Journal of Consumer Research 2013
Magnitude, Time, and Risk Differ Similarly between Joint and Single Evaluations
Abstract
Arguably, all choice options involve three basic attributes: magnitude (outcome size), time (of occurrence), and probability (of occurrence) and are evaluated in one of two basic evaluation modes: JE (joint evaluation, involving comparison of multiple options) and SE (single evaluation, without comparison). This research explores how reactions to the three basic attributes (and their associated functions--utility, time discounting, and probability weighting) vary between the two basic evaluation modes. Nine studies, tapping diverse contexts, yield two general results: first, for all these attributes, people are more sensitive to variations near endpoints (zero magnitude, no delay, and 0% or 100% probability) than in other regions, and this differential sensitivity is more pronounced in SE than in JE. Second, when faced with options involving a trade-off between magnitude and time (delay) or between magnitude and probability (risk), people are both more delay averse and more risk averse in SE than in JE.
- DOI
- 10.1086/669484
- Sources
- openalex