Value for the future and preventive health behavior.
Many everyday decisions require trade-offs between immediate and delayed benefits. Although much research has assessed discounting of delayed outcomes by using hypothetical scenarios, little research has examined whether these discounting measures correspond to real-world behavior. Three studies examined the relationship between scenario measures of time preference and preventive health behaviors that require an upfront cost to achieve a long-term benefit. Responses to time preference scenarios showed weak or no relationship to influenza vaccination, adherence to a medication regimen to control high blood pressure, and adherence to cholesterol-lowering medication. The finding that scenario measures of time preference have surprisingly little relationship to actual behaviors exemplifying intertemporal trade-offs places limits on the applications of time preference research to the promotion of preventive health behavior.
Chapman
G B
GB
Department of Psychology, Rutgers, State University of New Jersey, Busch Campus, 152 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854-8020, USA. gbc@rci.rutgers.edu
Brewer
N T
NT
Coups
E J
EJ
Brownlee
S
S
Leventhal
H
H
Leventhal
E A
EA
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D010349:Patient Compliance; D011314:Preventive Health Services