Delay Discounting of Losses in Alcohol Use Disorders and Antisocial Psychopathology: Effects of a Working Memory Load.

PubMed

Gerst, Kyle R; Gunn, Rachel L; Finn, Peter R

2017-10-01

Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are associated with increased discounting of delayed rewards and reduced executive working memory (eWM) capacity. This association is amplified when comorbid with antisocial psychopathology (AP). Furthermore, recent studies suggest that reduced WM capacity is associated with disinhibited decisions reflected by increased impulsive decision making on the delay discounting of rewards task. While discounting of delayed rewards is well studied, the discounting of delayed losses has received significantly less experimental attention. The current study investigated (i) the rate of discounting of delayed losses in individuals with AUD only (n = 61), AUD with comorbid AP (n = 79) and healthy controls (n = 64); (ii) the relationship between eWM capacity and discounting of delayed losses; and (iii) the effect of a WM load on discounting of delayed losses. Discounting performance was assessed using a computerized discounting of delayed losses task. Results showed that the AUD-only and AUD-AP groups had higher rates of discounting of delayed losses and lower eWM capacity compared to the control groups. Lower individual eWM capacity was associated with increased discounting of delayed losses. However, WM load did not increase discounting rates overall. These results support the hypothesis that greater discounting of delayed losses is associated with AUD and comorbid AP problems and lower individual eWM capacity. Copyright © 2017 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.

Observed and Normative Discount Functions in Addiction and other Diseases

PubMed Central

Cruz Rambaud, Salvador; Muñoz Torrecillas, María J.; Takahashi, Taiki

2017-01-01

The aim of this paper is to find a suitable discount function able to describe the progression of a certain addiction or disease under treatment as a discounting process. In effect, a certain indicator related to a disease decays over time in a manner which is mathematically similar to the way in which discounting has been modeled. We analyze the discount functions observed in experiments which study addictive and other problematic behaviors as well as some alternative hyperbola-like discount functions in order to fit the patience exhibited by the subject after receiving the treatment. Additionally, it has been experimentally found that people with addiction display high rates of discount (impatience) and preference reversals (dynamic inconsistency). This excessive discounting must be correctly modeled by a suitable discount function, otherwise, it can become a trans-disease process underlying addiction and other disorders. The (generalized) exponentiated hyperbolic discount function is proposed to describe the progression of a disease with respect to the treatment, since it maintains the property of inconsistency by exhibiting a decreasing discount rate after an initial period in which the opposite occurs. PMID:28706486

Observed and Normative Discount Functions in Addiction and other Diseases.

PubMed

Cruz Rambaud, Salvador; Muñoz Torrecillas, María J; Takahashi, Taiki

2017-01-01

The aim of this paper is to find a suitable discount function able to describe the progression of a certain addiction or disease under treatment as a discounting process. In effect, a certain indicator related to a disease decays over time in a manner which is mathematically similar to the way in which discounting has been modeled. We analyze the discount functions observed in experiments which study addictive and other problematic behaviors as well as some alternative hyperbola-like discount functions in order to fit the patience exhibited by the subject after receiving the treatment. Additionally, it has been experimentally found that people with addiction display high rates of discount (impatience) and preference reversals (dynamic inconsistency). This excessive discounting must be correctly modeled by a suitable discount function, otherwise, it can become a trans-disease process underlying addiction and other disorders. The (generalized) exponentiated hyperbolic discount function is proposed to describe the progression of a disease with respect to the treatment, since it maintains the property of inconsistency by exhibiting a decreasing discount rate after an initial period in which the opposite occurs.

The Value of Clean Air: Comparing Discounting of Delayed Air Quality and Money Across Magnitudes

PubMed Central

Friedel, Jonathan E.; DeHart, William B.; Mahamane, Salif; Jordan, Kerry E.; Odum, Amy L.

2018-01-01

The detrimental health effects of exposure to air pollution are well established. Fostering behavioral change concerning air quality may be challenging because the detrimental health effects of exposure to air pollution are delayed. Delay discounting, a measure of impulsive choice, encapsulates this process of choosing between the immediate conveniences of behaviors that increase pollution and the delayed consequences of prolonged exposure to poor air quality. In Experiment 1, participants completed a series of delay-discounting tasks for air quality and money. We found that participants discounted delayed air quality more than money. In Experiment 2, we investigated whether the common finding that large amounts of money are discounted less steeply than small amounts of money generalized to larger and smaller improvements in air quality. Participants discounted larger improvements in air quality less steeply than smaller improvements, indicating that the discounting of air quality shares a similar process as the discounting of money. Our results indicate that the discounting of delayed money is strongly related to the discounting of delayed air quality and that similar mechanisms may be involved in the discounting of these qualitatively different outcomes. These data are also the first to demonstrate the malleability of delay discounting of air quality, and provide important public health implications for decreasing delay discounting of air quality. PMID:29606776

On discounting of health gains from human papillomavirus vaccination: effects of different approaches.

PubMed

Westra, Tjalke A; Parouty, Mehraj; Brouwer, Werner B; Beutels, Philippe H; Rogoza, Raina M; Rozenbaum, Mark H; Daemen, Toos; Wilschut, Jan C; Boersma, Cornelis; Postma, Maarten J

2012-05-01

Discounting has long been a matter of controversy in the field of health economic evaluations. How to weigh future health effects has resulted in ongoing discussions. These discussions are imminently relevant for health care interventions with current costs but future benefits. Different approaches to discount health effects have been proposed. In this study, we estimated the impact of different approaches for discounting health benefits of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination. An HPV model was used to estimate the impact of different discounting approaches on the present value of health effects. For the constant discount approaches, we varied the discount rate for health effects ranging from 0% to 4%. Next, the impact of relevant alternative discounting approaches was estimated, including hyperbolic, proportional, stepwise, and time-shifted discounting. The present value of health effects gained through HPV vaccination varied strongly when varying discount rates and approaches. The application of the current Dutch guidelines resulted in a present value of health effects that was eight or two times higher than that produced when using the proportional discounting approach or when using the internationally more common 4% discount rate for health effects, respectively. Obviously, such differences translate into large variations in corresponding incremental cost-effectiveness ratios. The exact discount rate and approach chosen in an economic evaluation importantly impact the projected value of health benefits of HPV vaccination. Investigating alternative discounting approaches in health-economic analysis is important, especially for vaccination programs yielding health effects far into the future. Our study underlines the relevance of ongoing discussions on how and at what rates to discount. Copyright © 2012 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Stress hormones predict hyperbolic time-discount rates six months later in adults.

PubMed

Takahashi, Taiki; Shinada, Mizuho; Inukai, Keigo; Tanida, Shigehito; Takahashi, Chisato; Mifune, Nobuhiro; Takagishi, Haruto; Horita, Yutaka; Hashimoto, Hirofumi; Yokota, Kunihiro; Kameda, Tatsuya; Yamagishi, Toshio

2010-01-01

Stress hormones have been associated with temporal discounting. Although time-discount rate is shown to be stable over a long term, no study to date examines whether individual differences in stress hormones could predict individuals' time-discount rates in the relatively distant future (e.g., six month later), which is of interest in neuroeconomics of stress-addiction association. We assessed 87 participants' salivary stress hormone (cortisol, cortisone, and alpha-amylase) levels and hyperbolic discounting of delayed rewards consisting of three magnitudes, at the time-interval of six months. For salivary steroid assays, we employed a liquid chromatography/ mass spectroscopy (LC/MS) method. The correlations between the stress hormone levels and time-discount rates were examined. We observed that salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) levels were negatively associated with time-discount rates in never-smokers. Notably, salivary levels of stress steroids (i.e., cortisol and cortisone) negatively and positively related to time-discount rates in men and women, respectively, in never-smokers. Ever-smokers' discount rates were not predicted from these stress hormone levels. Individual differences in stress hormone levels predict impulsivity in temporal discounting in the future. There are sex differences in the effect of stress steroids on temporal discounting; while there was no sex defference in the relationship between sAA and temporal discounting.

Steeper discounting of delayed rewards in schizophrenia but not first-degree relatives.

PubMed

Yu, Linda Q; Lee, Sangil; Katchmar, Natalie; Satterthwaite, Theodore D; Kable, Joseph W; Wolf, Daniel H

2017-06-01

Excessive discounting of future rewards has been related to a variety of risky behaviors and adverse clinical conditions. Prior work examining delay discounting in schizophrenia suggests an elevated discount rate. However, it remains uncertain whether this reflects the disease process itself or an underlying genetic vulnerability, whether it is selective for delay discounting or reflects pervasive changes in decision-making, and whether it is driven by specific clinical dimensions such as cognitive impairment. Here we investigated delay discounting, as well as loss aversion and risk aversion, in three groups: schizophrenia (SZ), unaffected first-degree family members (FM), and controls without a family history of psychosis (NC). SZ had elevated discounting, without changes in loss aversion or risk aversion. Contrary to expectations, the FM group did not show an intermediate phenotype in discounting. Higher discount rates correlated with lower cognitive performance on verbal reasoning, but this did not explain elevated discount rates in SZ. Group differences were driven primarily by the non-smoking majority of the sample. This study provides further evidence for elevated discounting in schizophrenia, and demonstrates that steeper discounting is not necessarily associated with familial risk, cannot be wholly accounted for by cognitive deficits, and is not attributable to smoking-related impulsivity. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Probability Discounting of Gains and Losses: Implications for Risk Attitudes and Impulsivity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shead, N. Will; Hodgins, David C.

2009-01-01

Sixty college students performed three discounting tasks: probability discounting of gains, probability discounting of losses, and delay discounting of gains. Each task used an adjusting-amount procedure, and participants' choices affected the amount and timing of their remuneration for participating. Both group and individual discounting…

How Many Impulsivities? A Discounting Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Leonard; Myerson, Joel

2013-01-01

People discount the value of delayed and uncertain outcomes, and how steeply individuals discount is thought to reflect how impulsive they are. From this perspective, steep discounting of delayed outcomes (which fails to maximize long-term welfare) and shallow discounting of probabilistic outcomes (which fails to adequately take risk into account)…

7 CFR 1786.53 - Discounted present value.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 12 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discounted present value. 1786.53 Section 1786.53... Special Discounted Prepayments on RUS Direct/Insured Loans § 1786.53 Discounted present value. The Discounted Present Value shall be calculated five business days before prepayment is made by summing the...

Individual laboratory-measured discount rates predict field behavior

PubMed Central

Chabris, Christopher F.; Laibson, David; Morris, Carrie L.; Schuldt, Jonathon P.; Taubinsky, Dmitry

2009-01-01

We estimate discount rates of 555 subjects using a laboratory task and find that these individual discount rates predict inter-individual variation in field behaviors (e.g., exercise, BMI, smoking). The correlation between the discount rate and each field behavior is small: none exceeds 0.28 and many are near 0. However, the discount rate has at least as much predictive power as any variable in our dataset (e.g., sex, age, education). The correlation between the discount rate and field behavior rises when field behaviors are aggregated: these correlations range from 0.09-0.38. We present a model that explains why specific intertemporal choice behaviors are only weakly correlated with discount rates, even though discount rates robustly predict aggregates of intertemporal decisions. PMID:19412359

Individual laboratory-measured discount rates predict field behavior.

PubMed

Chabris, Christopher F; Laibson, David; Morris, Carrie L; Schuldt, Jonathon P; Taubinsky, Dmitry

2008-12-01

We estimate discount rates of 555 subjects using a laboratory task and find that these individual discount rates predict inter-individual variation in field behaviors (e.g., exercise, BMI, smoking). The correlation between the discount rate and each field behavior is small: none exceeds 0.28 and many are near 0. However, the discount rate has at least as much predictive power as any variable in our dataset (e.g., sex, age, education). The correlation between the discount rate and field behavior rises when field behaviors are aggregated: these correlations range from 0.09-0.38. We present a model that explains why specific intertemporal choice behaviors are only weakly correlated with discount rates, even though discount rates robustly predict aggregates of intertemporal decisions.

Delay discounting as a function of intrinsic/extrinsic religiousness, religious fundamentalism, and regular church attendance.

PubMed

Weatherly, Jeffrey N; Plumm, Karyn M

2012-01-01

Delay discounting occurs when the subjective value of an outcome decreases because its delivery is delayed. Previous research has suggested that the rate at which some, but not all, outcomes are discounted varies as a function of regular church attendance. In the present study, 509 participants completed measures of intrinsic religiousness, extrinsic religiousness, religious fundamentalism, and whether they regularly attended church services. They then completed a delay-discounting task involving five outcomes. Although religiousness was not a significant predictor of discounting for all outcomes, participants scoring high in intrinsic religiousness tended to display less delay discounting than participants scoring low. Likewise, participants scoring high in religious fundamentalism tended to display more delay discounting than participants scoring low. These results partially replicate previous ones in showing that the process of discounting may vary as a function of religiousness. The results also provide some direction for those interested in altering how individuals discount.

Discounting of qualitatively different delayed health outcomes in current and never smokers

PubMed Central

Friedel, Jonathan E.; DeHart, William B.; Frye, Charles C. J.; Rung, Jillian M.; Odum, Amy L.

2016-01-01

In delay discounting, temporally remote outcomes have less value. Cigarette smoking is associated with steeper discounting of money and consumable outcomes. It is presently unclear whether smokers discount health outcomes more than non-smokers. We sought to establish the generality of steep discounting for different types of health outcomes in cigarette smokers. Seventy participants (38 smokers and 32 non-smokers) completed four hypothetical outcome delay-discounting tasks: a gain of $500, a loss of $500, a temporary boost in health, and temporary cure from a debilitating disease. Participants reported the duration of each health outcome that would be equivalent to $500; these durations were then used in the respective discounting tasks. Delays ranged from 1 week to 25 years. Smokers’ indifference points for monetary gains, boosts in health, and temporary cures were lower than indifference points from non-smokers. Indifference points of one outcome were correlated with indifference points of other outcomes. Smokers demonstrate steeper discounting across a range of delayed outcomes. How a person discounts one outcome predicts how they will discount other outcomes. These two findings support our assertion that delay discounting is in part a trait. PMID:26691848

Delay discounting and utility for money or weight loss.

PubMed

Sze, Y Y; Slaven, E M; Bickel, W K; Epstein, L H

2017-03-01

Obesity is related to a bias towards smaller immediate over larger delayed rewards. This bias is typically examined by studying single commodity discounting. However, weight loss often involves choices among multiple commodities. To our knowledge, no research has examined delay discounting of delayed weight loss compared with other commodities. We examined single commodity discounting of money and cross commodity discounting of money and weight loss in a sample of 84 adults with obesity or overweight statuses interested in weight loss. The exchange rate between money and weight loss was calculated, and participants completed two delay discounting tasks: money now versus money later and money now versus weight loss later. Participants discounted weight loss more than money ( p  < 0.001). When participants were divided into those who preferred weight loss ( n  = 61) versus money ( n  = 23), those who preferred money over weight loss discounted weight loss even more than individuals that preferred weight loss ( p  = 0.003). Greater discounting of weight loss for those who preferred money suggest that idiosyncratic preferences are related to multiple commodity discounting, and greater discounting of weight loss across all participants provide insight on important challenges for weight control.

Modeling the effect of reward amount on probability discounting.

PubMed

Myerson, Joel; Green, Leonard; Morris, Joshua

2011-03-01

The present study with college students examined the effect of amount on the discounting of probabilistic monetary rewards. A hyperboloid function accurately described the discounting of hypothetical rewards ranging in amount from $20 to $10,000,000. The degree of discounting increased continuously with amount of probabilistic reward. This effect of amount was not due to changes in the rate parameter of the discounting function, but rather was due to increases in the exponent. These results stand in contrast to those observed with the discounting of delayed monetary rewards, in which the degree of discounting decreases with reward amount due to amount-dependent decreases in the rate parameter. Taken together, this pattern of results suggests that delay and probability discounting reflect different underlying mechanisms. That is, the fact that the exponent in the delay discounting function is independent of amount is consistent with a psychophysical scaling interpretation, whereas the finding that the exponent of the probability-discounting function is amount-dependent is inconsistent with such an interpretation. Instead, the present results are consistent with the idea that the probability-discounting function is itself the product of a value function and a weighting function. This idea was first suggested by Kahneman and Tversky (1979), although their prospect theory does not predict amount effects like those observed. The effect of amount on probability discounting was parsimoniously incorporated into our hyperboloid discounting function by assuming that the exponent was proportional to the amount raised to a power. The amount-dependent exponent of the probability-discounting function may be viewed as reflecting the effect of amount on the weighting of the probability with which the reward will be received.

26 CFR 31.3406(b)(2)-2 - Original issue discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 15 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Original issue discount. 31.3406(b)(2)-2... SOURCE Collection of Income Tax at Source § 31.3406(b)(2)-2 Original issue discount. (a) Original issue discount subject to backup withholding. The amount of original issue discount, treated as interest, subject...

Now for Me, Later for Us? Effects of Group Context on Temporal Discounting

PubMed Central

Charlton, Shawn R.; Yi, Richard; Porter, Caitlin; Carter, Anne E.; Bickel, Warren; Rachlin, Howard

2013-01-01

Delayed rewards are less valuable than immediate rewards. This well-established finding has focused almost entirely on individual outcomes. However, are delayed rewards similarly discounted if they are shared by a group? The current article reports on three experiments exploring the effect of group context on delay discounting. Results indicate that discount rates of individual and group rewards were highly correlated, but that respondents were more willing to wait (decreased discounting) for shared outcomes than for individual outcomes. An explanatory model is proposed suggesting that decreased discount rates in group contexts may be due to the way the effects of both delay and social discounting are combined. That is, in a group context, a person values both a future reward (discounted by delay) and a present reward to another person (discounted by the social distance between them). The results are explained by a combined discount function containing a delay factor and a factor representing the social distance between the decision maker and group members. Practical implications of the fact that shared consequences can increase individual self-control are also discussed. PMID:23641123

Discounting of reward sequences: a test of competing formal models of hyperbolic discounting

PubMed Central

Zarr, Noah; Alexander, William H.; Brown, Joshua W.

2014-01-01

Humans are known to discount future rewards hyperbolically in time. Nevertheless, a formal recursive model of hyperbolic discounting has been elusive until recently, with the introduction of the hyperbolically discounted temporal difference (HDTD) model. Prior to that, models of learning (especially reinforcement learning) have relied on exponential discounting, which generally provides poorer fits to behavioral data. Recently, it has been shown that hyperbolic discounting can also be approximated by a summed distribution of exponentially discounted values, instantiated in the μAgents model. The HDTD model and the μAgents model differ in one key respect, namely how they treat sequences of rewards. The μAgents model is a particular implementation of a Parallel discounting model, which values sequences based on the summed value of the individual rewards whereas the HDTD model contains a non-linear interaction. To discriminate among these models, we observed how subjects discounted a sequence of three rewards, and then we tested how well each candidate model fit the subject data. The results show that the Parallel model generally provides a better fit to the human data. PMID:24639662

Temporal discounting across three psychiatric disorders: Anorexia nervosa, obsessive compulsive disorder, and social anxiety disorder.

PubMed

Steinglass, Joanna E; Lempert, Karolina M; Choo, Tse-Hwei; Kimeldorf, Marcia B; Wall, Melanie; Walsh, B Timothy; Fyer, Abby J; Schneier, Franklin R; Simpson, H Blair

2017-05-01

Temporal discounting refers to the tendency for rewards to lose value as the expected delay to receipt increases. Individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) have been found to show reduced temporal discounting rates, indicating a greater preference for delayed rewards compared to healthy peers. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and social anxiety disorder (SAD) commonly co-occur with AN, and anxiety has been related to development and prognosis of AN. We examined whether reduced temporal discounting is present across these potentially related disorders, and explored the relationship between temporal discounting and anxiety transdiagnostically. One hundred ninety six individuals (75 healthy controls (HC); 50 OCD; 27 AN; 44 SAD) completed two temporal discounting tasks in which they chose between smaller-sooner and larger-later monetary rewards. Two measures of discounting-discount rate and discount factor-were compared between diagnostic groups, and associations with anxious traits were examined. Individuals with AN showed decreased temporal discounting compared to HC. OCD and SAD groups did not differ significantly from HC. Across the sample, anxiety was associated with decreased discounting; more anxious individuals showed a greater preference for delayed reward. We replicated the findings that individuals with AN show an increased preference for delayed reward relative to HC and that individuals with OCD do not differ from HC. We also showed that individuals with SAD do not differ from HC in discounting. Across this large sample, two measures of anxious temperament were associated with temporal discounting. These data raise new questions about the relationship between this dimensional trait and psychopathology. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Sleep deprivation alters effort discounting but not delay discounting of monetary rewards.

PubMed

Libedinsky, Camilo; Massar, Stijn A A; Ling, Aiqing; Chee, Weiyan; Huettel, Scott A; Chee, Michael W L

2013-06-01

To determine whether sleep deprivation would affect the discounting of delayed rewards, of rewards entailing the expense of effort, or both. We measured rates of two types of reward discounting under conditions of rested wakefulness (RW) and sleep deprivation (SD). Delay discounting was defined as the willingness to accept smaller monetary rewards sooner rather than larger monetary rewards later. Effort discounting was defined as the willingness to accept smaller rewards that require less effort to obtain (e.g., typing a small number of letter strings backward) over larger but more effortful rewards (e.g., typing more letter strings to receive the reward). The first two experiments used a crossover design in which one session was conducted after a normal night of sleep (RW), and the other after a night without sleep (SD). The first experiment evaluated only temporal discounting whereas the second evaluated temporal and effort discounting. In the second experiment, the discounting tasks were repeatedly administered prior to the state comparisons to minimize the effects of order and/or repeated testing. In a third experiment, participants were studied only once in a between-subject evaluation of discounting across states. The study took place in a research laboratory. Seventy-seven healthy young adult participants: 20 in Experiment 1, 27 in Experiment 2, and 30 in Experiment 3. N/A. Sleep deprivation elicited increased effort discounting but did not affect delay discounting. The dissociable effects of sleep deprivation on two forms of discounting behavior suggest that they may have differing underlying neural mechanisms.

