Article, 2024

Intertemporal Altruism

American Economic Journal Microeconomics, ISSN 1945-7685, 1945-7669, Volume 16, 1, Pages 329-357, 10.1257/mic.20210319

Contributors

Chopra, Felix 0000-0002-7621-1045 [1] Falk, Armin 0000-0002-7284-3002 [2] Graeber, Thomas [3]

Affiliations

  1. [1] University of Copenhagen
    2. [NORA names: KU University of Copenhagen; University; Denmark; Europe, EU; Nordic; OECD];
  2. [2] briq Institute on Behavior and Inequality and University of Bonn (email: )
  3. [3] Harvard Business School (email: )

Abstract

Most prosocial decisions involve intertemporal trade-offs. Yet, the timing of prosocial utility flows is ambiguous and bypassed by most models of other-regarding preferences. We study the behavioral implications of the time structure of prosocial utility, leveraging a conceptual distinction between consequence-dated and choice-dated utility flows. We conduct a high-stakes donation experiment that comprehensively characterizes discounting behavior in self–other tradeoffs and allows us to identify different prosocial motives from their distinct time profiles. Our data can only be explained by a combination of choice- and consequence-dated prosocial utility. Both motives are pervasive and negatively correlated at the individual level. (JEL D15, D64, D91, I12, L31)

Keywords

behavior, behavioral implications, combination, conceptual distinction, data, decision, discounting behavior, distinction, donation experience, experiments, flow, implications, individual level, intertemporal trade-offs, levels, model, model of other-regarding preferences, motivation, other-regarding preferences, preferences, profile, prosocial decisions, prosocial motivation, time, time profiles, time structure, trade-offs, tradeoff, utility flows, utilization

Data Provider: Digital Science

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