American Economic Journal:
Microeconomics
ISSN 1945-7669 (Print) | ISSN 1945-7685 (Online)
Intertemporal Altruism
American Economic Journal: Microeconomics
(pp. 329–57)
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 trade-offs 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.Citation
Chopra, Felix, Armin Falk, and Thomas Graeber. 2024. "Intertemporal Altruism." American Economic Journal: Microeconomics 16 (1): 329–57. DOI: 10.1257/mic.20210319Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D15 Intertemporal Household Choice; Life Cycle Models and Saving
- D64 Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
- D91 Micro-Based Behavioral Economics: Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
- I12 Health Behavior
- L31 Nonprofit Institutions; NGOs; Social Entrepreneurship