Time discounting and smoking behavior: evidence from a panel survey(*).

PubMed

Kang, Myong-Il; Ikeda, Shinsuke

2014-12-01

By using a panel survey of Japanese adults, we show that smoking behavior is associated with personal time discounting and its biases, such as hyperbolic discounting and the sign effect, in the way that theory predicts: smoking depends positively on the discount rate and the degree of hyperbolic discounting and negatively on the presence of the sign effect. Positive effects of hyperbolic discounting on smoking are salient for naïve people, who are not aware of their self-control problem. By estimating smoking participation and smokers' cigarette consumption in Cragg's two-part model, we find that the two smoking decisions depend on different sets of time-discounting variables. Particularly, smoking participation is affected by being a naïve hyperbolic discounter, whereas the discount rate, the presence of the sign effect, and a hyperbolic discounting proxy constructed from procrastination behavior vis-à-vis doing homework assignments affect both types of decision making. The panel data enable us to analyze the over-time instability of elicited discount rates. The instability is shown to come from measurement errors, rather than preference shocks on time preference. Several evidences indicate that the detected associations between time preferences and smoking behavior are interpersonal one, rather than within-personal one. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Drinking status but not acute alcohol consumption influences delay discounting.

PubMed

Adams, Sally; Attwood, Angela S; Munafò, Marcus R

2017-09-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the following: (a) the effects of acute alcohol on delay discounting; (b) the effects of drinking status on delayed discounting; and (c) whether these effects differ according to reward type (alcohol vs. money). Heavy and light social alcohol users (n = 96) were randomized to receive either an acute dose of alcohol at 0.4 or 0.6 g/kg or placebo in a between-subjects, double-blind design. Delay discounting of alcohol and monetary rewards was measured using a hyperbolic model, with higher scores indicative of greater delay discounting. ANOVA of discount scores indicated a main effect of reward type, where all participants had higher discount scores for alcohol versus money rewards. A main effect of drinking status was also observed, where heavier drinkers had higher discount scores compared with lighter drinkers. We did not observe a main effect of acute alcohol use on delay discounting or the hypothesized interactions between acute alcohol use and drinking status with reward type. Our data suggest that heavier drinkers discount the value of delayed rewards more steeply than lighter drinkers. Delay discounting may therefore be a promising marker of heavy alcohol consumption in social drinkers. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Delay, Probability, and Social Discounting in a Public Goods Game

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Bryan A.; Rachlin, Howard

2009-01-01

A human social discount function measures the value to a person of a reward to another person at a given social distance. Just as delay discounting is a hyperbolic function of delay, and probability discounting is a hyperbolic function of odds-against, social discounting is a hyperbolic function of social distance. Experiment 1 obtained individual…

Neural congruence between intertemporal and interpersonal self-control: Evidence from delay and social discounting.

PubMed

Hill, Paul F; Yi, Richard; Spreng, R Nathan; Diana, Rachel A

2017-11-15

Behavioral studies using delay and social discounting as indices of self-control and altruism, respectively, have revealed functional similarities between farsighted and social decisions. However, neural evidence for this functional link is lacking. Twenty-five young adults completed a delay and social discounting task during fMRI scanning. A spatiotemporal partial least squares analysis revealed that both forms of discounting were well characterized by a pattern of brain activity in areas comprising frontoparietal control, default, and mesolimbic reward networks. Both forms of discounting appear to draw on common neurocognitive mechanisms, regardless of whether choices involve intertemporal or interpersonal outcomes. We also observed neural profiles differentiating between high and low discounters. High discounters were well characterized by increased medial temporal lobe and limbic activity. In contrast, low discount rates were associated with activity in the medial prefrontal cortex and right temporoparietal junction. This pattern may reflect biological mechanisms underlying behavioral heterogeneity in discount rates. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Discounting future green: money versus the environment.

PubMed

Hardisty, David J; Weber, Elke U

2009-08-01

In 3 studies, participants made choices between hypothetical financial, environmental, and health gains and losses that took effect either immediately or with a delay of 1 or 10 years. In all 3 domains, choices indicated that gains were discounted more than losses. There were no significant differences in the discounting of monetary and environmental outcomes, but health gains were discounted more and health losses were discounted less than gains or losses in the other 2 domains. Correlations between implicit discount rates for these different choices suggest that discount rates are influenced more by the valence of outcomes (gains vs. losses) than by domain (money, environment, or health). Overall, results indicate that when controlling as many factors as possible, at short to medium delays, environmental outcomes are discounted in a similar way to financial outcomes, which is good news for researchers and policy makers alike.

Time-discounting and tobacco smoking: a systematic review and network analysis

PubMed Central

Barlow, Pepita; McKee, Martin; Reeves, Aaron; Galea, Gauden; Stuckler, David

2017-01-01

Abstract Background: Tobacco smoking harms health, so why do people smoke and fail to quit? An explanation originating in behavioural economics suggests a role for time-discounting, which describes how the value of a reward, such as better health, decreases with delay to its receipt. A large number of studies test the relationship of time-discounting with tobacco outcomes but the temporal pattern of this relationship and its variation according to measurement methods remain unclear. We review the association between time-discounting and smoking across (i) the life course, from initiation to cessation, and (ii) diverse discount measures. Methods: We identified 69 relevant studies in Web of Science and PubMed. We synthesized findings across methodologies and evaluated discount measures, study quality and cross-disciplinary fertilization. Results: In 44 out of 54 studies, smokers more greatly discounted the future than non-smokers and, in longitudinal studies, higher discounting predicted future smoking. Smokers with lower time-discount rates achieved higher quit rates. Findings were consistent across studies measuring discount rates using hypothetical monetary or cigarette reward scenarios. The methodological quality of the majority of studies was rated as ‘moderate’ and co-citation analysis revealed an isolation of economics journals and a dearth of studies in public health. Conclusion: There is moderate yet consistent evidence that high time-discounting is a risk factor for smoking and unsuccessful cessation. Policy scenarios assuming a flat rate of population discounting may inadequately capture smokers’ perceptions of costs and benefits. PMID:27818375

Tracking the Discount: Tuition Discount Rates, Net Tuition Revenue, and Efforts to Inform Institutional Practices. Professional File. Article 133, Fall 2013

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Natalie Pullaro; Redd, Kenneth E.

2013-01-01

This article uses findings from the 2012 Tuition Discounting Study (TDS) conducted by the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) to provide a framework for institutional researchers to develop and adapt their own custom tuition discounting definitions and formulas. Under tuition discounting, colleges and…

77 FR 38760 - National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Particulate Matter; Correction

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-06-29

...% discount rate) for alternative PM 2.5 standard levels of 11/35 [mu]g/m\\3\\ (annual and 24- hour standards... rate rate 3% Discount rate 7% Discount rate 3% Discount rate \\c\\ 7% Discount rate 13/35 $2.9 $2.9 $88... deaths each year accounts for over 90% of total monetized benefits. Mortality risk valuation assumes...

Changing delay discounting in the light of the competing neurobehavioral decision systems theory: a review.

PubMed

Koffarnus, Mikhail N; Jarmolowicz, David P; Mueller, E Terry; Bickel, Warren K

2013-01-01

Excessively devaluing delayed reinforcers co-occurs with a wide variety of clinical conditions such as drug dependence, obesity, and excessive gambling. If excessive delay discounting is a trans-disease process that underlies the choice behavior leading to these and other negative health conditions, efforts to change an individual's discount rate are arguably important. Although discount rate is often regarded as a relatively stable trait, descriptions of interventions and environmental manipulations that successfully alter discount rate have begun to appear in the literature. In this review, we compare published examples of procedures that change discount rate and classify them into categories of procedures, including therapeutic interventions, direct manipulation of the executive decision-making system, framing effects, physiological state effects, and acute drug effects. These changes in discount rate are interpreted from the perspective of the competing neurobehavioral decision systems theory, which describes a combination of neurological and behavioral processes that account for delay discounting. We also suggest future directions that researchers could take to identify the mechanistic processes that allow for changes in discount rate and to test whether the competing neurobehavioral decision systems view of delay discounting is correct. © Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

Changing Delay Discounting in the Light of the Competing Neurobehavioral Decision Systems Theory: a Review

PubMed Central

Koffarnus, Mikhail N.; Jarmolowicz, David P.; Mueller, E. Terry; Bickel, Warren K.

2014-01-01

Excessively devaluing delayed reinforcers co-occurs with a wide variety of clinical conditions such as drug dependence, obesity, and excessive gambling. If excessive delay discounting is a trans-disease process that underlies the choice behavior leading to these and other negative health conditions, efforts to change an individual’s discount rate are arguably important. Although discount rate is often regarded as a relatively stable trait, descriptions of interventions and environmental manipulations that successfully alter discount rate have begun to appear in the literature. In this review, we compare published examples of procedures that change discount rate and classify them into categories of procedures, including therapeutic interventions, direct manipulation of the executive decision-making system, framing effects, physiological state effects, and acute drug effects. These changes in discount rate are interpreted from the perspective of the competing neurobehavioral decision systems theory, which describes a combination of neurological and behavioral processes that account for delay discounting. We also suggest future directions that researchers could take to identify the mechanistic processes that allow for changes in discount rate and to test whether the competing neurobehavioral decision systems view of delay discounting is correct. PMID:23344987

Domain independence and stability in young and older adults' discounting of delayed rewards

PubMed Central

Jimura, Koji; Myerson, Joel; Hilgard, Joseph; Keighley, Julia; Braver, Todd S.; Green, Leonard

2011-01-01

Individual discounting rates for different types of delayed reward are typically assumed to reflect a single, underlying trait of impulsivity. Recently, we showed that discounting rates are orders of magnitude steeper for directly consumable liquid rewards than for monetary rewards (Jimura et al. 2009), raising the question of whether discounting rates for different types of reward covary at the individual level. Accordingly, the present study examined the relation between discounting of hypothetical money and real liquid rewards in young adults (Experiment 1) and older adults (Experiment 2). At the group level, young adults discounted monetary rewards more steeply than the older adults, but the reverse pattern was observed with liquid rewards. At the individual level, the rates at which young and older participants discounted each reward type were stable over a two- to fifteen-week interval (rs >.70), but there was no significant correlation between the rates at which they discounted the two reward types. These results suggest that although similar decision-making processes may underlie the discounting of different types of rewards, the rates at which individuals discount money and directly consumable rewards may reflect separate, stable traits, rather than a single trait of impulsivity. PMID:21550384

Discounting the future: influence of the economic model.

PubMed Central

West, R R

1996-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To consider the effect of the economic discount rate on health care policy and the rationale for discounting the collective future of society generally. DESIGN: A review of the concept of discounting the future vis à vis the present from the points of view of individuals (who pass on) and of societies (that continue) and reconsideration of the application of discounting to typical public health scenarios. SETTING: A public health service, within a basically stable society, which can reasonably anticipate a nearly certain future. RESULTS: Discounting necessarily overvalues the "here and now" compared with the future. While applications of discount rates, typical of those employed in health economic studies in recent years, may seem rational in health care programmes directed at middle aged employed people, they do not for the young and the elderly, important recipients of health care. The consequences of discounting do not accord with the aims and objectives of public health. CONCLUSIONS: The "time preferences" of transient individuals within a stable society do not provide a rational basis for time preference of a stable society collectively. Discounting inevitably encourages "short termism" and hence biases public policy decision making. The neoclassical theory that gave rise to the concept of discounting requires revision. PMID:8935452

Discounting the future: influence of the economic model.

PubMed

West, R R

1996-06-01

To consider the effect of the economic discount rate on health care policy and the rationale for discounting the collective future of society generally. A review of the concept of discounting the future vis à vis the present from the points of view of individuals (who pass on) and of societies (that continue) and reconsideration of the application of discounting to typical public health scenarios. A public health service, within a basically stable society, which can reasonably anticipate a nearly certain future. Discounting necessarily overvalues the "here and now" compared with the future. While applications of discount rates, typical of those employed in health economic studies in recent years, may seem rational in health care programmes directed at middle aged employed people, they do not for the young and the elderly, important recipients of health care. The consequences of discounting do not accord with the aims and objectives of public health. The "time preferences" of transient individuals within a stable society do not provide a rational basis for time preference of a stable society collectively. Discounting inevitably encourages "short termism" and hence biases public policy decision making. The neoclassical theory that gave rise to the concept of discounting requires revision.

The Individual Health Discount Rate in Patients with Ulcerative Colitis

PubMed Central

Waljee, Akbar K.; Morris, Arden M.; Waljee, Jennifer F.; Higgins, Peter D.R.

2015-01-01

Background In cost-effectiveness analysis, discount rates are used in calculating the value of future costs and benefits. However, standard discount rates may not accurately describe the decision-making of patients with Ulcerative Colitis (UC). These patients often choose the long-term risks of immunosuppressive therapy over the short-term risks of colectomy, demonstrating very high discount rates for future health. In this study, we aimed to measure the discount rate in UC patients and identify variables associated with the discount rate. Methods We surveyed patients with UC and patients who were post-colectomy for UC to measure their valuations of UC and colectomy health states. We used Standard Gamble(SG) and Time-Trade-Off(TTO) methods to assess current and future health state valuations, and calculated the discount rate. Results Participants included 150 subjects with UC and 150 subjects who were post-colectomy for UC. Discount rates varied widely (20.6%–100%) with an overall median rate of 55.0%, which was significantly higher than the standard rate of 5%. Older age and male gender and predicted high discount rates (aversion to immediate risk in favor of distant future risk). For each additional decade of age, patients’ expected discount rate increased by 0.77%. Female gender was the only predictor of very low discount rates. Female patients’ discount rates averaged 8.1% less than age-matched males. Conclusions The accepted discount rate of 5% grossly underestimates UC patients’ preference for long-term over short-term risk. This might explain UC patients’ frequent choice of the long-term risks of immunosuppressive medical therapy over the short-term risks of colectomy. PMID:21560195

Insurance Discounts: Traffic Safety Tips

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1996-01-01

This fact sheet, NHTSA Facts: Summer 1996, discusses automobile insurance discounts. It relates how to obtain a discount, and details what factors can influence insurance premiums. It notes that discounts for safety features vary from insurance compa...

DISCOUNTING OF DELAYED AND PROBABILISTIC LOSSES OVER A WIDE RANGE OF AMOUNTS

PubMed Central

Green, Leonard; Myerson, Joel; Oliveira, Luís; Chang, Seo Eun

2014-01-01

The present study examined delay and probability discounting of hypothetical monetary losses over a wide range of amounts (from $20 to $500,000) in order to determine how amount affects the parameters of the hyperboloid discounting function. In separate conditions, college students chose between immediate payments and larger, delayed payments and between certain payments and larger, probabilistic payments. The hyperboloid function accurately described both types of discounting, and amount of loss had little or no systematic effect on the degree of discounting. Importantly, the amount of loss also had little systematic effect on either the rate parameter or the exponent of the delay and probability discounting functions. The finding that the parameters of the hyperboloid function remain relatively constant across a wide range of amounts of delayed and probabilistic loss stands in contrast to the robust amount effects observed with delayed and probabilistic rewards. At the individual level, the degree to which delayed losses were discounted was uncorrelated with the degree to which probabilistic losses were discounted, and delay and probability loaded on two separate factors, similar to what is observed with delayed and probabilistic rewards. Taken together, these findings argue that although delay and probability discounting involve fundamentally different decision-making mechanisms, nevertheless the discounting of delayed and probabilistic losses share an insensitivity to amount that distinguishes it from the discounting of delayed and probabilistic gains. PMID:24745086

Cocaine dependent individuals discount future rewards more than future losses for both cocaine and monetary outcomes.

PubMed

Johnson, Matthew W; Bruner, Natalie R; Johnson, Patrick S

2015-01-01

Cocaine dependence and other forms of drug dependence are associated with steeper devaluation of future outcomes (delay discounting). Although studies in this domain have typically assessed choices between monetary gains (e.g., receive less money now versus receive more money after a delay), delay discounting is also applicable to decisions involving losses (e.g., small loss now versus larger delayed loss), with gains typically discounted more than losses (the "sign effect"). It is also known that drugs are discounted more than equivalently valued money. In the context of drug dependence, however, relatively little is known about the discounting of delayed monetary and drug losses and the presence of the sign effect. In this within-subject, laboratory study, delay discounting for gains and losses was assessed for cocaine and money outcomes in cocaine-dependent individuals (n=89). Both cocaine and monetary gains were discounted at significantly greater rates than cocaine and monetary losses, respectively (i.e., the sign effect). Cocaine gains were discounted significantly more than monetary gains, but cocaine and monetary losses were discounted similarly. Results suggest that cocaine is discounted by cocaine-dependent individuals in a systematic manner similar to other rewards. Because the sign effect was shown for both cocaine and money, delayed aversive outcomes may generally have greater impact than delayed rewards in shaping present behavior in this population. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Monetary delay discounting in gambling and cocaine dependence with personality comorbidities.

PubMed

Albein-Urios, Natalia; Martinez-González, José M; Lozano, Oscar; Verdejo-Garcia, Antonio

2014-11-01

Cocaine addiction and pathological gambling are commonly associated with steeper (impulsive) discounting of delayed rewards, which promotes ongoing drug and gambling behaviors. However, it is yet unclear whether impulsive delay discounting is a stable trait in cocaine and gambling disorders during abstinence, and whether it is significantly impacted by dysfunctional personality beliefs. The aim of this study was to compare the delay discounting rates of four groups: 47 cocaine users with comorbid personality disorders, 41 cocaine users without psychiatric comorbidities, 28 pathological gamblers without psychiatric comorbidities, and 36 healthy comparison individuals. We also examined the association between dysfunctional personality beliefs and delay discounting rates. Participants completed the Kirby Delay Discounting Questionnaire and the Beck Personality Belief Questionnaire as part of a larger battery. We used non-parametric tests to compare discounting rates between the groups, and bivariate correlation analyses to examine the association between beliefs and discounting rates within each of the groups. We found that discounting rates were significantly higher in individuals with disordered gambling compared to controls. Specifically in cocaine users with Cluster B personality disorders, higher discounting rates were associated with the intensity of "dependent" dysfunctional beliefs (e.g., "I am needy and weak"). Conclusion:We conclude that impulsive delay discounting is increased in gambling relative to controls and linked to personality beliefs in cocaine users with Cluster B personality disorders. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Individual discount rates and smoking: evidence from a field experiment in Denmark.

PubMed

Harrison, Glenn W; Lau, Morten I; Rutström, E Elisabet

2010-09-01

We elicit measures of individual discount rates from a representative sample of the Danish population and test two substantive hypotheses. The first hypothesis is that smokers have higher individual discount rates than non-smokers. The second hypothesis is that smokers are more likely to have time inconsistent preferences than non-smokers, where time inconsistency is indicated by a hyperbolic discounting function. We control for the concavity of the utility function in our estimates of individual discount rates and find that male smokers have significantly higher discount rates than male non-smokers. However, smoking has no significant association with discount rates among women. This result is robust across exponential and hyperbolic discounting functions. We consider the sensitivity of our conclusions to a statistical specification that allows each observation to potentially be generated by more than one latent data-generating process. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Effects of Financial Education on Impulsive Decision Making

PubMed Central

DeHart, William B.; Friedel, Jonathan E.; Lown, Jean M.; Odum, Amy L.

2016-01-01

Delay discounting, as a behavioral measure of impulsive choice, is strongly related to substance abuse and other risky behaviors. Therefore, effective techniques that alter delay discounting are of great interest. We explored the ability of a semester long financial education course to change delay discounting. Participants were recruited from a financial education course (n = 237) and an abnormal psychology course (n = 80). Both groups completed a delay-discounting task for $100 during the first two weeks (Time 1) of the semester as well as during the last two weeks (Time 2) of the semester. Participants also completed a personality inventory and financial risk tolerance scale both times and a delay-discounting task for $1,000 during Time 2. Delay discounting decreased in the financial education group at the end of the semester whereas there was no change in delay discounting in the abnormal psychology group. Financial education may be an effective method for reducing delay discounting. PMID:27442237

The Effects of Financial Education on Impulsive Decision Making.

PubMed

DeHart, William B; Friedel, Jonathan E; Lown, Jean M; Odum, Amy L

2016-01-01

Delay discounting, as a behavioral measure of impulsive choice, is strongly related to substance abuse and other risky behaviors. Therefore, effective techniques that alter delay discounting are of great interest. We explored the ability of a semester long financial education course to change delay discounting. Participants were recruited from a financial education course (n = 237) and an abnormal psychology course (n = 80). Both groups completed a delay-discounting task for $100 during the first two weeks (Time 1) of the semester as well as during the last two weeks (Time 2) of the semester. Participants also completed a personality inventory and financial risk tolerance scale both times and a delay-discounting task for $1,000 during Time 2. Delay discounting decreased in the financial education group at the end of the semester whereas there was no change in delay discounting in the abnormal psychology group. Financial education may be an effective method for reducing delay discounting.

