volume | 77 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 2002 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Choice
- Delay discounting
- Humans
- Hyperbolic
- Hypothetical rewards
- Magnitude
- Real rewards
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
- Behavioral Neuroscience