The Agent's Impatience: A Self–Other Decision Model of Intertemporal Choices

Abstract

Intertemporal choices represent one of the most prevalent and fundamental trade-offs in consumer decision making. While prior research on intertemporal choices has focused on choices for oneself, intertemporal choices often involve one individual choosing on behalf of another. How do intertemporal choices made for another person differ from otherwise identical choices made for oneself? This research introduces a self–other decision model that distinguishes reaction utility (derived from interpersonal feedback) from vicarious utility (derived from imagining the recipient's experience). The authors tested model-derived hypotheses in 13 experiments (N = 4,799) involving decisions between peers. Consistent with the proposed role of reaction utility in the model, they find that intertemporal choices made for others are typically more “impatient” than choices for oneself. Moreover, this “agent's impatience” is attenuated when contextual and individual differences weaken the anticipation of interpersonal feedback. Together, the theoretical model and experimental results highlight the rewarding value of interpersonal feedback in self–other decision making, shedding new light on interpersonal consumer choices.