Exchanging the liquidity hypothesis: Delay discounting of money and self-relevant non-money rewards

PubMed Central

Stuppy-Sullivan, Allison M.; Tormohlen, Kayla N.; Yi, Richard

2015-01-01

Evidence that primary rewards (e.g., food and drugs of abuse) are discounted more than money is frequently attributed to money's high degree of liquidity, or exchangeability for many commodities. The present study provides some evidence against this liquidity hypothesis by contrasting delay discounting of monetary rewards (liquid) and non-monetary commodities (non-liquid) that are self-relevant and utility-matched. Ninety-seven (97) undergraduate students initially completed a conventional binary-choice delay discounting of money task. Participants returned one week later and completed a self-relevant commodity delay discounting task. Both conventional hypothesis testing and more-conservative tests of statistical equivalence revealed correspondence in rate of delay discounting of money and self-relevant commodities, and in one magnitude condition, less discounting for the latter. The present results indicate that liquidity of money cannot fully account for the lower rate of delay discounting compared to non-money rewards. PMID:26556504

Probabilistic Discounting of Hypothetical Monetary Gains: University Students Differ in How They Discount "Won" and "Owed" Money

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weatherly, Jeffrey N.; Derenne, Adam

2013-01-01

The present study tested whether participants would discount "won" money differently than they would "owed" money in a probability-discounting task. Participants discounted $1000 or $100,000 that they had won in a sweepstakes or that was owed to them using the multiple-choice (Experiment 1) or fill-in-the-blank (Experiment 2) method of collecting…

Individual health discount rate in patients with ulcerative colitis.

PubMed

Waljee, Akbar K; Morris, Arden M; Waljee, Jennifer F; Higgins, Peter D R

2011-06-01

In cost-effectiveness analysis, discount rates are used in calculating the value of future costs and benefits. However, standard discount rates may not accurately describe the decision-making of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). These patients often choose the long-term risks of immunosuppressive therapy over the short-term risks of colectomy, demonstrating very high discount rates for future health. In this study we aimed to measure the discount rate in UC patients and identify variables associated with the discount rate. We surveyed patients with UC and patients who were postcolectomy for UC to measure their valuations of UC and colectomy health states. We used Standard Gamble (SG) and Time-Trade-Off (TTO) methods to assess current and future health state valuations and calculated the discount rate. Participants included 150 subjects with UC and 150 subjects who were postcolectomy for UC. Adjusted discount rates varied widely (0%-100%), with an overall median rate of 55.0% (interquartile range [IQR] 20.6-100), which was significantly higher than the standard rate of 5%. Within the normal range of discount rates, patients' expected discount rate increased by 0.80% for each additional year of age, and female patients had discount rates that averaged ≈ 8% less than their age-matched counterparts and approached statistical significance. The accepted discount rate of 5% grossly underestimates UC patients' preference for long-term over short-term risk. This might explain UC patients' frequent choice of the long-term risks of immunosuppressive medical therapy over the short-term risks of colectomy. Copyright © 2010 Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America, Inc.

Temporal discounting across three psychiatric disorders: Anorexia nervosa, obsessive compulsive disorder, and social anxiety disorder

PubMed Central

Steinglass, Joanna E.; Lempert, Karolina M.; Choo, Tse-Hwei; Kimeldorf, Marcia B.; Wall, Melanie; Walsh, B. Timothy; Fyer, Abby J.; Schneier, Franklin R.; Simpson, H. Blair

2018-01-01

Background Temporal discounting refers to the tendency for rewards to lose value as the expected delay to receipt increases. Individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) have been found to show reduced temporal discounting rates, indicating a greater preference for delayed rewards compared to healthy peers. Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) and social anxiety disorder (SAD) commonly co-occur with AN, and anxiety has been related to development and prognosis of AN. We examined whether reduced temporal discounting is present across these potentially related disorders, and explored the relationship between temporal discounting and anxiety trans-diagnostically. Methods One hundred ninety six individuals (75 healthy controls (HC); 50 OCD; 27 AN; 44 SAD) completed two temporal discounting tasks in which they chose between smaller-sooner and larger-later monetary rewards. Two measures of discounting—discount rate and discount factor—were compared between diagnostic groups, and associations with anxious traits were examined. Results Individuals with AN showed decreased temporal discounting compared to HC. OCD and SAD groups did not differ significantly from HC. Across the sample, anxiety was associated with decreased discounting; more anxious individuals showed a greater preference for delayed reward. Conclusions We replicated the findings that individuals with AN show an increased preference for delayed reward relative to HC and that individuals with OCD do not differ from HC. We also showed that individuals with SAD do not differ from HC in discounting. Across this large sample, two measures of anxious temperament were associated with temporal discounting. These data raise new questions about the relationship between this dimensional trait and psychopathology. PMID:28009473

Time-discounting and tobacco smoking: a systematic review and network analysis.

PubMed

Barlow, Pepita; McKee, Martin; Reeves, Aaron; Galea, Gauden; Stuckler, David

2017-06-01

Tobacco smoking harms health, so why do people smoke and fail to quit? An explanation originating in behavioural economics suggests a role for time-discounting, which describes how the value of a reward, such as better health, decreases with delay to its receipt. A large number of studies test the relationship of time-discounting with tobacco outcomes but the temporal pattern of this relationship and its variation according to measurement methods remain unclear. We review the association between time-discounting and smoking across (i) the life course, from initiation to cessation, and (ii) diverse discount measures. We identified 69 relevant studies in Web of Science and PubMed. We synthesized findings across methodologies and evaluated discount measures, study quality and cross-disciplinary fertilization. In 44 out of 54 studies, smokers more greatly discounted the future than non-smokers and, in longitudinal studies, higher discounting predicted future smoking. Smokers with lower time-discount rates achieved higher quit rates. Findings were consistent across studies measuring discount rates using hypothetical monetary or cigarette reward scenarios. The methodological quality of the majority of studies was rated as 'moderate' and co-citation analysis revealed an isolation of economics journals and a dearth of studies in public health. There is moderate yet consistent evidence that high time-discounting is a risk factor for smoking and unsuccessful cessation. Policy scenarios assuming a flat rate of population discounting may inadequately capture smokers' perceptions of costs and benefits. © The Author 2016; Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the International Epidemiological Association

The Sexual Discounting Task: HIV Risk Behavior and the Discounting of Delayed Sexual Rewards in Cocaine Dependence

PubMed Central

Johnson, Matthew W.; Bruner, Natalie R.

2011-01-01

Background Cocaine dependence is associated with high rates of sexual risk behavior and HIV infection. However, little is known about the responsible mechanism(s). Methods Cocaine-dependent individuals (N=62) completed a novel Sexual Discounting Task assessing decisions between immediate unprotected sex and delayed sex with a condom across four hypothetical partners: most (and least) likely to have a sexually transmitted infection (STI), and most (and least) sexually desirable; a real rewards money delay-discounting task, and self-reported sexual risk behavior using the HIV Risk-Taking Behavior Scale (HRBS). Results Sexual Discounting Task results were largely systematic and showed a strong effect of delay in decreasing condom use. Sexual discounting (preference for immediate unprotected sex) was significantly greater when making responses for partners judged least (compared to most) likely to have an STI, and for partners judged most (compared to least) desirable. Differences in sexual discounting were significant after controlling for differences in condom use (with no delay) between conditions. Greater discounting in 3 or the 4 Sexual Discounting Task conditions, but not in the money discounting task, was associated with greater self-reported sexual risk behavior as measured by the HRBS Conclusions Results suggest that delay is a critical variable strongly affecting HIV sexual risk behavior, and that the Sexual Discounting Task provides a clinically sensitive measure of this phenomenon that may address a variety of questions about HIV risk in future research. The wealth of behavioral and neurobiological data on delay discounting should be brought to bear on HIV education and prevention. PMID:22055012

Cross-commodity delay discounting of alcohol and money in alcohol users

PubMed Central

Moody, Lara N.; Tegge, Allison N.; Bickel, Warren K.

2017-01-01

Despite real-world implications, the pattern of delay discounting in alcohol users when the commodities now and later differ has not been well characterized. In this study, 60 participants on Amazon's Mechanical Turk completed the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) to assess severity of use and completed four delay discounting tasks between hypothetical, equivalent amounts of alcohol and money available at five delays. The tasks included two cross-commodity (alcohol now-money later and money now-alcohol later) and two same-commodity (money now-money later and alcohol now-alcohol later) conditions. Delay discounting was significantly associated with clinical cutoffs of the AUDIT for both of the cross-commodity conditions but not for either of the same-commodity delay discounting tasks. The cross-commodity discounting conditions were related to severity of use wherein heavy users discounted future alcohol less and future money more. The change in direction of the discounting effect was dependent on the commodity that was distally available suggesting a distinctive pattern of discounting across commodities when comparing light and heavy alcohol users. PMID:29056767

Cross-commodity delay discounting of alcohol and money in alcohol users.

PubMed

Moody, Lara N; Tegge, Allison N; Bickel, Warren K

2017-06-01

Despite real-world implications, the pattern of delay discounting in alcohol users when the commodities now and later differ has not been well characterized. In this study, 60 participants on Amazon's Mechanical Turk completed the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) to assess severity of use and completed four delay discounting tasks between hypothetical, equivalent amounts of alcohol and money available at five delays. The tasks included two cross-commodity (alcohol now-money later and money now-alcohol later) and two same-commodity (money now-money later and alcohol now-alcohol later) conditions. Delay discounting was significantly associated with clinical cutoffs of the AUDIT for both of the cross-commodity conditions but not for either of the same-commodity delay discounting tasks. The cross-commodity discounting conditions were related to severity of use wherein heavy users discounted future alcohol less and future money more. The change in direction of the discounting effect was dependent on the commodity that was distally available suggesting a distinctive pattern of discounting across commodities when comparing light and heavy alcohol users.

Brain Structure Linking Delay Discounting and Academic Performance.

PubMed

Wang, Song; Kong, Feng; Zhou, Ming; Chen, Taolin; Yang, Xun; Chen, Guangxiang; Gong, Qiyong

2017-08-01

As a component of self-discipline, delay discounting refers to the ability to wait longer for preferred rewards and plays a pivotal role in shaping students' academic performance. However, the neural basis of the association between delay discounting and academic performance remains largely unknown. Here, we examined the neuroanatomical substrates underlying delay discounting and academic performance in 214 adolescents via voxel-based morphometry (VBM) by performing structural magnetic resonance imaging (S-MRI). Behaviorally, we confirmed the significant correlation between delay discounting and academic performance. Neurally, whole-brain regression analyses indicated that regional gray matter volume (rGMV) of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) was associated with both delay discounting and academic performance. Furthermore, delay discounting partly accounted for the association between academic performance and brain structure. Differences in the rGMV of the left DLPFC related to academic performance explained over one-third of the impact of delay discounting on academic performance. Overall, these results provide the first evidence for the common neural basis linking delay discounting and academic performance. Hum Brain Mapp 38:3917-3926, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The effects of the framing of time on delay discounting.

PubMed

DeHart, William Brady; Odum, Amy L

2015-01-01

We examined the effects of the framing of time on delay discounting. Delay discounting is the process by which delayed outcomes are devalued as a function of time. Time in a titrating delay discounting task is often framed in calendar units (e.g., as 1 week, 1 month, etc.). When time is framed as a specific date, delayed outcomes are discounted less compared to the calendar format. Other forms of framing time; however, have not been explored. All participants completed a titrating calendar unit delay-discounting task for money. Participants were also assigned to one of two delay discounting tasks: time as dates (e.g., June 1st, 2015) or time in units of days (e.g., 5000 days), using the same delay distribution as the calendar delay-discounting task. Time framed as dates resulted in less discounting compared to the calendar method, whereas time framed as days resulted in greater discounting compared to the calendar method. The hyperboloid model fit best compared to the hyperbola and exponential models. How time is framed may alter how participants attend to the delays as well as how the delayed outcome is valued. Altering how time is framed may serve to improve adherence to goals with delayed outcomes. © Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

Domain independence and stability in young and older adults' discounting of delayed rewards.

PubMed

Jimura, Koji; Myerson, Joel; Hilgard, Joseph; Keighley, Julia; Braver, Todd S; Green, Leonard

2011-07-01

Individual discounting rates for different types of delayed reward are typically assumed to reflect a single, underlying trait of impulsivity. Recently, we showed that discounting rates are orders of magnitude steeper for directly consumable liquid rewards than for monetary rewards (Jimura et al., 2009), raising the question of whether discounting rates for different types of reward covary at the individual level. Accordingly, the present study examined the relation between discounting of hypothetical money and real liquid rewards in young adults (Experiment 1) and older adults (Experiment 2). At the group level, young adults discounted monetary rewards more steeply than the older adults, but there was no significant age difference with respect to liquid rewards. At the individual level, the rates at which young and older participants discounted each reward type were stable over a two- to fifteen-week interval (rs>70), but there was no significant correlation between the rates at which they discounted the two reward types. These results suggest that although similar decision-making processes may underlie the discounting of different types of rewards, the rates at which individuals discount money and directly consumable rewards may reflect separate, stable traits, rather than a single trait of impulsivity. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

OPPORTUNITY COSTS OF REWARD DELAYS AND THE DISCOUNTING OF HYPOTHETICAL MONEY AND CIGARETTES

PubMed Central

Johnson, Patrick S.; Herrmann, Evan S.; Johnson, Matthew W.

2015-01-01

Humans are reported to discount delayed rewards at lower rates than nonhumans. However, nonhumans are studied in tasks that restrict reinforcement during delays, whereas humans are typically studied in tasks that do not restrict reinforcement during delays. In nonhuman tasks, the opportunity cost of restricted reinforcement during delays may increase delay discounting rates. The present within-subjects study used online crowdsourcing (Amazon Mechanical Turk, or MTurk) to assess the discounting of hypothetical delayed money (and cigarettes in smokers) under four hypothetical framing conditions differing in the availability of reinforcement during delays. At one extreme, participants were free to leave their computer without returning, and engage in any behavior during reward delays (modeling typical human tasks). At the opposite extreme, participants were required to stay at their computer and engage in little other behavior during reward delays (modeling typical nonhuman tasks). Discounting rates increased as an orderly function of opportunity cost. Results also indicated predominantly hyperbolic discounting, the “magnitude effect,” steeper discounting of cigarettes than money, and positive correlations between discounting rates of these commodities. This is the first study to test the effects of opportunity costs on discounting, and suggests that procedural differences may partially account for observed species differences in discounting. PMID:25388973

Opportunity costs of reward delays and the discounting of hypothetical money and cigarettes.

PubMed

Johnson, Patrick S; Herrmann, Evan S; Johnson, Matthew W

2015-01-01

Humans are reported to discount delayed rewards at lower rates than nonhumans. However, nonhumans are studied in tasks that restrict reinforcement during delays, whereas humans are typically studied in tasks that do not restrict reinforcement during delays. In nonhuman tasks, the opportunity cost of restricted reinforcement during delays may increase delay discounting rates. The present within-subjects study used online crowdsourcing (Amazon Mechanical Turk, or MTurk) to assess the discounting of hypothetical delayed money (and cigarettes in smokers) under four hypothetical framing conditions differing in the availability of reinforcement during delays. At one extreme, participants were free to leave their computer without returning, and engage in any behavior during reward delays (modeling typical human tasks). At the opposite extreme, participants were required to stay at their computer and engage in little other behavior during reward delays (modeling typical nonhuman tasks). Discounting rates increased as an orderly function of opportunity cost. Results also indicated predominantly hyperbolic discounting, the "magnitude effect," steeper discounting of cigarettes than money, and positive correlations between discounting rates of these commodities. This is the first study to test the effects of opportunity costs on discounting, and suggests that procedural differences may partially account for observed species differences in discounting. © Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

A money management-based substance use treatment increases valuation of future rewards.

PubMed

Black, Anne C; Rosen, Marc I

2011-01-01

A positive association between delay discounting and substance use has been documented; substance users tend to discount future rewards more than non-users. However, studies detailing the responsiveness of delay discounting to interventions are lacking, and few have examined how any behavioral intervention affects delay discounting and whether these effects moderate changes in substance abuse. This study assesses the effectiveness of a money management intervention, Advisor-Teller Money Manager (ATM), in reducing delay discounting over time and the relationship of these effects to changes in cocaine use. Ninety psychiatric patients with histories of cocaine and/or alcohol use were randomly assigned to 36-weeks of ATM treatment or to a minimal-attention control condition. Delay discounting and cocaine use were measured throughout the intervention with a 52-week follow up measure of cocaine use. Analyses were conducted of (a) the effect of ATM on slopes of delay discounting and cocaine abstinence and (b) the relationship between change in delay discounting and change in cocaine abstinence. The ATM intervention was associated with significantly less delay discounting and less cocaine use over time relative to controls. Increases in delay discounting were associated with decreased abstinence from cocaine. ATM treatment decreased delay discounting rates and these effects extended to cocaine use. Concrete conceptualizations of future events, as occur in financial planning, with higher perceived probability may account for higher valuation of future rewards in counseled patients. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Taxonomy of Tuition Discounting.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allan, Ronald Gage

1999-01-01

Reviews issues surrounding college tuition discounting, and outlines sources of confusion, defines various discount types, provides historical background prior to recent changes in fund accounting rules, describes the new rules' impact, outlines different uses of tuition discounting by three groups, and applies the accumulated definitions to an…

Decision processes in choice overload: a product of delay and probability discounting?

PubMed

Kaplan, Brent A; Reed, Derek D

2013-07-01

Recent research in the behavioral decision making literature has demonstrated that humans hyperbolically discount the subjective value of options as the number of options increases (Reed et al., 2012). These findings provide a cognitive-behavioral synthesis of the "choice overload" phenomenon, also known as the "paradox of choice." Specifically, these findings suggest that temporal discounting may serve as the underlying process contributing to this effect. As an extension, this study examined the effects of reward magnitude sizes had on rates temporal and options discounting. This manipulation was conducted to determine what role temporal discounting plays in discounting of options. The present results suggest that temporal discounting may not be the only process contributing to the choice overload effect. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Tuition Discounting without Tears

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Robert E.

2004-01-01

This paper contains a policy model for tuition discounting that avoids the major financial pitfalls encountered in the administration of institutional scholarships. The dual objective of maximizing the funded scholarship discount rate and minimizing the unfunded discount rate is explained. Marginal cost pricing is the accepted criterion for…

5 CFR 1315.7 - Discounts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discounts. 1315.7 Section 1315.7 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET OMB DIRECTIVES PROMPT PAYMENT § 1315.7 Discounts. Agencies shall follow these procedures in taking discounts and determining the payment due dates when...

Exchanging the liquidity hypothesis: Delay discounting of money and self-relevant non-money rewards.

PubMed

Stuppy-Sullivan, Allison M; Tormohlen, Kayla N; Yi, Richard

2016-01-01

Evidence that primary rewards (e.g., food and drugs of abuse) are discounted more than money is frequently attributed to money's high degree of liquidity, or exchangeability for many commodities. The present study provides some evidence against this liquidity hypothesis by contrasting delay discounting of monetary rewards (liquid) and non-monetary commodities (non-liquid) that are self-relevant and utility-matched. Ninety-seven (97) undergraduate students initially completed a conventional binary-choice delay discounting of money task. Participants returned one week later and completed a self-relevant commodity delay discounting task. Both conventional hypothesis testing and more-conservative tests of statistical equivalence revealed correspondence in rate of delay discounting of money and self-relevant commodities, and in one magnitude condition, less discounting for the latter. The present results indicate that liquidity of money cannot fully account for the lower rate of delay discounting compared to non-money rewards. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

High temporal discounters overvalue immediate rewards rather than undervalue future rewards: an event-related brain potential study.

PubMed

Cherniawsky, Avital S; Holroyd, Clay B

2013-03-01

Impulsivity is characterized in part by heightened sensitivity to immediate relative to future rewards. Although previous research has suggested that "high discounters" in intertemporal choice tasks tend to prefer immediate over future rewards because they devalue the latter, it remains possible that they instead overvalue immediate rewards. To investigate this question, we recorded the reward positivity, a component of the event-related brain potential (ERP) associated with reward processing, with participants engaged in a task in which they received both immediate and future rewards and nonrewards. The participants also completed a temporal discounting task without ERP recording. We found that immediate but not future rewards elicited the reward positivity. High discounters also produced larger reward positivities to immediate rewards than did low discounters, indicating that high discounters relatively overvalued immediate rewards. These findings suggest that high discounters may be more motivated than low discounters to work for monetary rewards, irrespective of the time of arrival of the incentives.

Humans Can Adopt Optimal Discounting Strategy under Real-Time Constraints

PubMed Central

Schweighofer, N; Shishida, K; Han, C. E; Okamoto, Y; Tanaka, S. C; Yamawaki, S; Doya, K

2006-01-01

Critical to our many daily choices between larger delayed rewards, and smaller more immediate rewards, are the shape and the steepness of the function that discounts rewards with time. Although research in artificial intelligence favors exponential discounting in uncertain environments, studies with humans and animals have consistently shown hyperbolic discounting. We investigated how humans perform in a reward decision task with temporal constraints, in which each choice affects the time remaining for later trials, and in which the delays vary at each trial. We demonstrated that most of our subjects adopted exponential discounting in this experiment. Further, we confirmed analytically that exponential discounting, with a decay rate comparable to that used by our subjects, maximized the total reward gain in our task. Our results suggest that the particular shape and steepness of temporal discounting is determined by the task that the subject is facing, and question the notion of hyperbolic reward discounting as a universal principle. PMID:17096592

48 CFR 952.251-70 - Contractor employee travel discounts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Contractor employee travel... Contractor employee travel discounts. As prescribed in 951.7002, insert the following clause: Contractor Employee Travel Discounts (AUG 2009) (a) The Contractor shall take advantage of travel discounts offered to...

Delay discounting of oral morphine and sweetened juice rewards in dependent and non-dependent rats.

PubMed

Harvey-Lewis, Colin; Perdrizet, Johnna; Franklin, Keith B J

2014-07-01

Opioid-dependent humans are reported to show accelerated delay discounting of opioid rewards when compared to monetary rewards. It has been suggested that this may reflect a difference in discounting of consumable and non-consumable goods not specific to dependent individuals. Here, we evaluate the discounting of similar morphine and non-morphine oral rewards in dependent and non-dependent rats We first tested the analgesic and rewarding effects of our morphine solution. In a second experiment, we assigned rats randomly to either dependent or non-dependent groups that, 30 min after daily testing, received 30 mg/kg subcutaneous dose of morphine, or saline, respectively. Delay discounting of drug-free reward was examined prior to initiation of the dosing regimen. We tested discounting of the morphine reward in half the rats and retested the discounting of the drug-free reward in the other half. All tests were run 22.5 h after the daily maintenance dose. Rats preferred the morphine cocktail to the drug-free solution and consumed enough to induce significant analgesia. The control quinine solution did not produce these effects. Dependent rats discounted morphine rewards more rapidly than before dependence and when compared to discounting drug-free rewards. In non-dependent rats both reward types were discounted similarly. These results show that morphine dependence increases impulsiveness specifically towards a drug reward while morphine experience without dependence does not.

The Effects of Condom Availability on College Women's Sexual Discounting.

PubMed

Lemley, Shea M; Jarmolowicz, David P; Parkhurst, Daniel; Celio, Mark A

2018-04-01

College students commonly engage in risky sexual behaviors, such as casual sexual encounters and inconsistent condom use. Discounting paradigms that examine how individuals devalue rewards due to their delay or uncertainty have been used to improve our understanding of behavioral problems, including sexual risk. The current study assessed relations between college women's sexual partners discounting and risky sexual behavior. In this study, college women (N = 42) completed two sexual partners delay discounting tasks that assessed how choices among hypothetical sexual partners changed across a parametric range of delays in two conditions: condom availability and condom unavailability. Participants also completed two sexual partners probability discounting tasks that assessed partner choices across a parametric range of probabilities in condom availability and unavailability conditions. Additionally, participants reported risky sexual behavior on the Sexual Risk Survey (SRS). Participants discounted delayed partners more steeply in the condom availability condition, but those differences were significant only for those women with three or fewer lifetime sexual partners. There were no consistent differences in discounting rate across condom availability conditions for probability discounting. Sexual partners discounting measures correlated with risky sexual behaviors as measured by the SRS, but a greater number of significant relations were observed with the condoms-unavailable delay discounting task. These findings suggest the importance of examining the interaction of inconsistent condom use and multiple partners in examinations of sexual decision-making.

Payers' experiences with confidential pharmaceutical price discounts: A survey of public and statutory health systems in North America, Europe, and Australasia.

PubMed

Morgan, Steven G; Vogler, Sabine; Wagner, Anita K

2017-04-01

Institutional payers for pharmaceuticals worldwide appear to be increasingly negotiating confidential discounts off of the official list price of pharmaceuticals purchased in the community setting. We conducted an anonymous survey about experiences with and attitudes toward confidential discounts on patented pharmaceuticals in a sample of high-income countries. Confidential price discounts are now common among the ten health systems that participated in our study, though some had only recently begun to use these pricing arrangements on a routine basis. Several health systems had used a wide variety of discounting schemes in the past two years. The most frequent discount received by participating health systems was between 20% and 29% of official list prices; however, six participants reported their health system received one or more discount over the past two years that was valued at 60% or more of the list prices. On average, participants reported that confidential discounts were more common, complex, and significant for specialty pharmaceuticals than for primary care pharmaceuticals. Participants had a more favorable view of the impact of confidential discount schemes on their health systems than on the global marketplace. Overall, the frequency, complexity, and scale of confidential discounts being routinely negotiated suggest that the list prices for medicines bear limited resemblance to what many institutional payers actually pay. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Heroin addicts have higher discount rates for delayed rewards than non-drug-using controls.

PubMed

Kirby, K N; Petry, N M; Bickel, W K

1999-03-01

Fifty-six heroin addicts and 60 age-matched controls were offered choices between monetary rewards ($11-$80) available immediately and larger rewards ($25-$85) available after delays ranging from 1 week to 6 months. Participants had a 1-in-6 chance of winning a reward that they chose on one randomly selected trial. Delay-discounting rates were estimated from the pattern of participants' choices. The discounting model of impulsiveness (Ainslie, 1975) implies that delay-discounting rates are positively correlated with impulsiveness. On average, heroin addicts' discount rates were twice those of controls (p = .004), and discount rates were positively correlated with impulsivity as measured by self-report questionnaires (p < .05). The results lend external validity to the delay-discounting rate as a measure of impulsiveness, a characteristic associated with substance abuse.

Normative arguments from experts and peers reduce delay discounting.

PubMed

Senecal, Nicole; Wang, Teresa; Thompson, Elizabeth; Kable, Joseph W

2012-09-01

When making decisions that involve tradeoffs between the quality and timing of desirable outcomes, people consistently discount the value of future outcomes. A puzzling finding regarding such decisions is the extremely high rate at which people discount future monetary outcomes. Most economists would argue that decision-makers should only turn down rates of return that are lower than those available to them elsewhere. Yet the vast majority of studies find discount rates that are significantly higher than market interest rates (Frederick et al., 2002). Here we ask whether a lack of knowledge about the normative strategy can explain high discount rates. In an initial experiment, we find that nearly half of subjects do not spontaneously cite elements of the normative strategy when asked how people should make intertemporal monetary decisions. In two follow-up experiments, we find that after subjects read a "financial guide" detailing the normative strategy, discount rates declined by up to 85%, but were still higher than market interest rates. This decline persisted, though attenuated, for at least one month. In a final experiment, we find that peer-generated advice influences discount rates in a similar manner to "expert" advice, and that arguments focusing on normative considerations are at least as effective as others. These studies show that part of the explanation for high discount rates is a lack of knowledge regarding the normative strategy, and quantify how much discount rates are reduced in response to normative arguments. Given the high level of discounting that remains, however, there are other contributing factors to high discount rates that remain to be quantified.

Normative arguments from experts and peers reduce delay discounting

PubMed Central

Senecal, Nicole; Wang, Teresa; Thompson, Elizabeth; Kable, Joseph W

2013-01-01

When making decisions that involve tradeoffs between the quality and timing of desirable outcomes, people consistently discount the value of future outcomes. A puzzling finding regarding such decisions is the extremely high rate at which people discount future monetary outcomes. Most economists would argue that decision-makers should only turn down rates of return that are lower than those available to them elsewhere. Yet the vast majority of studies find discount rates that are significantly higher than market interest rates (Frederick et al., 2002). Here we ask whether a lack of knowledge about the normative strategy can explain high discount rates. In an initial experiment, we find that nearly half of subjects do not spontaneously cite elements of the normative strategy when asked how people should make intertemporal monetary decisions. In two follow-up experiments, we find that after subjects read a “financial guide” detailing the normative strategy, discount rates declined by up to 85%, but were still higher than market interest rates. This decline persisted, though attenuated, for at least one month. In a final experiment, we find that peer-generated advice influences discount rates in a similar manner to “expert” advice, and that arguments focusing on normative considerations are at least as effective as others. These studies show that part of the explanation for high discount rates is a lack of knowledge regarding the normative strategy, and quantify how much discount rates are reduced in response to normative arguments. Given the high level of discounting that remains, however, there are other contributing factors to high discount rates that remain to be quantified. PMID:23596504

Temporal discounting rates and their relation to exercise behavior in older adults.

PubMed

Tate, Linda M; Tsai, Pao-Feng; Landes, Reid D; Rettiganti, Mallikarjuna; Lefler, Leanne L

2015-12-01

As our nation's population ages, the rates of chronic illness and disability are expected to increase significantly. Despite the knowledge that exercise may prevent chronic disease and promote health among older adults, many still are inactive. Factors related to exercise behaviors have been explored in recent years. However, temporal discounting is a motivational concept that has not been explored in regard to exercise in older adults. Temporal discounting is a decision making process by which an individual chooses a smaller more immediate reward over a larger delayed reward. The aim of this study was to determine if temporal discounting rates vary between exercising and non-exercising older adults. This study used cross-sectional survey of 137 older adults living in the community. Older adults were recruited from 11 rural Arkansas churches. The Kirby delay-discounting Monetary Choice Questionnaire was used to collect discounting rates and then bivariate analysis was performed to compare temporal discounting rate between the exercisers and non-exercisers. Finally, multivariate analysis was used to compare discounting rate controlling for other covariates. The results indicated that exercising older adults display lower temporal discounting rates than non-exercising older adults. After controlling for education, exercisers still have lower temporal discounting rates than non-exercisers (p<0.001). These findings are important as several chronic health conditions relate to lack of exercise especially in older adults. This research suggests that if we can find appropriate incentives for discounting individuals, some type of immediate reward, then potentially we can design programs to engage and retain older adults in exercise. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Delay Discounting and Social Policy Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weatherly, Jeffrey N.; Plumm, Karyn M.; Derenne, Adam

2011-01-01

The present study used a delay discounting framework to study decisions about six social policy issues and one monetary outcome. For outcomes that nearly all participants discounted, social policies were discounted significantly more than money. A similar result was observed when analyzing all outcomes using data only from participants who…

Modeling the Effect of Reward Amount on Probability Discounting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Myerson, Joel; Green, Leonard; Morris, Joshua

2011-01-01

The present study with college students examined the effect of amount on the discounting of probabilistic monetary rewards. A hyperboloid function accurately described the discounting of hypothetical rewards ranging in amount from $20 to $10,000,000. The degree of discounting increased continuously with amount of probabilistic reward. This effect…

78 FR 67393 - Change in Discount Rate for Water Resources Planning

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-11-12

... Discount Rate for Water Resources Planning AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior. ACTION: Notice of change. SUMMARY: The Water Resources Planning Act of 1965 and the Water Resources Development Act of 1974 require an annual determination of a discount rate for Federal water resources planning. The discount rate...

7 CFR 1786.98 - Discounted present value.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 12 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discounted present value. 1786.98 Section 1786.98... Discounted present value. (a) The Discounted Present Value shall be calculated by RUS before prepayment is made by summing the present values of all remaining payments on all outstanding notes according to the...

Tuition Discounting through Unfunded Institutional Aid at Private Baccalaureate Colleges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Jeremy Paul

2012-01-01

Colleges and universities discount tuition by providing institutional aid to reduce the actual amount paid by a student. Discount rates are substantial and continue to increase, particularly at private institutions. Funded institutional discounts are linked to gifts or endowment income restricted to financial aid. Unfunded institutional discounts…

Maintained Physical Activity Induced Changes in Delay Discounting.

PubMed

Sofis, Michael J; Carrillo, Ale; Jarmolowicz, David P

2017-07-01

Those who discount the subjective value of delayed rewards less steeply are more likely to engage in physical activity. There is limited research, however, showing whether physical activity can change rates of delay discounting. In a two-experiment series, treatment and maintenance effects of a novel, effort-paced physical activity intervention on delay discounting were evaluated with multiple baseline designs. Using a lap-based method, participants were instructed to exercise at individualized high and low effort levels and to track their own perceived effort. The results suggest that treatment-induced changes in discounting were maintained at follow-up for 13 of 16 participants. In Experiment 2, there were statistically significant group-level improvements in physical activity and delay discounting when comparing baseline with both treatment and maintenance phases. Percentage change in delay discounting was significantly correlated with session attendance and relative pace (min/mile) improvement over the course of the 7-week treatment. Implications for future research are discussed.

Life cycle costing with a discount rate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Posner, E. C.

1978-01-01

This article studies life cycle costing for a capability needed for the indefinite future, and specifically investigates the dependence of optimal policies on the discount rate chosen. The two costs considered are reprocurement cost and maintenance and operations (M and O) cost. The procurement price is assumed known, and the M and O costs are assumed to be a known function, in fact, a non-decreasing function, of the time since last reprocurement. The problem is to choose the optimum reprocurement time so as to minimize the quotient of the total cost over a reprocurement period divided by the period. Or one could assume a discount rate and try to minimize the total discounted costs into the indefinite future. It is shown that the optimum policy in the presence of a small discount rate hardly depends on the discount rate at all, and leads to essentially the same policy as in the case in which discounting is not considered.

A Mechanism for Reducing Delay Discounting by Altering Temporal Attention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Radu, Peter T.; Yi, Richard; Bickel, Warren K.; Gross, James J.; McClure, Samuel M.

2011-01-01

Rewards that are not immediately available are discounted compared to rewards that are immediately available. The more a person discounts a delayed reward, the more likely that person is to have a range of behavioral problems, including clinical disorders. This latter observation has motivated the search for ions that reduce discounting. One…

Contexts and Individual Differences as Influences on Consumers' Delay Discounting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Foxall, Gordon R.; Doyle, John R.; Yani-de-Soriano, Mirella; Wells, Victoria K.

2011-01-01

Delay discounting is often considered a universal feature of human choice behavior, but there is controversy over whether it is an individual difference that reflects an underlying psychological trait or a domain-specific behavior. Trait influence on discounting would manifest in (a) highly correlated discount rates for all decisions, regardless…

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, delay discounting, and risky financial behaviors: A preliminary analysis of self-report data.

PubMed

Beauchaine, Theodore P; Ben-David, Itzhak; Sela, Aner

2017-01-01

Delay discounting-often referred to as hyperbolic discounting in the financial literature-is defined by a consistent preference for smaller, immediate rewards over larger, delayed rewards, and by failure of future consequences to curtail current consummatory behaviors. Previous research demonstrates (1) excessive delay discounting among individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), (2) common neural substrates of delay discounting and hyperactive-impulsive symptoms of ADHD, and (3) associations between delay discounting and both debt burden and high interest rate borrowing. This study extends prior research by examining associations between ADHD symptoms, delay discounting, and an array of previously unevaluated financial outcomes among 544 individuals (mean age 35 years). Controlling for age, income, sex, education, and substance use, ADHD symptoms were associated with delay discounting, late credit card payments, credit card balances, use of pawn services, personal debt, and employment histories (less time spent at more jobs). Consistent with neural models of reward processing and associative learning, more of these relations were attributable to hyperactive-impulsive symptoms than inattentive symptoms. Implications for financial decision-making and directions for future research are discussed.

Using Crowdsourcing to Examine Relations Between Delay and Probability Discounting

PubMed Central

Jarmolowicz, David P.; Bickel, Warren K.; Carter, Anne E.; Franck, Christopher T.; Mueller, E. Terry

2016-01-01

Although the extensive lines of research on delay and/or probability discounting have greatly expanded our understanding of human decision-making processes, the relation between these two phenomena remains unclear. For example, some studies have reported robust associations between delay and probability discounting, whereas others have failed to demonstrate a consistent relation between the two. The current study sought to clarify this relation by examining the relation between delay and probability discounting in a large sample of internet users (n= 904) using the Amazon Mechanical Turk (AMT) crowdsourcing service. Because AMT is a novel data collection platform, the findings were validated through the replication of a number of previously established relations (e.g., relations between delay discounting and cigarette smoking status). A small but highly significant positive correlation between delay and probability discounting rates was obtained, and principal component analysis suggested that two (rather than one) components were preferable to account for the variance in both delay and probability discounting. Taken together, these findings suggest that delay and probability discounting may be related, but are not manifestations of a single component (e.g., impulsivity). PMID:22982370

Alternative to the traditional discount method of wholesaler purchasing.

PubMed

Lee, G F; Bair, J N; Piz, J W

1982-07-01

A program of purchasing drugs from wholesalers at the wholesaler's exact invoice cost plus a percentage is described and compared with the traditional method of average wholesale price (AWP) less a discount. The comparison was conducted by the pharmacy department of a 310-bed, teaching hospital that awarded a one-year contract to a wholesaler offering its items at the exact cost plus a pre-established percentage. Data collected from monthly wholesaler computer printouts gave the following information on each product: (1) list price per item, (2) actual cost to pharmacy per item, (3) percentage discount from AWP, and (4) quantity ordered. The net percentage discount from AWP for 12 months was calculated and compared to the former (traditional) discount rate. The net discount from AWP was 15.6% for purchases made by the hospital during the first 12 months of the program. When compared with the smaller discount the hospital traditionally received, the new program saved the hospital $5758 on annual purchases of $136,419. The actual dollar savings to an institution that changes from a traditional discount program to a cost-plus-percentage program depends on: (1) the negotiated percentage added to wholesaler cost, (2) the discount from AWP that the institution was previously receiving, and (3) the volume of wholesale purchases.

Retailer Stackelberg game in a supply chain with pricing and service decisions and simple price discount contract.

PubMed

Sadjadi, Seyed Jafar; Asadi, Hashem; Sadeghian, Ramin; Sahebi, Hadi

2018-01-01

This paper studies the Retailer Stackelberg game in a supply chain consisting of two manufacturers and one retailer where they compete simultaneously under three factors including price, service and simple price discount contract. It is assumed that the second manufacturer provides service directly to his customers, and the retailer provides service for the first product's customers, while the retailer buys the first product under price discount from the first manufacturer. The analysis of the optimal equilibrium solutions and the results of the numerical examples show that if a manufacturer chooses the appropriate range of discount rate, he will gain more profit than when there is no discount given to the retailer. This situation can be considered as an effective tool for the coordination of the first manufacturer and the retailer to offer discount by manufacturer and to provide the service by the retailer. We obtain equilibrium solution of Retailer Stackelberg game and analyze the numerical examples under two cases: a) the manufacturers sell their products to the retailer without price discount contract. b) The first manufacturer sells his products to the retailer with the simple price discount contract. The preliminary results show that the service and the price discount contract can improve the performance of supply chain.

Mild opioid deprivation increases the degree that opioid-dependent outpatients discount delayed heroin and money.

PubMed

Giordano, Louis A; Bickel, Warren K; Loewenstein, George; Jacobs, Eric A; Marsch, Lisa; Badger, Gary J

2002-09-01

A growing literature suggests that excessive temporal discounting of delayed rewards may be a contributing factor in the etiology of substance abuse problems. Little is known, however, about how drug deprivation may affect temporal discounting of delayed rewards by drug-dependent individuals. To examine the extent to which opioid deprivation affects how opioid-dependent individuals discount small, medium and large quantities of delayed heroin and money. Thirteen opioid-dependent individuals maintained on buprenorphine completed a hypothetical choice task in which they choose between a constant delayed reward amount and an immediate reward amount that was adjusted until they expressed indifference between both outcomes. The task was completed for three values of heroin and money rewards during eight sessions under conditions of opioid deprivation (four sessions) and satiation (four sessions). Across conditions, hyperbolic functions provided a good fit for the discounting data. Degree of discounting was significantly higher when subjects were opioid deprived. Consistent with previous findings, degree of discounting was higher for heroin than money and inversely related to the magnitude of the reward. Opioid deprivation increased the degree to which dependent individuals discounted delayed heroin and money. Understanding the conditions that affect how drug-dependent individuals discount delayed rewards might help us understand the myopic choices made by such individuals and help improve treatment outcomes.

Discounting of money and sex: effects of commodity and temporal position in stimulant-dependent men and women.

PubMed

Jarmolowicz, David P; Landes, Reid D; Christensen, Darren R; Jones, Bryan A; Jackson, Lisa; Yi, Richard; Bickel, Warren K

2014-11-01

Research on delay discounting has contributed to the understanding of numerous addiction-related phenomena. For example, studies have shown that substance dependent individuals discount their addictive substances (e.g., cocaine) more rapidly than they do other commodities (e.g., money). Recent research has shown that substance dependent individuals discount delayed sex more rapidly than delayed money, and their discounting rates for delayed sex were higher than those of non-addicted individuals. The particular reason that delay discounting rates for sex are higher than those for money, however, are unclear. Do individuals discount delayed sex rapidly because immediate sex is particularly appealing or because delayed sex does not retain its value? Moreover, do the same factors influence men and women's choices? The current study examined delay discounting in four conditions (money now versus money later; sex now versus sex later; money now, versus sex later; sex now versus money later) in cocaine dependent men and women. The procedures used isolated the role of the immediate versus delayed commodity. For men, the higher rates of delay discounting for sex were because delayed sex did not retain its value, whereas both the immediate and delayed commodity influenced the female participants' decisions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cross-promotional alcohol discounting in Australia's grocery sector: a barrier to initiatives to curb excessive alcohol consumption?

PubMed

Wardle, Jonathan L; Chang, Sungwon

2015-04-01

Excessive alcohol consumption is an increasing issue internationally. Pricing strategies, including discount restrictions, have been identified as one of the most effective policy means by which to reduce heavy alcohol consumption. In Australia, cross-promotional alcohol discounts are increasingly used by supermarket chains as a marketing tool. The purpose of the present study is to provide preliminary data on the nature and extent of cross-promotional alcohol discounting in the Australian grocery sector. A purposive sample of 34 supermarkets in Australia's three largest cities was selected and minor grocery purchases made to uncover the prevalence and level of cross-promotional alcohol discounting. Cross-promotional 'bundled' discounts were very common with 33 of the 34 supermarkets offering a 'two for one' discount on bottles of wine. Even with minor purchases (mean purchase $1.35), the mean value of discounts received was substantial ($16.23). These results appear to be consistent with claims that major supermarket chains are using alcohol discounts as loss leaders to entice new consumers. These strategies are antithetical to public health strategies aimed at reducing excessive alcohol consumption. Further examination of the impact of major retailers on public health initiatives is warranted, particularly in light of increasing retailer concentration. © 2014 Public Health Association of Australia.

Retailer Stackelberg game in a supply chain with pricing and service decisions and simple price discount contract

PubMed Central

Sadjadi, Seyed Jafar; Sadeghian, Ramin; Sahebi, Hadi

2018-01-01

This paper studies the Retailer Stackelberg game in a supply chain consisting of two manufacturers and one retailer where they compete simultaneously under three factors including price, service and simple price discount contract. It is assumed that the second manufacturer provides service directly to his customers, and the retailer provides service for the first product’s customers, while the retailer buys the first product under price discount from the first manufacturer. The analysis of the optimal equilibrium solutions and the results of the numerical examples show that if a manufacturer chooses the appropriate range of discount rate, he will gain more profit than when there is no discount given to the retailer. This situation can be considered as an effective tool for the coordination of the first manufacturer and the retailer to offer discount by manufacturer and to provide the service by the retailer. We obtain equilibrium solution of Retailer Stackelberg game and analyze the numerical examples under two cases: a) the manufacturers sell their products to the retailer without price discount contract. b) The first manufacturer sells his products to the retailer with the simple price discount contract. The preliminary results show that the service and the price discount contract can improve the performance of supply chain. PMID:29649315

Does temporal discounting explain unhealthy behavior? A systematic review and reinforcement learning perspective

PubMed Central

Story, Giles W.; Vlaev, Ivo; Seymour, Ben; Darzi, Ara; Dolan, Raymond J.

2014-01-01

The tendency to make unhealthy choices is hypothesized to be related to an individual's temporal discount rate, the theoretical rate at which they devalue delayed rewards. Furthermore, a particular form of temporal discounting, hyperbolic discounting, has been proposed to explain why unhealthy behavior can occur despite healthy intentions. We examine these two hypotheses in turn. We first systematically review studies which investigate whether discount rates can predict unhealthy behavior. These studies reveal that high discount rates for money (and in some instances food or drug rewards) are associated with several unhealthy behaviors and markers of health status, establishing discounting as a promising predictive measure. We secondly examine whether intention-incongruent unhealthy actions are consistent with hyperbolic discounting. We conclude that intention-incongruent actions are often triggered by environmental cues or changes in motivational state, whose effects are not parameterized by hyperbolic discounting. We propose a framework for understanding these state-based effects in terms of the interplay of two distinct reinforcement learning mechanisms: a “model-based” (or goal-directed) system and a “model-free” (or habitual) system. Under this framework, while discounting of delayed health may contribute to the initiation of unhealthy behavior, with repetition, many unhealthy behaviors become habitual; if health goals then change, habitual behavior can still arise in response to environmental cues. We propose that the burgeoning development of computational models of these processes will permit further identification of health decision-making phenotypes. PMID:24659960

Does temporal discounting explain unhealthy behavior? A systematic review and reinforcement learning perspective.

PubMed

Story, Giles W; Vlaev, Ivo; Seymour, Ben; Darzi, Ara; Dolan, Raymond J

2014-01-01

The tendency to make unhealthy choices is hypothesized to be related to an individual's temporal discount rate, the theoretical rate at which they devalue delayed rewards. Furthermore, a particular form of temporal discounting, hyperbolic discounting, has been proposed to explain why unhealthy behavior can occur despite healthy intentions. We examine these two hypotheses in turn. We first systematically review studies which investigate whether discount rates can predict unhealthy behavior. These studies reveal that high discount rates for money (and in some instances food or drug rewards) are associated with several unhealthy behaviors and markers of health status, establishing discounting as a promising predictive measure. We secondly examine whether intention-incongruent unhealthy actions are consistent with hyperbolic discounting. We conclude that intention-incongruent actions are often triggered by environmental cues or changes in motivational state, whose effects are not parameterized by hyperbolic discounting. We propose a framework for understanding these state-based effects in terms of the interplay of two distinct reinforcement learning mechanisms: a "model-based" (or goal-directed) system and a "model-free" (or habitual) system. Under this framework, while discounting of delayed health may contribute to the initiation of unhealthy behavior, with repetition, many unhealthy behaviors become habitual; if health goals then change, habitual behavior can still arise in response to environmental cues. We propose that the burgeoning development of computational models of these processes will permit further identification of health decision-making phenotypes.

Supermarket discounts of low-energy density foods: effects on purchasing, food intake, and body weight.

PubMed

Geliebter, Allan; Ang, Ian Yi Han; Bernales-Korins, Maria; Hernandez, Dominica; Ochner, Christopher N; Ungredda, Tatiana; Miller, Rachel; Kolbe, Laura

2013-12-01

To assess the effects of a 50% discount on low-energy density (ED) fruits and vegetables (F&V), bottled water, and diet sodas on shoppers' purchasing, food intake, and body weight. A randomized, controlled trial was conducted at two Manhattan supermarkets, in which a 4-week baseline period (no discounts) preceded an 8-week intervention period (50% discount), and a 4-week follow-up period (no discounts). Twenty-four hour dietary recall, as well as body weight and body composition measures were obtained every 4 weeks. Participants (n = 47, 33f; 14m) were overweight and obese (BMI ≥ 25) shoppers. Purchasing of F&V during intervention was greater in the discount group than in the control group (P < 0.0001). Purchasing of these items by the discount group relative to the control group during follow-up was reduced from intervention (P = 0.002), but still remained higher than during baseline (P = 0.01), indicating a partially sustained effect. Intake of F&V increased from baseline to intervention in the discount group relative to the control group (P = 0.037) and was sustained during follow-up. Body weight change did not differ significantly between groups, although post hoc analysis indicated a change within the discount group (-1.1 kg, P = 0.006) but not within the control group. Discounts of low-ED F&V led to increased purchasing and intake of those foods. Copyright © 2013 The Obesity Society.

Measurement and validation of measures for impulsive food choice across obese and healthy-weight individuals.

PubMed

Hendrickson, Kelsie L; Rasmussen, Erin B; Lawyer, Steven R

2015-07-01

The present study established a brief measure of delay discounting for food, the Food Choice Questionnaire (FCQ), and compared it to another more established measure of food discounting that uses the adjusting amount (AA) procedure. One hundred forty-four undergraduate participants completed either two measures of hypothetical food discounting (a computerized food AA procedure or the FCQ) or two measures of hypothetical money discounting [a computerized monetary AA procedure or the Monetary Choice questionnaire (MCQ)]. The money condition was used as a replication of previous work. Results indicated that the FCQ yielded consistent data that strongly correlated with the AA food discounting task. Moreover, a magnitude effect was found with the FCQ, such that smaller amounts of food were discounted more steeply than larger amounts. In addition, individuals with higher percent body fat (PBF) discounted food more steeply than individuals with lower PBF. The MCQ, which also produced a magnitude effect, and the monetary adjusting amount procedure yielded data that were orderly, consistent, and correlated strongly with one another, replicating previous literature. This study is the first to show that a novel measure of food discounting (the FCQ) yields consistent data strongly correlated with an established measure of food discounting and is sensitive to PBF. Moreover, the FCQ is easier and quicker to administer than the AA procedure, which may interest researchers who use discounting tasks in food-related research. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cocaine administration dose-dependently increases sexual desire and decreases condom use likelihood: The role of delay and probability discounting in connecting cocaine with HIV.

PubMed

Johnson, Matthew W; Herrmann, Evan S; Sweeney, Mary M; LeComte, Robert S; Johnson, Patrick S

2017-02-01

Although cocaine use has been linked to sexual HIV risk behavior for decades, the direct effects of cocaine on sexual desire and sexual decision-making are unexamined. Research suggests delay discounting (devaluation of future outcomes) and probability discounting (devaluation of uncertain outcomes) play roles in condom use decisions. This study examined the effect of cocaine administration on sexual desire, hypothetical condom use, and discounting tasks. This double-blind, within-subjects study compared the effects of 0, 125, and 250 mg/70 kg oral cocaine HCl in 12 cocaine users. Measures included sexual desire and other subjective ratings, the Sexual Delay Discounting Task, the Sexual Probability Discounting Task, and monetary delay and probability discounting tasks. Cocaine caused dose-related increases in sexual desire and prototypical stimulant abuse-liability ratings. Relative to placebo, cocaine did not significantly alter condom use likelihood when condoms were immediately available or when sex was associated with 100% certainty of sexually transmitted infection (STI). In contrast, cocaine dose-dependently strengthened the effect of delay (sexual delay discounting) and STI uncertainty (sexual probability discounting) in decreasing condom use likelihood. Cocaine caused no significant change in monetary delay and probability discounting. This is the first study showing that cocaine administration increases sexual desire. Detrimental effects of cocaine on sexual risk were only observed when safer sex required delay, or STI risk was uncertain (representative of many real-world scenarios), suggesting a critical role of discounting processes. Lack of monetary effects highlights the importance of studying clinically relevant outcomes when examining drug effects on behavioral processes.

Time discounting and the body mass index. Evidence from the Netherlands.

PubMed

Borghans, Lex; Golsteyn, Bart H H

2006-01-01

In many Western countries, the relative weight of people -- measured by the body mass index (BMI) -- has increased substantially in recent years, leading to an increasing incidence of overweight and related health problems. As with many forms of risky behavior, it is plausible that overweight is related to the individual discount rate. Increases in credit card debts, the rise in gambling and the development of a more hedonic life style, suggest that the average discount rate has increased over time. An increase in time discounting may be a contributing factor in the rise in BMI. Applying a large set of indicators for the individual discount rate from a Dutch survey, this paper analyzes whether changes in time discounting can account for differences in body mass between individuals at a given point in time and whether changes in the average individual discount rate can explain the remarkable increase in BMI experienced in recent years in the Netherlands. We find some evidence for a link between time discounting and differences in BMI between people, but this relationship depends strongly on the choice of the proxy for the discount rate. Giving our hypothesis the best chance, we analyze the development of the time discounting proxies that are most strongly related to BMI. We find no evidence for a change of these proxies over time. Our main conclusion therefore is that overweight might be related to the way people discount future health benefits, but the increase in BMI is more likely explained by shifts in other parameters that determine the intertemporal decisions regarding the trade-off of current and future health and satisfaction.

The choice of discount brand cigarettes: a comparative analysis of International Tobacco Control surveys in Canada and the USA (2002-2005).

PubMed

Nargis, Nigar; Fong, Geoffrey T; Chaloupka, Frank J; Li, Qiang

2014-03-01

Increasing tobacco taxes to increase price is a proven tobacco control measure. This article investigates how smokers respond to tax and price increases in their choice of discount brand cigarettes versus premium brands. To estimate how increase in the tax rate can affect smokers' choice of discount brands versus premium brands. Using data from International Tobacco Control surveys in Canada and the USA, a logit model was constructed to estimate the probability of choosing discount brand cigarettes in response to its price changes relative to premium brands, controlling for individual-specific demographic and socioeconomic characteristics and regional effects. The self-reported price of an individual smoker is used in a random-effects regression model to impute price and to construct the price ratio for discount and premium brands for each smoker, which is used in the logit model. An increase in the ratio of price of discount brand cigarettes to the price of premium brands by 0.1 is associated with a decrease in the probability of choosing discount brands by 0.08 in Canada. No significant effect is observed in case of the USA. The results of the model explain two phenomena: (1) the widened price differential between premium and discount brand cigarettes contributed to the increased share of discount brand cigarettes in Canada in contrast to a relatively steady share in the USA during 2002-2005 and (2) increasing the price ratio of discount brands to premium brands-which occurs with an increase in specific excise tax-may lead to upward shifting from discount to premium brands rather than to downward shifting. These results underscore the significance of studying the effectiveness of tax increases in reducing overall tobacco consumption, particularly for specific excise taxes.

Delay Discounting as an Index of Sustainable Behavior: Devaluation of Future Air Quality and Implications for Public Health.

PubMed

Berry, Meredith S; Nickerson, Norma P; Odum, Amy L

2017-09-01

Poor air quality and resulting annual deaths represent significant public health concerns. Recently, rapid delay discounting (the devaluation of future outcomes) of air quality has been considered a potential barrier for engaging in long term, sustainable behaviors that might help to reduce emissions (e.g., reducing private car use, societal support for clean air initiatives). Delay discounting has been shown to be predictive of real world behavior outside of laboratory settings, and therefore may offer an important framework beyond traditional variables thought to measure sustainable behavior such as importance of an environmental issue, or environmental attitudes/values, although more research is needed in this area. We examined relations between discounting of air quality, respiratory health, and monetary gains and losses. We also examined, relations between discounting and self-reported importance of air quality and respiratory health, and nature relatedness. Results showed rapid delay discounting of all outcomes across the time frames assessed, and significant positive correlations between delay discounting of air quality, respiratory health, and monetary outcomes. Steeper discounting of monetary outcomes relative to air quality and respiratory health outcomes was observed in the context of gains; however, no differences in discounting were observed across losses of monetary, air quality, and respiratory health. Replicating the sign effect, monetary outcomes were discounted more steeply than monetary losses. Importance of air quality, respiratory health and nature relatedness were significantly and positively correlated with one another, but not with degree of delay discounting of any outcome, demonstrating the need for more comprehensive measures that predict pro-environmental behaviors that might benefit individuals and public health over time. These results add to our understanding of decision-making, and demonstrate alarming rates of delay discounting of air quality and health. These results implicate a major public health concern and potential barriers to individual and societal behavior that reduce pollution and emissions for conservation of clean air.

Delay Discounting as an Index of Sustainable Behavior: Devaluation of Future Air Quality and Implications for Public Health

PubMed Central

Berry, Meredith S.; Nickerson, Norma P.; Odum, Amy L.

2017-01-01

Poor air quality and resulting annual deaths represent significant public health concerns. Recently, rapid delay discounting (the devaluation of future outcomes) of air quality has been considered a potential barrier for engaging in long term, sustainable behaviors that might help to reduce emissions (e.g., reducing private car use, societal support for clean air initiatives). Delay discounting has been shown to be predictive of real world behavior outside of laboratory settings, and therefore may offer an important framework beyond traditional variables thought to measure sustainable behavior such as importance of an environmental issue, or environmental attitudes/values, although more research is needed in this area. We examined relations between discounting of air quality, respiratory health, and monetary gains and losses. We also examined, relations between discounting and self-reported importance of air quality and respiratory health, and nature relatedness. Results showed rapid delay discounting of all outcomes across the time frames assessed, and significant positive correlations between delay discounting of air quality, respiratory health, and monetary outcomes. Steeper discounting of monetary outcomes relative to air quality and respiratory health outcomes was observed in the context of gains; however, no differences in discounting were observed across losses of monetary, air quality, and respiratory health. Replicating the sign effect, monetary outcomes were discounted more steeply than monetary losses. Importance of air quality, respiratory health and nature relatedness were significantly and positively correlated with one another, but not with degree of delay discounting of any outcome, demonstrating the need for more comprehensive measures that predict pro-environmental behaviors that might benefit individuals and public health over time. These results add to our understanding of decision-making, and demonstrate alarming rates of delay discounting of air quality and health. These results implicate a major public health concern and potential barriers to individual and societal behavior that reduce pollution and emissions for conservation of clean air. PMID:28862671

A Job with a Future? Delay Discounting, Magnitude Effects, and Domain Independence of Utility for Career Decisions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schoenfelder, Thomas E.; Hantula, Donald A.

2003-01-01

Seniors (n=20) assessed two job offers with differences in domain (salary/tasks), delay (career-long earnings), and magnitude (initial salary offer). Contrary to discounted utility theory, choices reflected nonconstant discount rates for future salary/tasks (delay effect), lower discount rates for salary/preferred tasks (magnitude effect), and a…

Delay Discounting of Different Outcomes in a Sample of American Indian and Non-Indian College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weatherly, Jeffrey N.; McDonald, J. Douglas

2011-01-01

Delay discounting occurs when an individual prefers a lesser amount of an outcome that is available immediately, rather than waiting for the full amount. The present study was a preliminary investigation into delay discounting in a yet unstudied population, American Indians (AIs). AI college students completed a delay-discounting task that…

Demand, Funding, and Prestige: Driving the Use of Undergraduate Tuition Discounting in Research 1 Institutions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gunderson, Greg R.

2009-01-01

The purpose of the study was to determine (a) if high school enrollment demand, governmental funding capacity, or institutional prestige were predictors of the use of tuition discounts, (b) if increases in tuition discounts stimulated institutional spending capacity, and (c) if tuition discounts trends were notably different if examined from a…

A Discounting Framework for Choice With Delayed and Probabilistic Rewards

PubMed Central

Green, Leonard; Myerson, Joel

2005-01-01

When choosing between delayed or uncertain outcomes, individuals discount the value of such outcomes on the basis of the expected time to or the likelihood of their occurrence. In an integrative review of the expanding experimental literature on discounting, the authors show that although the same form of hyperbola-like function describes discounting of both delayed and probabilistic outcomes, a variety of recent findings are inconsistent with a single-process account. The authors also review studies that compare discounting in different populations and discuss the theoretical and practical implications of the findings. The present effort illustrates the value of studying choice involving both delayed and probabilistic outcomes within a general discounting framework that uses similar experimental procedures and a common analytical approach. PMID:15367080

Integrating Behavioral Economics and Behavioral Genetics: Delayed Reward Discounting as an Endophenotype for Addictive Disorders

PubMed Central

MacKillop, James

2013-01-01

Delayed reward discounting is a behavioral economic index of impulsivity, referring to how much an individual devalues a reward based on its delay in time. As a behavioral process that varies considerably across individuals, delay discounting has been studied extensively as a model for self-control, both in the general population and in clinical samples. There is growing interest in genetic influences on discounting and, in particular, the prospect of discounting as an endophenotype for addictive disorders (i.e., a heritable mechanism partially responsible for conferring genetic risk). This review assembles and critiques the evidence supporting this hypothesis. Via numerous cross-sectional studies and a small number of longitudinal studies, there is considerable evidence that impulsive discounting is associated with addictive behavior and appears to play an etiological role. Moreover, there is increasing evidence from diverse methodologies that impulsive delay discounting is temporally stable, heritable, and that elevated levels are present in nonaffected family members. These findings suggest that impulsive discounting meets the criteria for being considered an endophenotype. In addition, recent findings suggest that genetic variation related to dopamine neurotransmission is significantly associated with variability in discounting preferences. A significant caveat, however, is that the literature is modest in some domains and, in others, not all the findings have been supportive or consistent. In addition, important methodological considerations are necessary in future studies. Taken together, although not definitive, there is accumulating support for the hypothesis of impulsive discounting as an endophenotype for addictive behavior and a need for further systematic investigation. PMID:23344986

Estimating Drug Costs: How do Manufacturer Net Prices Compare with Other Common US Price References?

PubMed

Mattingly, T Joseph; Levy, Joseph F; Slejko, Julia F; Onwudiwe, Nneka C; Perfetto, Eleanor M

2018-05-12

Drug costs are frequently estimated in economic analyses using wholesale acquisition cost (WAC), but what is the best approach to develop these estimates? Pharmaceutical manufacturers recently released transparency reports disclosing net price increases after accounting for rebates and other discounts. Our objective was to determine whether manufacturer net prices (MNPs) could approximate the discounted prices observed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). We compared the annual, average price discounts voluntarily reported by three pharmaceutical manufacturers with the VA price for specific products from each company. The top 10 drugs by total sales reported from company tax filings for 2016 were included. The discount observed by the VA was determined from each drug's list price, reported as WAC, in 2016. Descriptive statistics were calculated for the VA discount observed and a weighted price index was calculated using the lowest price to the VA (Weighted VA Index), which was compared with the manufacturer index. The discounted price as a percentage of the WAC ranged from 9 to 74%. All three indexes estimated by the average discount to the VA were at or below the manufacturer indexes (42 vs. 50% for Eli Lilly, 56 vs. 65% for Johnson & Johnson, and 59 vs. 59% for Merck). Manufacturer-reported average net prices may provide a close approximation of the average discounted price granted to the VA, suggesting they may be a useful proxy for the true pharmacy benefits manager (PBM) or payer cost. However, individual discounts for products have wide variation, making a standard discount adjustment across multiple products less acceptable.

Delay discounting of food by rhesus monkeys: Cocaine and food choice in isomorphic and allomorphic situations.

PubMed

Huskinson, Sally L; Woolverton, William L; Green, Leonard; Myerson, Joel; Freeman, Kevin B

2015-06-01

Research on delay discounting has focused largely on nondrug reinforcers in an isomorphic context in which choice is between alternatives that involve the same type of reinforcer. Less often, delay discounting has been studied with drug reinforcers in a more ecologically valid allomorphic context where choice is between alternatives involving different types of reinforcers. The present experiment is the first to examine discounting of drug and nondrug reinforcers in both isomorphic and allomorphic situations using a theoretical model (i.e., the hyperbolic discounting function) that allows for comparisons of discounting rates between reinforcer types and amounts. The goal of the current experiment was to examine discounting of a delayed, nondrug reinforcer (food) by male rhesus monkeys when the immediate alternative was either food (isomorphic situation) or cocaine (allomorphic situation). In addition, we sought to determine whether there was a magnitude effect with delayed food in the allomorphic situation. Choice of immediate food and immediate cocaine increased with amount and dose, respectively. Choice functions for immediate food and cocaine generally shifted leftward as delay increased. Compared to isomorphic situations in which food was the immediate alternative, delayed food was discounted more steeply in allomorphic situations where cocaine was the immediate alternative. Notably, discounting was not affected by the magnitude of the delayed reinforcer. These data indicate that how steeply a delayed nondrug reinforcer is discounted may depend more on the qualitative characteristics of the immediate reinforcer and less on the magnitude of the delayed one. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Altering impulsive decision making with an acceptance-based procedure.

PubMed

Morrison, Kate L; Madden, Gregory J; Odum, Amy L; Friedel, Jonathan E; Twohig, Michael P

2014-09-01

Delay discounting is one facet of impulsive decision making and involves subjectively devaluing a delayed outcome. Steeply discounting delayed rewards is correlated with substance abuse and other problematic behaviors. To the extent that steep delay discounting underlies these clinical disorders, it would be advantageous to find psychosocial avenues for reducing delay discounting. Acceptance-based interventions may prove useful as they may help to decrease the distress that arises while waiting for a delayed outcome. The current study was conducted to determine if a 60-90 minute acceptance-based training would change delay discounting rates among 30 undergraduate university students in comparison to a waitlist control. Measures given at pre- and posttraining included a hypothetical monetary delay discounting task, the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II), and the Distress Tolerance Scale. Those assigned to the treatment group decreased their discounting of delayed money, but not distress intolerance or psychological inflexibility when compared to the waitlist control group. After the waiting period, the control group received the intervention. Combining all participants' pre- to posttreatment data, the acceptance-based treatment significantly decreased discounting of monetary rewards and increased distress tolerance. The difference in AAQ-II approached significance. Acceptance-based treatments may be a worthwhile option for decreasing delay discounting rates and, consequently, affecting the choices that underlie addiction and other problematic behaviors. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Transactional problem content in cost discounting: parallel effects for probability and delay.

PubMed

Jones, Stephen; Oaksford, Mike

2011-05-01

Four experiments investigated the effects of transactional content on temporal and probabilistic discounting of costs. Kusev, van Schaik, Ayton, Dent, and Chater (2009) have shown that content other than gambles can alter decision-making behavior even when associated value and probabilities are held constant. Transactions were hypothesized to lead to similar effects because the cost to a purchaser always has a linked gain, the purchased commodity. Gain amount has opposite effects on delay and probabilistic discounting (e.g., Benzion, Rapoport, & Yagil, 1989; Green, Myerson, & Ostaszewski, 1999), a finding that is not consistent with descriptive decision theory (Kahneman & Tversky, 1979; Loewenstein & Prelec, 1992). However, little or no effect on discounting has been observed for losses or costs. Experiment 1, using transactions, showed parallel effects for temporal and probabilistic discounting: Smaller amounts were discounted more than large amounts. As the cost rises, people value the commodity more, and they consequently discount less. Experiment 2 ruled out a possible methodological cause for this effect. Experiment 3 replicated Experiment 1. Experiment 4, using gambles, showed no effect for temporal discounting, because of the absence of the linked gain, but the same effect for probabilistic discounting, because prospects implicitly introduce a linked gain (Green et al., 1999; Prelec & Loewenstein, 1991). As found by Kusev et al. (2009), these findings are not consistent with decision theory and suggest closer attention should be paid to the effects of content on decision making.

Discounting medical malpractice claim reserves for self-insured hospitals.

PubMed

Frese, Richard; Kitchen, Patrick

2011-01-01

The hospital CFO often works with the hospital's actuary and external auditor to calculate the reserves recorded in financial statements. Hospital management, usually the CFO, needs to decide the discount rate that is most appropriate. A formal policy addressing the rationale for discounting and the rationale for selecting the discount rate can be helpful to the CFO, actuary, and external auditor.

31 CFR 356.21 - How are awards at the high yield or discount rate calculated?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... discount rate calculated? 356.21 Section 356.21 Money and Finance: Treasury Regulations Relating to Money... high yield or discount rate calculated? (a) Awards to submitters. We generally prorate bids at the highest accepted yield or discount rate under § 356.20(a)(2) of this part. For example, if 80.15% is the...

26 CFR 1.1272-3 - Election by a holder to treat all interest on a debt instrument as OID.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

..., OID, de minimis OID, market discount, de minimis market discount, and unstated interest, as adjusted... the rules provided by this section. (ii) Debt instrument with market discount. (A) A holder may make the election under this section for a debt instrument with market discount only if the holder is...

26 CFR 1.1272-3 - Election by a holder to treat all interest on a debt instrument as OID.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

..., OID, de minimis OID, market discount, de minimis market discount, and unstated interest, as adjusted... the rules provided by this section. (ii) Debt instrument with market discount. (A) A holder may make the election under this section for a debt instrument with market discount only if the holder is...

26 CFR 1.1272-3 - Election by a holder to treat all interest on a debt instrument as OID.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., market discount, de minimis market discount, and unstated interest, as adjusted by any amortizable bond... provided by this section. (ii) Debt instrument with market discount. (A) A holder may make the election under this section for a debt instrument with market discount only if the holder is eligible to make an...

26 CFR 1.1272-3 - Election by a holder to treat all interest on a debt instrument as OID.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

..., OID, de minimis OID, market discount, de minimis market discount, and unstated interest, as adjusted... the rules provided by this section. (ii) Debt instrument with market discount. (A) A holder may make the election under this section for a debt instrument with market discount only if the holder is...

Values in Time Discounting.

PubMed

Heilmann, Conrad

2017-10-01

Controversies about time discounting loom large in decisions about climate change. Prominently, a particularly controversial debate about time discounting in climate change decision-making has been conducted within climate economics, between the authors of Stern et al. (Stern review on the economics of climate change, 2006) and their critics (most prominently Dasgupta in Comments on the Stern review's economics of climate change, 2006; Tol in Energy Environ 17(6):977-981, 2006; Weitzman in J Econ Lit XLV:703-724, 2007; Nordhaus in J Econ Lit XLV:686-702, 2007). The article examines the role of values in this debate. Firstly, it is shown that time discounting is a case in which values are key because it is at heart an ethical problem. Secondly, it is argued that time discounting in climate economics is a case of economists making frequent and routine references to ethical values and indeed conduct ethical debates with each other. Thirdly, it is argued that there is evidence for deep and pervasive entanglement between facts and values in the prevalent methodologies for time discounting. Finally, it is argued that this means that economists have given up the 'value-free ideal' concerning time discounting, and discussed how the current methodology of time discounting in economics can be improved.

A low tension between individual and societal time aspects in health improved outcomes.

PubMed

Ortendahl, Monica; Fries, James F

2006-11-01

To review intertemporal choices, involving decisions with a trade-off between something now and something later. These choices are common in health both at an individual and societal level. The present value of an outcome, for example, the amount of money or the health outcomes in various aspects, is equivalent to the value of a future outcome discounted with the delay of time. The concept of diminishing value over time is positive discounting. Economic forecasts generally use discount rates in which the value of a future dollar is less than the value of a present dollar, and where the discount rates are similar for the individual investor and society. The value of future health is commonly thought of as similar to the value of future money. Yet, the individual may rationally choose a discount rate that is exceedingly low or even negative. This paradox is particularly relevant when considering primary and secondary prevention, where initial and continuing costs may precede beneficent outcomes by decades, making discount rate selections the dominant factor in determining decisions. We suggest that the societal perspective should also recognize that discount rates for health outcomes are largely irrelevant and that even negative discount rates have crucial relevance.

Acute ethanol does not always affect delay discounting in rats selected to prefer or avoid ethanol.

PubMed

Wilhelm, Clare J; Mitchell, Suzanne H

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether animals predisposed to prefer alcohol possess an altered acute response to alcohol on a delay discounting task relative to animals predisposed to avoid alcohol. We used rats selected to prefer or avoid alcohol to assess whether genotype moderates changes in delay discounting induced by acute ethanol exposure. Selectively bred rat lines of Sardinian alcohol-preferring (sP; n = 8) and non-preferring (sNP; n = 8) rats, and alko alcohol (AA, n = 8) and alko non-alcohol (ANA, n = 8) rats were trained in an adjusting amount task to assess delay discounting. There were no significant effects of line on baseline discounting; however, both lines of alcohol-preferring rats exhibit slowed reaction times. Acute ethanol (0, 0.25, 0.5 g/kg) treatment also had no effect on delay discounting in any of the selectively bred rat lines. Our data indicate that in these lines of animals, alcohol preference or avoidance has no impact on delay discounting following acute ethanol exposure. It is possible that other genetic models or lines may be differentially affected by alcohol and exhibit qualitatively and quantitatively different responses in delay discounting tasks.

Harnessing the uncertainty monster: Putting quantitative constraints on the intergenerational social discount rate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lewandowsky, Stephan; Freeman, Mark C.; Mann, Michael E.

2017-09-01

There is broad consensus among economists that unmitigated climate change will ultimately have adverse global economic consequences, that the costs of inaction will likely outweigh the cost of taking action, and that social planners should therefore put a price on carbon. However, there is considerable debate and uncertainty about the appropriate value of the social discount rate, that is the extent to which future damages should be discounted relative to mitigation costs incurred now. We briefly review the ethical issues surrounding the social discount rate and then report a simulation experiment that constrains the value of the discount rate by considering 4 sources of uncertainty and ambiguity: Scientific uncertainty about the extent of future warming, social uncertainty about future population and future economic development, political uncertainty about future mitigation trajectories, and ethical ambiguity about how much the welfare of future generations should be valued today. We compute a certainty-equivalent declining discount rate that accommodates all those sources of uncertainty and ambiguity. The forward (instantaneous) discount rate converges to a value near 0% by century's end and the spot (horizon) discount rate drops below 2% by 2100 and drops below previous estimates by 2070.

Trading Later Rewards for Current Pleasure: Pornography Consumption and Delay Discounting.

PubMed

Negash, Sesen; Sheppard, Nicole Van Ness; Lambert, Nathaniel M; Fincham, Frank D

2016-01-01

Internet pornography is a multi-billion-dollar industry that has grown increasingly accessible. Delay discounting involves devaluing larger, later rewards in favor of smaller, more immediate rewards. The constant novelty and primacy of sexual stimuli as particularly strong natural rewards make Internet pornography a unique activator of the brain's reward system, thereby having implications for decision-making processes. Based on theoretical studies of evolutionary psychology and neuroeconomics, two studies tested the hypothesis that consuming Internet pornography would relate to higher rates of delay discounting. Study 1 used a longitudinal design. Participants completed a pornography use questionnaire and a delay discounting task at Time 1 and then again four weeks later. Participants reporting higher initial pornography use demonstrated a higher delay discounting rate at Time 2, controlling for initial delay discounting. Study 2 tested for causality with an experimental design. Participants were randomly assigned to abstain from either their favorite food or pornography for three weeks. Participants who abstained from pornography use demonstrated lower delay discounting than participants who abstained from their favorite food. The finding suggests that Internet pornography is a sexual reward that contributes to delay discounting differently than other natural rewards. Theoretical and clinical implications of these studies are highlighted.

The neural basis of cultural differences in delay discounting

PubMed Central

Kim, Bokyung; Sung, Young Shin; McClure, Samuel M.

2012-01-01

People generally prefer to receive rewarding outcomes sooner rather than later. Such preferences result from delay discounting, or the process by which outcomes are devalued for the expected delay until their receipt. We investigated cultural differences in delay discounting by contrasting behaviour and brain activity in separate cohorts of Western (American) and Eastern (Korean) subjects. Consistent with previous reports, we find a dramatic difference in discounting behaviour, with Americans displaying much greater present bias and elevated discount rates. Recent neuroimaging findings suggest that differences in discounting may arise from differential involvement of either brain reward areas or regions in the prefrontal and parietal cortices associated with cognitive control. We find that the ventral striatum is more greatly recruited in Americans relative to Koreans when discounting future rewards, but there is no difference in prefrontal or parietal activity. This suggests that a cultural difference in emotional responsivity underlies the observed behavioural effect. We discuss the implications of this research for strategic interrelations between Easterners and Westerners. PMID:22271781

Brain activity in valuation regions while thinking about the future predicts individual discount rates.

PubMed

Cooper, Nicole; Kable, Joseph W; Kim, B Kyu; Zauberman, Gal

2013-08-07

People vary widely in how much they discount delayed rewards, yet little is known about the sources of these differences. Here we demonstrate that neural activity in ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) and ventral striatum (VS) when human subjects are asked to merely think about the future--specifically, to judge the subjective length of future time intervals--predicts delay discounting. High discounters showed lower activity for longer time delays, while low discounters showed the opposite pattern. Our results demonstrate that the correlation between VMPFC and VS activity and discounting occurs even in the absence of choices about future rewards, and does not depend on a person explicitly evaluating future outcomes or judging their self-relevance. This suggests a link between discounting and basic processes involved in thinking about the future, such as temporal perception. Our results also suggest that reducing impatience requires not suppression of VMPFC and VS activity altogether, but rather modulation of how these regions respond to the present versus the future.

Discounting of Condom-Protected Sex as a Measure of High Risk for Sexually Transmitted Infection Among College Students.

PubMed

Collado, Anahí; Johnson, Patrick S; Loya, Jennifer M; Johnson, Matthew W; Yi, Richard

2017-10-01

The study examined sexual delay discounting, or the devaluation of condom-protected sex in the face of delay, as a risk factor for sexually transmitted infection (STI) among college students. Participants (143 females, 117 males) completed the sexual delay discounting task (Johnson & Bruner, 2012) and questionnaires of risky sexual behavior, risk perception, and knowledge. Participants exhibited steeper sexual delay discounting (above and beyond general likelihood of having unprotected sex) when partners were viewed as more desirable or less likely to have a STI, with males demonstrating greater sexual delay discounting than females across most conditions. Importantly, greater self-reported risky sexual behaviors were associated with higher rates of sexual delay discounting, but not with likelihood of using a condom in the absence of delay. These results provide support for considering sexual delay discounting, with particular emphasis on potential delays to condom use, as a risk factor for STI among college students.

Brain Activity in Valuation Regions while Thinking about the Future Predicts Individual Discount Rates

PubMed Central

Cooper, Nicole; Kim, B. Kyu; Zauberman, Gal

2013-01-01

People vary widely in how much they discount delayed rewards, yet little is known about the sources of these differences. Here we demonstrate that neural activity in ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) and ventral striatum (VS) when human subjects are asked to merely think about the future—specifically, to judge the subjective length of future time intervals—predicts delay discounting. High discounters showed lower activity for longer time delays, while low discounters showed the opposite pattern. Our results demonstrate that the correlation between VMPFC and VS activity and discounting occurs even in the absence of choices about future rewards, and does not depend on a person explicitly evaluating future outcomes or judging their self-relevance. This suggests a link between discounting and basic processes involved in thinking about the future, such as temporal perception. Our results also suggest that reducing impatience requires not suppression of VMPFC and VS activity altogether, but rather modulation of how these regions respond to the present versus the future. PMID:23926268

Cigarette smokers show steeper discounting of both food and cigarettes than money.

PubMed

Odum, Amy L; Baumann, Ana A L

2007-12-01

People with drug addiction show steeper discounting of drugs of abuse than money. One suggestion is that this effect is related to withdrawal processes in drug dependence. We investigated whether it could be related to the fact that drugs are directly consumable, whereas money is not. We determined whether regular cigarette smokers discount food (another consumable outcome) less steeply than cigarettes, both of which were predicted to be discounted more steeply than money. Cigarette smokers (N=20) indicated preferences for immediate and delayed outcomes in a titration procedure that determined indifference points at various delays. In three separate conditions, the choices involved food, cigarettes, or money. The value of the delayed option was always US$ 10 or US$ 10 worth of the outcome. Cigarette smokers discounted both cigarettes and food more steeply than money. Most importantly, cigarettes and food were discounted to a similar degree. Cigarettes may be steeply discounted in part due to their consumable nature, rather than solely due to withdrawal-related processes.

Error Discounting in Probabilistic Category Learning

PubMed Central

Craig, Stewart; Lewandowsky, Stephan; Little, Daniel R.

2011-01-01

Some current theories of probabilistic categorization assume that people gradually attenuate their learning in response to unavoidable error. However, existing evidence for this error discounting is sparse and open to alternative interpretations. We report two probabilistic-categorization experiments that investigated error discounting by shifting feedback probabilities to new values after different amounts of training. In both experiments, responding gradually became less responsive to errors, and learning was slowed for some time after the feedback shift. Both results are indicative of error discounting. Quantitative modeling of the data revealed that adding a mechanism for error discounting significantly improved the fits of an exemplar-based and a rule-based associative learning model, as well as of a recency-based model of categorization. We conclude that error discounting is an important component of probabilistic learning. PMID:21355666

The date-delay framing effect in temporal discounting depends on substance abuse.

PubMed

Klapproth, Florian

2012-07-01

In the present study, individuals with substance use disorders (n=30) and non-addicted controls (n=30) were presented with a delay-discounting task with time being described either as dates or as temporal intervals. Three main results were obtained. First, in both groups reward size had a large impact on discounting future rewards, with discount rates becoming larger with smaller reward sizes. Second, participants discounted future rewards less strongly when their time of delivery was presented as a date instead of a temporal distance. Third, whereas discount rates of individuals with substance use disorders varied substantially with regard to the presentation of time in the task, the controls changed their choices depending on time presentation only slightly. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Do the Powerful Discount the Future Less? The Effects of Power on Temporal Discounting

PubMed Central

Duan, Jinyun; Wu, Sherry J.; Sun, Luying

2017-01-01

Individuals have the tendency to discount rewards in the future, known as temporal discounting, and we find that sense of power (the felt capacity to influence the thinking and behavior of others) reduces such tendency. In Studies 1 and 2, we used both an experiment and a survey with organizational employees to demonstrate that power reduced temporal discounting. In Study 3, we replicated study 1 while exploring a unique cultural trait of Danbo, or indifference to fame and wealth, across two ethnic groups (Han and Tibetan groups) in China. While power reduces temporal discounting, the relationship between the two may be leveraged by individual differences of optimism, frustration, and Danbo. The results imply a more nuanced interpretation of how individual and situational factors can affect intertemporal choice. PMID:28680410

Value of the future: Discounting in random environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farmer, J. Doyne; Geanakoplos, John; Masoliver, Jaume; Montero, Miquel; Perelló, Josep

2015-05-01

We analyze how to value future costs and benefits when they must be discounted relative to the present. We introduce the subject for the nonspecialist and take into account the randomness of the economic evolution by studying the discount function of three widely used processes for the dynamics of interest rates: Ornstein-Uhlenbeck, Feller, and log-normal. Besides obtaining exact expressions for the discount function and simple asymptotic approximations, we show that historical average interest rates overestimate long-run discount rates and that this effect can be large. In other words, long-run discount rates should be substantially less than the average rate observed in the past, otherwise any cost-benefit calculation would be biased in favor of the present and against interventions that may protect the future.

Value of the future: Discounting in random environments.

PubMed

Farmer, J Doyne; Geanakoplos, John; Masoliver, Jaume; Montero, Miquel; Perelló, Josep

2015-05-01

We analyze how to value future costs and benefits when they must be discounted relative to the present. We introduce the subject for the nonspecialist and take into account the randomness of the economic evolution by studying the discount function of three widely used processes for the dynamics of interest rates: Ornstein-Uhlenbeck, Feller, and log-normal. Besides obtaining exact expressions for the discount function and simple asymptotic approximations, we show that historical average interest rates overestimate long-run discount rates and that this effect can be large. In other words, long-run discount rates should be substantially less than the average rate observed in the past, otherwise any cost-benefit calculation would be biased in favor of the present and against interventions that may protect the future.

Do the Powerful Discount the Future Less? The Effects of Power on Temporal Discounting.

PubMed

Duan, Jinyun; Wu, Sherry J; Sun, Luying

2017-01-01

Individuals have the tendency to discount rewards in the future, known as temporal discounting, and we find that sense of power (the felt capacity to influence the thinking and behavior of others) reduces such tendency. In Studies 1 and 2, we used both an experiment and a survey with organizational employees to demonstrate that power reduced temporal discounting. In Study 3, we replicated study 1 while exploring a unique cultural trait of Danbo , or indifference to fame and wealth, across two ethnic groups (Han and Tibetan groups) in China. While power reduces temporal discounting, the relationship between the two may be leveraged by individual differences of optimism, frustration, and Danbo . The results imply a more nuanced interpretation of how individual and situational factors can affect intertemporal choice.

Discounting the distant future-Data on Australian discount rates estimated by a stochastic interest rate model.

PubMed

Truong, Chi; Trück, Stefan

2017-04-01

Data on certainty equivalent discount factors and discount rates for stochastic interest rates in Australia are provided in this paper. The data has been used for the analysis of investments into climate adaptation projects in ׳It׳s not now or never: Implications of investment timing and risk aversion on climate adaptation to extreme events ׳ (Truong and Trück, 2016) [3] and can be used for other cost-benefit analysis studies in Australia. The data is of particular interest for the discounting of projects that create monetary costs and benefits in the distant future.

Framing Reinforcement Learning from Human Reward: Reward Positivity, Temporal Discounting, Episodicity, and Performance

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-29

Framing Reinforcement Learning from Human Reward: Reward Positivity, Temporal Discounting, Episodicity , and Performance W. Bradley Knox...positive a trainer’s reward values are; temporal discounting, the extent to which future reward is discounted in value; episodicity , whether task...learning occurs in discrete learning episodes instead of one continuing session; and task performance, the agent’s performance on the task the trainer

Discounting toward Disaster: Tuition Discounting, College Finances, and Enrollments of Low-Income Undergraduates. New Agenda Series[TM], Volume 3, Number 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Redd, Kenneth E.

To study the effects of college tuition discounting, data from annual Institutional Student Aid Surveys of private colleges and universities were compared to enrollment and Pell Grant data from the U.S. Department of Education. Findings indicated that: (1) at least one quarter of the colleges and universities used discounting strategies that…

Can we use human judgments to determine the discount rate?

PubMed

Baron, J

2000-12-01

It has been suggested that the long-term discount rate for environmental goods should decrease at longer delays. One justification for this suggestion is that human judgments support it. This article presents an experiment showing that judgments concerning discount rates are internally inconsistent. These results point to potential problems with the use of judgments referenda for determining discount rates in cost-benefit analyses.

26 CFR 1.6049-7T - Market discount fraction reported with other financial information with respect to REMICs and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 13 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Market discount fraction reported with other... TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Information Returns § 1.6049-7T Market discount fraction reported with... purposes of § 1.6049-7(f)(2)(i)(G)(1) relating to the market discount fraction to be reported with other...

The choice of discount brand cigarettes: A comparative analysis of International Tobacco Control (ITC) Surveys in Canada and the United States (2002–2005)

PubMed Central

Nargis, Nigar; Fong, Geoffrey T.; Chaloupka, Frank J.; Li, Qiang

2014-01-01

Background Increasing tobacco taxes to increase price is a proven tobacco control measure. This paper investigates how smokers respond to tax and price increases in their choice of discount brand cigarettes vs. premium brands. Objective To estimate how increase in the tax rate can affect smokers’ choice of discount brands versus premium brands. Methods Using data from ITC Surveys in Canada and the United States, a logit model was constructed to estimate the probability of choosing discount brand cigarettes in response to its price changes relative to premium brands, controlling for individual-specific demographic and socio-economic characteristics and regional effects. The self-reported price of an individual smoker is used in a random-effects regression model to impute price and to construct the price ratio for discount and premium brands for each smoker, which is used in the logit model. Findings An increase in the ratio of price of discount brand cigarettes to the price of premium brands by 0.1 is associated with a decrease in the probability of choosing discount brands by 0.08 in Canada. No significant effect is observed in case of the United States. Conclusion The results of the model explain two phenomena: (1) the widened price differential between premium and discount brand cigarettes contributed to the increased share of discount brand cigarettes in Canada in contrast to a relatively steady share in the United States during 2002–2005, and (2) increasing the price ratio of discount brands to premium brands—which occurs with an increase in specific excise tax—may lead to upward shifting from discount to premium brands rather than to downward shifting. These results underscore the significance of studying the effectiveness of tax increases in reducing overall tobacco consumption, particularly for specific excise taxes. PMID:23986408

Enhanced Neural Responses to Imagined Primary Rewards Predict Reduced Monetary Temporal Discounting.

PubMed

Hakimi, Shabnam; Hare, Todd A

2015-09-23

The pervasive tendency to discount the value of future rewards varies considerably across individuals and has important implications for health and well-being. Here, we used fMRI with human participants to examine whether an individual's neural representation of an imagined primary reward predicts the degree to which the value of delayed monetary payments is discounted. Because future rewards can never be experienced at the time of choice, imagining or simulating the benefits of a future reward may play a critical role in decisions between alternatives with either immediate or delayed benefits. We found that enhanced ventromedial prefrontal cortex response during imagined primary reward receipt was correlated with reduced discounting in a separate monetary intertemporal choice task. Furthermore, activity in enhanced ventromedial prefrontal cortex during reward imagination predicted temporal discounting behavior both between- and within-individual decision makers with 62% and 73% mean balanced accuracy, respectively. These results suggest that the quality of reward imagination may impact the degree to which future outcomes are discounted. Significance statement: We report a novel test of the hypothesis that an important factor influencing the discount rate for future rewards is the quality with which they are imagined or estimated in the present. Previous work has shown that temporal discounting is linked to individual characteristics ranging from general intelligence to the propensity for addiction. We demonstrate that individual differences in a neurobiological measure of primary reward imagination are significantly correlated with discounting rates for future monetary payments. Moreover, our neurobiological measure of imagination can be used to accurately predict choice behavior both between and within individuals. These results suggest that improving reward imagination may be a useful therapeutic target for individuals whose high discount rates promote detrimental behaviors. Copyright © 2015 the authors 0270-6474/15/3513103-07$15.00/0.

Is Every Smoker Interested in Price Promotions? An Evaluation of Price-Related Discounts by Cigarette Brands

PubMed Central

Xu, Xin; Wang, Xu; Caraballo, Ralph S.

2015-01-01

Context Raising unit price is one of the most effective ways of reducing cigarette consumption. A large proportion of US adult smokers use generic brands or price discounts in response to higher prices, which may mitigate the public health impacts of raising unit price. Objective The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the retail price impact and the determinants of price-related discount use among US adult smokers by their most commonly used cigarette brand types. Methods Data from the 2009–2010 National Adult Tobacco Survey, a telephone survey of US adults 18 years or older, was used to assess price-related discount use by cigarette brands. Price-related discounts included coupons, rebates, buy 1 get 1 free, 2 for 1, or any other special promotions. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess sociodemographic and tobacco use determinants of discount use by cigarette brands. Results Discount use was most common among premium brand users (22.1%), followed by generic (13.3%) and other brand (10.8%) users. Among premium brand users, those who smoked 10 to 20 cigarettes per day were more likely to use discounts, whereas elderly smokers, non-Hispanic blacks, those with greater annual household income, dual users of cigarettes and other combustible tobacco products, and those who had no quit intentions were less likely to do so. Among generic brand users, those who had no quit intentions and those who smoked first cigarette within 60 minutes after waking were more likely to use discounts. Conclusions Frequent use of discounts varies between smokers of premium and generic cigarette brands. Setting a high minimum price, together with limiting the use of coupons and promotions, may uphold the effect of cigarette excise taxes to reduce smoking prevalence. PMID:26598952

Is Every Smoker Interested in Price Promotions? An Evaluation of Price-Related Discounts by Cigarette Brands.

PubMed

Xu, Xin; Wang, Xu; Caraballo, Ralph S

2016-01-01

Raising unit price is one of the most effective ways of reducing cigarette consumption. A large proportion of US adult smokers use generic brands or price discounts in response to higher prices, which may mitigate the public health impacts of raising unit price. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the retail price impact and the determinants of price-related discount use among US adult smokers by their most commonly used cigarette brand types. Data from the 2009-2010 National Adult Tobacco Survey, a telephone survey of US adults 18 years or older, was used to assess price-related discount use by cigarette brands. Price-related discounts included coupons, rebates, buy 1 get 1 free, 2 for 1, or any other special promotions. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess sociodemographic and tobacco use determinants of discount use by cigarette brands. Discount use was most common among premium brand users (22.1%), followed by generic (13.3%) and other brand (10.8%) users. Among premium brand users, those who smoked 10 to 20 cigarettes per day were more likely to use discounts, whereas elderly smokers, non-Hispanic blacks, those with greater annual household income, dual users of cigarettes and other combustible tobacco products, and those who had no quit intentions were less likely to do so. Among generic brand users, those who had no quit intentions and those who smoked first cigarette within 60 minutes after waking were more likely to use discounts. Frequent use of discounts varies between smokers of premium and generic cigarette brands. Setting a high minimum price, together with limiting the use of coupons and promotions, may uphold the effect of cigarette excise taxes to reduce smoking prevalence.

Delay discounting of qualitatively different reinforcers in rats.

PubMed

Calvert, Amanda L; Green, Leonard; Myerson, Joel

2010-03-01

Humans discount larger delayed rewards less steeply than smaller rewards, whereas no such magnitude effect has been observed in rats (and pigeons). It remains possible that rats' discounting is sensitive to differences in the quality of the delayed reinforcer even though it is not sensitive to amount. To evaluate this possibility, Experiment 1 examined discounting of qualitatively different food reinforcers: highly preferred versus nonpreferred food pellets. Similarly, Experiment 2 examined discounting of highly preferred versus nonpreferred liquid reinforcers. In both experiments, an adjusting-amount procedure was used to determine the amount of immediate reinforcer that was judged to be of equal subjective value to the delayed reinforcer. The amount and quality of the delayed reinforcer were varied across conditions. Discounting was well described by a hyperbolic function, but no systematic effects of the quantity or the quality of the delayed reinforcer were observed.

Psychosocial Influences on Fruit and Vegetable Intake Following a NYC Supermarket Discount.

PubMed

Bernales-Korins, Maria; Ang, Ian Yi Han; Khan, Shamima; Geliebter, Allan

2017-08-01

To assess the effect of a 50% discount on fruits and vegetables (F&V) on the purchase and intake of F&V and on psychosocial determinants of F&V intake: self-efficacy (SE), stages of change (SOC), and perceived barriers (PB). This randomized controlled trial was conducted in local supermarkets over 16 weeks, including a 4-week baseline, 8-week discount intervention, and 4-week follow-up. Shoppers with overweight or obesity (BMI > 25) were randomized to receive a discount or no discount via their reward scan card after the baseline. Twenty-four-hour recalls and psychosocial measures were obtained for each study period. Purchases (P < 0.0005) and intakes (P = 0.019) of F&V increased significantly during the intervention, while only F&V intake was sustained at follow-up. The discount intervention increased SE (P < 0.01) and SOC (P < 0.05) and did not decrease PB (P = 0.057) during the intervention. SOC mediated the discount intervention effect on F&V intake (P < 0.05) during the intervention, explaining 43% of variance. A supermarket discount intervention led to increases in purchases and intakes of F&V and increases in the psychosocial factors SE and SOC and did not decrease PB. The discount intervention prompted participants to move from the preparation to action stage of SOC, which acted as a mediator for increased F&V intake. © 2017 The Obesity Society.

Hospital charge exemptions for the poor in Shandong, China.

PubMed

Meng, Qingyue; Sun, Qiang; Hearst, Norman

2002-12-01

Rapid economic changes in China have produced soaring hospital charges, a breakdown of the old social health insurance system, a resulting crisis in hospital affordability and renewed interest in mechanisms for discounts or exemptions from hospital charges for the poor. Little is known, however, about how effective such systems are in practice. We studied nine public hospitals in Shandong Province that offer discount or exemption mechanisms for the poor. Methods included document review, key informant interviews, detailed review of financial records and focus group discussions. These hospitals receive little government subsidy and must support themselves almost entirely through user fees. Hospital managers saw discount mechanisms primarily as marketing tools and designed them to limit their cost. Only a small fraction of hospital services were eligible for discount, and these were usually low cost or low utilization items. Discounts were generally 10-50% for selected items with very few services exempted from charge. The total value of discounts granted was 1% or less of total hospital operating budgets. Correct identification of indigents was a major difficulty for hospitals. Only a minority of indigents received discounts, the process was sometimes arbitrary and some who received discounts were not really poor. Government policies requiring discounts for the poor were vague and not enforced. The exemption programmes studied do not provide effective protection from hospital charges for the poor. To be effective, exemption mechanisms would likely require both financing and regulation by the government as well as an accurate way to identify the poor.

Delay or probability discounting in a model of impulsive behavior: effect of alcohol.

PubMed Central

Richards, J B; Zhang, L; Mitchell, S H; de Wit, H

1999-01-01

Little is known about the acute effects of drugs of abuse on impulsivity and self-control. In this study, impulsivity was assessed in humans using a computer task that measured delay and probability discounting. Discounting describes how much the value of a reward (or punisher) is decreased when its occurrence is either delayed or uncertain. Twenty-four healthy adult volunteers ingested a moderate dose of ethanol (0.5 or 0.8 g/kg ethanol: n = 12 at each dose) or placebo before completing the discounting task. In the task the participants were given a series of choices between a small, immediate, certain amount of money and $10 that was either delayed (0, 2, 30, 180, or 365 days) or probabilistic (i.e., certainty of receipt was 1.0, .9, .75, .5, or .25). The point at which each individual was indifferent between the smaller immediate or certain reward and the $10 delayed or probabilistic reward was identified using an adjusting-amount procedure. The results indicated that (a) delay and probability discounting were well described by a hyperbolic function; (b) delay and probability discounting were positively correlated within subjects; (c) delay and probability discounting were moderately correlated with personality measures of impulsivity; and (d) alcohol had no effect on discounting. PMID:10220927

The impact of price discounts and calorie messaging on beverage consumption: a multi-site field study.

PubMed

Jue, J Jane S; Press, Matthew J; McDonald, Daniel; Volpp, Kevin G; Asch, David A; Mitra, Nandita; Stanowski, Anthony C; Loewenstein, George

2012-12-01

To examine the efficacy of alternative approaches for shifting consumers toward zero calorie beverages. We examined the effect of price discounts and novel presentations of calorie information on sales of beverages. This prospective interrupted time-series quasi-experiment included three sites in Philadelphia, PA, Evanston, IL, and Detroit, MI. Each site received five interventions: (1) a 10% price discount on zero-calorie beverages; (2) the 10% discount plus discount messaging; (3) messaging comparing calorie information of sugared beverages with zero-calorie beverages; (4) messaging comparing exercise equivalent information; and (5) messaging comparing both calorie and exercise equivalent information. The main outcome was daily sales of bottled zero-calorie and sugared beverages. Data was collected from October 2009 until May 2010 and analyzed from May 2010 until May 2011. The overall analysis failed to demonstrate a consistent effect across all interventions. Two treatments had statistically significant effects: the discount plus discount messaging, with an increase in purchases of zero calorie beverages; and the calorie messaging intervention, with an increase in purchases of sugar-sweetened beverages. Individual site analysis results were similar. The effects of price discounts and calorie messaging in different forms on beverage purchases were inconsistent and frequently small. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yuan, Chris, E-mail: cyuan@uwm.edu; Wang, Endong; Zhai, Qiang

Temporal homogeneity of inventory data is one of the major problems in life cycle assessment (LCA). Addressing temporal homogeneity of life cycle inventory data is important in reducing the uncertainties and improving the reliability of LCA results. This paper attempts to present a critical review and discussion on the fundamental issues of temporal homogeneity in conventional LCA and propose a theoretical framework for temporal discounting in LCA. Theoretical perspectives for temporal discounting in life cycle inventory analysis are discussed first based on the key elements of a scientific mechanism for temporal discounting. Then generic procedures for performing temporal discounting inmore » LCA is derived and proposed based on the nature of the LCA method and the identified key elements of a scientific temporal discounting method. A five-step framework is proposed and reported in details based on the technical methods and procedures needed to perform a temporal discounting in life cycle inventory analysis. Challenges and possible solutions are also identified and discussed for the technical procedure and scientific accomplishment of each step within the framework. - Highlights: • A critical review for temporal homogeneity problem of life cycle inventory data • A theoretical framework for performing temporal discounting on inventory data • Methods provided to accomplish each step of the temporal discounting framework.« less

Money earlier or later? Simple heuristics explain intertemporal choices better than delay discounting does.

PubMed

Ericson, Keith M Marzilli; White, John Myles; Laibson, David; Cohen, Jonathan D

2015-06-01

Heuristic models have been proposed for many domains involving choice. We conducted an out-of-sample, cross-validated comparison of heuristic models of intertemporal choice (which can account for many of the known intertemporal choice anomalies) and discounting models. Heuristic models outperformed traditional utility-discounting models, including models of exponential and hyperbolic discounting. The best-performing models predicted choices by using a weighted average of absolute differences and relative percentage differences of the attributes of the goods in a choice set. We concluded that heuristic models explain time-money trade-off choices in experiments better than do utility-discounting models. © The Author(s) 2015.

Money Earlier or Later? Simple Heuristics Explain Intertemporal Choices Better than Delay Discounting1

PubMed Central

Marzilli Ericson, Keith M.; White, John Myles; Laibson, David; Cohen, Jonathan D.

2015-01-01

Heuristic models have been proposed for many domains of choice. We compare heuristic models of intertemporal choice, which can account for many of the known intertemporal choice anomalies, to discounting models. We conduct an out-of-sample, cross-validated comparison of intertemporal choice models. Heuristic models outperform traditional utility discounting models, including models of exponential and hyperbolic discounting. The best performing models predict choices by using a weighted average of absolute differences and relative (percentage) differences of the attributes of the goods in a choice set. We conclude that heuristic models explain time-money tradeoff choices in experiments better than utility discounting models. PMID:25911124

17 CFR 210.4-07 - Discount on shares.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 1940, AND ENERGY POLICY AND CONSERVATION ACT OF 1975 Rules of General Application § 210.4-07 Discount on shares. Discount on shares, or any unamortized balance thereof, shall be shown separately as a...

Individual and social discounting in a viscous population.

PubMed

Sozou, Peter D

2009-08-22

Social discounting in economics involves applying a diminishing weight to community-wide benefits or costs into the future. It impacts on public policy decisions involving future positive or negative effects, but there is no consensus on the correct basis for determining the social discount rate. This study presents an evolutionary biological framework for social discounting. How an organism should value future benefits to its local community is governed by the extent to which members of the community in the future are likely to be its kin. Trade-offs between immediate and delayed benefits to an individual or to its community are analysed for a modelled patch-structured iteroparous population with limited dispersal. It is shown that the social discount rate is generally lower than the individual (private) discount rate. The difference in the two rates is most pronounced, in ratio terms, when the dispersal level is low and the hazard rate for patch destruction is much smaller than the individual mortality rate. When decisions involve enforced collective action rather than individuals acting independently, social investment increases but the social discount rate remains the same.

Reinforcer pathologies: Predicting alcohol related problems in college drinking men and women.

PubMed

Lemley, Shea M; Kaplan, Brent A; Reed, Derek D; Darden, Alexandria C; Jarmolowicz, David P

2016-10-01

Alcohol use in college is common, and problematic consequences of alcohol may affect college men and women differently. Approaches within behavioral economics have been used to improve our understanding of alcohol use in college students. The current study assessed relations between college students' delay discounting, demand for alcohol, and alcohol problems as measured by the Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire (YAACQ). In this study, 80 college drinkers completed a monetary choice questionnaire that assessed delay discounting of money, a novel beer choice questionnaire that evaluated delay discounting of beer, and an alcohol purchase task that measured demand for alcohol. Behavioral economic measures associated with the reinforcer pathologies model (i.e., demand and discounting) predicted alcohol consequences as measured by the YAACQ. For men, these significant predictor variables included money discounting, beer discounting, and intensity of alcohol demand, whereas for women money discounting and essential value were significant predictors. These findings highlight the utility of the reinforcer pathologies approach for the study of alcohol use and the importance of considering gender differences in examining college drinking. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

75 FR 5322 - Formations of, Acquisitions by, and Mergers of Bank Holding Companies

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-02-02

....5 percent of the outstanding voting shares of Israel Discount Bank, Ltd., Tel Aviv, Israel, and thereby indirectly acquire additional voting shares of Discount Bancorp Inc., and Israel Discount Bank of...

Parabolic discounting of monetary rewards by physical effort.

PubMed

Hartmann, Matthias N; Hager, Oliver M; Tobler, Philippe N; Kaiser, Stefan

2013-11-01

When humans and other animals make decisions in their natural environments prospective rewards have to be weighed against costs. It is well established that increasing costs lead to devaluation or discounting of reward. While our knowledge about discount functions for time and probability costs is quite advanced, little is known about how physical effort discounts reward. In the present study we compared three different models in a binary choice task in which human participants had to squeeze a handgrip to earn monetary rewards: a linear, a hyperbolic, and a parabolic model. On the group as well as the individual level, the concave parabolic model explained most variance of the choice data, thus contrasting with the typical hyperbolic discounting of reward value by delay. Research on effort discounting is not only important to basic science but also holds the potential to quantify aberrant motivational states in neuropsychiatric disorders. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Delay and probability discounting among payday and title loan recipients.

PubMed

Mahoney, Colin T; Lawyer, Steven R

2016-04-01

Payday and title loans are short-term loans associated with significant economic impact. Behavioral theories of impulsive choice may provide insight into behavioral processes that underlie the propensity to take out payday and title loans. Adults between the ages of 18 and 30 recruited from the community completed delay and probability discounting tasks for hypothetical money as well as measures of substance use. Patterns of discounting were characterized using a hyperbolic decay model and area under the curve. Participants who took out a payday and/or title loan in the past (n=41) exhibited more impulsive choice patterns on the delay discounting task than did those who did not (n=255). Substance use mediated this relationship between payday and title loan retention and delay discounting. These findings suggest potentially important relationships between payday/title loan borrowing, substance use, and delay discounting. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Estimating implied rates of discount in healthcare decision-making.

PubMed

West, R R; McNabb, R; Thompson, A G H; Sheldon, T A; Grimley Evans, J

2003-01-01

To consider whether implied rates of discounting from the perspectives of individual and society differ, and whether implied rates of discounting in health differ from those implied in choices involving finance or "goods". The study comprised first a review of economics, health economics and social science literature and then an empirical estimate of implied rates of discounting in four fields: personal financial, personal health, public financial and public health, in representative samples of the public and of healthcare professionals. Samples were drawn in the former county and health authority district of South Glamorgan, Wales. The public sample was a representative random sample of men and women, aged over 18 years and drawn from electoral registers. The health professional sample was drawn at random with the cooperation of professional leads to include doctors, nurses, professions allied to medicine, public health, planners and administrators. The literature review revealed few empirical studies in representative samples of the population, few direct comparisons of public with private decision-making and few direct comparisons of health with financial discounting. Implied rates of discounting varied widely and studies suggested that discount rates are higher the smaller the value of the outcome and the shorter the period considered. The relationship between implied discount rates and personal attributes was mixed, possibly reflecting the limited nature of the samples. Although there were few direct comparisons, some studies found that individuals apply different rates of discount to social compared with private comparisons and health compared with financial. The present study also found a wide range of implied discount rates, with little systematic effect of age, gender, educational level or long-term illness. There was evidence, in both samples, that people chose a lower rate of discount in comparisons made on behalf of society than in comparisons made for themselves. Both public and health professional samples tended to choose lower discount rates in health-related comparisons than in finance-related comparisons. It was also suggested that implied rates of discount, derived from responses to hypothetical questions, can be influenced by detail of question framing. The study suggested that both the lay public and healthcare professionals consider that the discount rate appropriate for public decisions is lower than that for private decisions. This finding suggests that lay people as well as healthcare professionals, used to making decisions on behalf of others, recognise that society is not simply an aggregate of individuals. It also implies a general appreciation that society is more stable and has a more predictable future than does the individual. There is fairly general support for this view in the theoretical literature and limited support in the few previous direct comparisons. Further research is indicated, possibly involving more in-depth interviewing and drawing inference on real, rather than hypothetical choices.

Pramipexole-induced increased probabilistic discounting: comparison between a rodent model of Parkinson's disease and controls.

PubMed

Rokosik, Sandra L; Napier, T Celeste

2012-05-01

The dopamine agonist pramipexole (PPX) can increase impulsiveness, and PPX therapy for neurological diseases (Parkinson's disease (PD) and restless leg syndrome) is associated with impulse control disorders (ICDs) in subpopulations of treated patients. A commonly reported ICD is pathological gambling of which risk taking is a prominent feature. Probability discounting is a measurable aspect of risk taking. We recently developed a probability discounting paradigm wherein intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) serves as the positive reinforcer. Here we used this paradigm to determine the effects of PPX on discounting. We included assessments of a rodent model of PD, wherein 6-OHDA was injected into the dorsolateral striatum of both hemispheres, which produced persistent PD-like deficits in posture adjustment. Rats were trained to perform ICSS-mediated probability discounting, in which PD-like and control groups exhibited similar profiles. Rats were treated twice daily for 2 weeks with 2 mg/kg (±)PPX (ie, 1 mg/kg of the active form), a dose that improved lesion-induced motor deficits. In both groups, (±)PPX increased discounting; preference for the large reinforcer was enhanced 30-45% at the most uncertain probabilities. Tolerance did not develop with repeated treatments. Increased discounting subsided within 2 weeks of (±)PPX cessation, and re-exposure to (±)PPX reinstated heightened discounting. Such findings emulate the clinical scenario; therefore, ICSS for discounting assessments in rats exhibited high face validity. This model should prove useful in medication development where assessment of the propensity of a putative therapy to induce risk-taking behaviors is of interest.

How we value the future affects our desire to learn.

PubMed

Moore, Alana L; Hauser, Cindy E; McCarthy, Michael A

2008-06-01

Active adaptive management is increasingly advocated in natural resource management and conservation biology. Active adaptive management looks at the benefit of employing strategies that may be suboptimal in the near term but which may provide additional information that will facilitate better management in future years. However, when comparing management policies it is traditional to weigh future rewards geometrically (at a constant discount rate) which results in far-distant rewards making a negligible contribution to the total benefit. Under such a discounting scheme active adaptive management is rarely of much benefit, especially if learning is slow. A growing number of authors advocate the use of alternative forms of discounting when evaluating optimal strategies for long-term decisions which have a social component. We consider a theoretical harvested population for which the recovery rate from an unharvestably small population size is unknown and look at the effects on the benefit of experimental management when three different forms of discounting are employed. Under geometric discounting, with a discount rate of 5% per annum, managing to learn actively had little benefit. This study demonstrates that discount functions which weigh future rewards more heavily result in more conservative harvesting strategies, but do not necessarily encourage active learning. Furthermore, the optimal management strategy is not equivalent to employing geometric discounting at a lower rate. If alternative discount functions are made mandatory in calculating optimal management strategies for environmental management then this will affect the structure of optimal management regimes and change when and how much we are willing to invest in learning.

Investigating the Impact of Cognitive Load and Motivation on Response Control in Relation to Delay Discounting in Children with ADHD.

PubMed

Martinelli, Mary K; Mostofsky, Stewart H; Rosch, Keri S

2017-10-01

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is characterized by deficits in impulse control across a range of behaviors, from simple actions to those involving complex decision-making (e.g., preference for smaller-sooner versus larger later rewards). This study investigated whether changes in motor response control with increased cognitive load and motivational contingencies are associated with decision-making in the form of delay discounting among 8-12 year old children with and without ADHD. Children with ADHD (n = 26; 8 girls) and typically developing controls (n = 40; 11 girls) completed a standard go/no-go (GNG) task, a GNG task with motivational contingencies, a GNG task with increased cognitive load, and two measures of delay discounting: a real-time task in which the delays and immediately consumable rewards are experienced in real-time, and a classic task involving choices about money at longer delays. Children with ADHD, particularly girls, exhibited greater delay discounting than controls during the real-time discounting task, whereas diagnostic groups did not significantly differ on the classic discounting task. The effect of cognitive load on response control was uniquely associated with greater discounting on the real-time task for children with ADHD, but not for control children. The effect of motivational contingencies on response control was not significantly associated with delay discounting for either diagnostic group. The findings from this study help to inform our understanding of the factors that influence deficient self-control in ADHD, suggesting that impairments in cognitive control may contribute to greater delay discounting in ADHD.

Neural activation during delay discounting is associated with 6-month change in risky sexual behavior in adolescents.

PubMed

Gardiner, Casey K; Karoly, Hollis C; Thayer, Rachel E; Gillman, Arielle S; Sabbineni, Amithrupa; Bryan, Angela D

2018-04-19

Identifying cognitive and neural mechanisms of decision making in adolescence can enhance understanding of, and interventions to reduce, risky health behaviors in adolescence. Delay discounting, or the propensity to discount the magnitude of temporally distal rewards, has been associated with diverse health risk behaviors, including risky sex. This cognitive process involves recruitment of reward and cognitive control brain regions, which develop on different trajectories in adolescence and are also implicated in real-world risky decision making. However, no extant research has examined how neural activation during delay discounting is associated with adolescents' risky sexual behavior. To determine whether a relationship exists between adolescents' risky sexual behavior and neural activation during delay discounting. Adolescent participants completed a delay discounting paradigm during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning, and they reported risky sexual behavior at baseline, 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12-month follow-up time points. Latent growth curve models were employed to determine relationships between brain activation during delay discounting and change in risky sexual behavior over time. Greater activation in brain regions associated with reward and cognitive control (caudate, putamen, nucleus accumbens, anterior cingulate, insula, orbitofrontal cortex, inferior frontal gyrus, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex) during delay discounting was associated with lower mean levels of risky sexual behavior but greater growth over the period from baseline to 6 months. Neural activation during delay discounting is cross-sectionally and prospectively associated with risky sexual behavior in adolescence, highlighting a neural basis of risky decision-making as well as opportunities for early identification and intervention.

A random utility model of delay discounting and its application to people with externalizing psychopathology.

PubMed

Dai, Junyi; Gunn, Rachel L; Gerst, Kyle R; Busemeyer, Jerome R; Finn, Peter R

2016-10-01

Previous studies have demonstrated that working memory capacity plays a central role in delay discounting in people with externalizing psychopathology. These studies used a hyperbolic discounting model, and its single parameter-a measure of delay discounting-was estimated using the standard method of searching for indifference points between intertemporal options. However, there are several problems with this approach. First, the deterministic perspective on delay discounting underlying the indifference point method might be inappropriate. Second, the estimation procedure using the R2 measure often leads to poor model fit. Third, when parameters are estimated using indifference points only, much of the information collected in a delay discounting decision task is wasted. To overcome these problems, this article proposes a random utility model of delay discounting. The proposed model has 2 parameters, 1 for delay discounting and 1 for choice variability. It was fit to choice data obtained from a recently published data set using both maximum-likelihood and Bayesian parameter estimation. As in previous studies, the delay discounting parameter was significantly associated with both externalizing problems and working memory capacity. Furthermore, choice variability was also found to be significantly associated with both variables. This finding suggests that randomness in decisions may be a mechanism by which externalizing problems and low working memory capacity are associated with poor decision making. The random utility model thus has the advantage of disclosing the role of choice variability, which had been masked by the traditional deterministic model. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Wisdom Needed.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lapovsky, Lucie

1998-01-01

Results of the National Association of College and University Business Officers' annual survey (n=340 institutions) of institutional aid to students (tuition discounting) are summarized. Data include an analysis of tuition patterns, freshman tuition discount rates, undergraduate discount rates, class differences, and relationships among variables…

Implementation Experience with Deep Discount Fares

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1994-09-01

This report reviews the experiences of transit agencies across the country with Deep Discount fares, a new public transit pricing strategy, between 1988 and 1993. Based on new market research findings, Deep Discounting has shown that it is possible t...

A social discounting model based on Tsallis’ statistics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takahashi, Taiki

2010-09-01

Social decision making (e.g. social discounting and social preferences) has been attracting attention in economics, econophysics, social physics, behavioral psychology, and neuroeconomics. This paper proposes a novel social discounting model based on the deformed algebra developed in the Tsallis’ non-extensive thermostatistics. Furthermore, it is suggested that this model can be utilized to quantify the degree of consistency in social discounting in humans and analyze the relationships between behavioral tendencies in social discounting and other-regarding economic decision making under game-theoretic conditions. Future directions in the application of the model to studies in econophysics, neuroeconomics, and social physics, as well as real-world problems such as the supply of live organ donations, are discussed.

Philosophical origins of the social rate of discount in cost-benefit analysis.

PubMed

Robinson, J C

1990-01-01

The social rate of discount--that is, the way decision makers today evaluate future consequences of collective activity--raises difficult issues of intergenerational justice. When benefits are discounted at the present rate the United States government requires, serious efforts to promote public health over the long term will fail cost-benefit tests. No consensus exists among theorists to establish fair rates; philosophers support discounting with economic arguments that economists reject, while economists no less paradoxically support the concept using philosophical arguments that philosophers disavow. A new emphasis on the role of consumers' and citizens' time preferences, however, will keep open rather than close debates on the social discount rate.

Benchmarking Discount Rate in Natural Resource Damage Assessment with Risk Aversion.

PubMed

Wu, Desheng; Chen, Shuzhen

2017-08-01

Benchmarking a credible discount rate is of crucial importance in natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) and restoration evaluation. This article integrates a holistic framework of NRDA with prevailing low discount rate theory, and proposes a discount rate benchmarking decision support system based on service-specific risk aversion. The proposed approach has the flexibility of choosing appropriate discount rates for gauging long-term services, as opposed to decisions based simply on duration. It improves injury identification in NRDA since potential damages and side-effects to ecosystem services are revealed within the service-specific framework. A real embankment case study demonstrates valid implementation of the method. © 2017 Society for Risk Analysis.

Separate and overlapping brain areas encode subjective value during delay and effort discounting.

PubMed

Massar, Stijn A A; Libedinsky, Camilo; Weiyan, Chee; Huettel, Scott A; Chee, Michael W L

2015-10-15

Making decisions about rewards that involve delay or effort requires the integration of value and cost information. The brain areas recruited in this integration have been well characterized for delay discounting. However only a few studies have investigated how effort costs are integrated into value signals to eventually determine choice. In contrast to previous studies that have evaluated fMRI signals related to physical effort, we used a task that focused on cognitive effort. Participants discounted the value of delayed and effortful rewards. The value of cognitively effortful rewards was represented in the anterior portion of the inferior frontal gyrus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Additionally, the value of the chosen option was encoded in the anterior cingulate cortex, caudate, and cerebellum. While most brain regions showed no significant dissociation between effort discounting and delay discounting, the ACC was significantly more activated in effort compared to delay discounting tasks. Finally, overlapping regions within the right orbitofrontal cortex and lateral temporal and parietal cortices encoded the value of the chosen option during both delay and effort discounting tasks. These results indicate that encoding of rewards discounted by cognitive effort and delay involves partially dissociable brain areas, but a common representation of chosen value is present in the orbitofrontal, temporal and parietal cortices. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Impact of episodic thinking on altruism

PubMed Central

Yi, Richard; Pickover, Alison; Stuppy-Sullivan, Allison M.; Baker, Sydney; Landes, Reid D.

2016-01-01

Episodic future thinking, which refers to the use of prospective imagery to concretely imagine oneself in future scenarios, has been shown to reduce delay discounting (enhance self-control). A parallel approach, in which prospective imagery is used to concretely imagine other’s scenarios, may similarly reduce social discounting (i.e., enhance altruism). In study 1, participants engaged in episodic thinking about the self or others, in a repeated-measures design, while completing a social discounting task. Reductions in social discounting were observed as a function of episodic thinking about others, though an interaction with order was also observed. Using an independent-measures design in study 2, the effect of episodic thinking about others was replicated. Study 3 addressed a limitation of studies 1 and 2, the possibility that simply thinking about others decreased social discounting. Capitalizing on Construal Level Theory, which specifies that social distance and time in the future are both dimensions of a common psychological distance, we hypothesized that episodic future thinking should also decrease social discounting. Participants engaged in episodic future thinking or episodic present thinking, in a repeated-measures design, while completing a social discounting task. The pattern of results was similar to study 1, providing support for the notion that episodic thinking about psychologically distant outcomes (for others or in the future) reduces social discounting. Application of similar episodic thinking approaches may enhance altruism. PMID:27821875

Future Discounting in Congo Basin Hunter-Gatherers Declines with Socio-Economic Transitions.

PubMed

Salali, Gul Deniz; Migliano, Andrea Bamberg

2015-01-01

Humans have a tendency to discount the future; that is we value small, short-term rewards over larger, long-term rewards. The degree of future discounting, however, changes in response to socio-ecological factors. Here, we study Mbendjele BaYaka hunter-gatherers of northern Congo and their farmer neighbours to investigate adaptations in inter-temporal preferences in humans. We argue that in immediate-return systems, where food storage is absent and egalitarianism is enforced through levelling mechanisms, future discounting is an adaptive strategy to prevent wealth accumulation and the emergence of hierarchies. This ensures food sharing and allows for survival in unpredictable environments where there is risk of an energy shortfall. On the other hand, when food storage is made possible by the emergence of agriculture or as seen in some delayed-return hunter-gatherer populations, wealth accumulation, hierarchies and lower discount rates become the adaptive strategy. Therefore, individuals in immediate-return, egalitarian societies will discount the future more than those in non-egalitarian, delayed-return societies. Consistent with the predictions we found that market integration and socio-economic transitions decrease the future discounting in Mbendjele hunter-gatherers. Our measures of socio-economic differences marked this transition in hunter-gatherers living in a logging town. The degree of future-discounting was the same between more market-integrated hunter-gatherers and their farmer neighbours.

Evaluation of Deep Discount Fare Strategies

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1995-08-01

This report evaluates the success of a fare pricing strategy known as deep discounting, that entails the bulk sale of transit tickets or tokens to customers at a significant discount compared to the full fare single ticket price. This market-driven s...

15 CFR 990.63 - Discounting and compounding.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGE ASSESSMENTS Restoration Implementation Phase § 990.63 Discounting and compounding. (a) Estimated future restoration costs. When determining estimated future costs of implementing a Final Restoration Plan, trustees must discount such future costs back to the date the demand is...

"What time is my next meal?" delay-discounting individuals choose smaller portions under conditions of uncertainty.

PubMed

Zimmerman, Annie R; Ferriday, Danielle; Davies, Sarah R; Martin, Ashley A; Rogers, Peter J; Mason, Alice; Brunstrom, Jeffrey M

2017-09-01

'Dietary' delay discounting is typically framed as a trade-off between immediate rewards and long-term health concerns. Our contention is that prospective thinking also occurs over shorter periods, and is engaged to select portion sizes based on the interval between meals (inter-meal interval; IMI). We sought to assess the extent to which the length of an IMI influences portion-size selection. We predicted that delay discounters would show 'IMI insensitivity' (relative lack of concern about hunger or fullness between meals). In particular, we were interested in participants' sensitivity to an uncertain IMI. We hypothesized that when meal times were uncertain, delay discounters would be less responsive and select smaller portion sizes. Participants (N = 90) selected portion sizes for lunch. In different trials, they were told to expect dinner at 5pm, 9pm, and either 5pm or 9pm (uncertain IMI). Individual differences in future-orientation were measured using a monetary delay-discounting task. Participants chose larger portions when the IMI was longer (p < 0.001). When the IMI was uncertain, delay-discounting participants chose smaller portions than the average portion chosen in the certain IMIs (p < 0.05). Furthermore, monetary discounting mediated a relationship between BMI and smaller portion selection in uncertainty (p < 0.05). This is the first study to report an association between delay discounting and IMI insensitivity. We reason that delay discounters selected smaller portions because they were less sensitive to the uncertain IMI, and overlooked concerns about potential future hunger. These findings are important because they illustrate that differences in discounting are expressed in short-term portion-size decisions and suggest that IMI insensitivity increases when meal timings are uncertain. Further research is needed to confirm whether these findings generalise to other populations. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Pharmacy discounts on generic medicines in France: is there room for further efficiency savings?

PubMed

Kanavos, Panos; Taylor, David

2007-10-01

In France control of pharmaceutical expenditure has been a policy priority for many years and generic policies have featured prominently on the policy agenda. Measures including reference pricing, generic substitution and international non-proprietary name (INN) prescribing have been introduced in recent years. Generic manufacturers and wholesalers may offer discounts, rebates or promotions to pharmacies in order to gain an edge over their competitors, but their true extent is unknown. To identify the amplitude of discounts on generic medicines, and whether wholesalers or generic manufacturers offer these beyond officially negotiated margins and allowable discounts, by conducting a pilot study. Data on net prices were acquired for all available presentations of 11 generic molecules selected across different therapeutic categories included in the 40 most selling generic products in 2005. Data were obtained via a questionnaire survey followed by interview with selected pharmacies (n = 4) and whole-salers (n = 2). Pharmacies and wholesalers participated in this study subject to confidentiality and anonymity. Pharmacies usually prefer to buy generic products directly from manufacturers rather than from wholesalers in order to avoid paying additional margins imposed by wholesalers. Discounts are mostly price-related and generally vary from 20 to 70% off the wholesaler selling price (WSP), on top of the officially allowed 10.74%. Discounts on the ex-factory price (EFP) are much lower, typically around 7.5%. Discounts are prohibited for branded products, beyond the officially allowed ceiling of 2.5%. While horizontal integration among pharmacies is disallowed, pharmacies may form purchasing groups allowing them to realise greater discounts from suppliers. Overall, the evidence suggests that discounts occur in France beyond what may be allowable and their extent can be significant. If general discount levels for generic medicines are as high as this pilot study suggests, then this may imply that health insurance in France may be overpaying for commodity generic medicines.

The Effects of Methylphenidate on Discounting of Delayed Rewards in ADHD

PubMed Central

Shiels, Keri; Hawk, Larry W.; Reynolds, Brady; Mazzullo, Rebecca; Rhodes, Jessica; Pelham, William E.; Waxmonsky, James G.; Gangloff, Brian P.

2010-01-01

Impulsivity is a central component of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Delay discounting, or a preference for smaller, immediate rewards over larger, delayed rewards is considered an important aspect of impulsivity, and delay-related impulsivity has been emphasized in etiological models of ADHD. The current study examined whether stimulant medication, an effective treatment for ADHD, reduces discounting of delayed experiential and hypothetical rewards among 49 children (age 9–12 years) with ADHD. Following a practice day, participants completed a 3-day double-blind placebo-controlled acute medication assessment. Active doses were long-acting methylphenidate (Concerta), with the nearest equivalents of 0.3 and 0.6 mg/kg TID immediate-release methylphenidate. On each testing day, participants completed experiential (real-world money in real time) and hypothetical discounting tasks. Relative to placebo, methylphenidate reduced discounting of delayed experiential rewards, but not hypothetical rewards. Broadly consistent with etiological models that emphasize delay-related impulsivity among children with ADHD, these findings provide initial evidence that stimulant medication reduces delay discounting among those with the disorder. The present results also draw attention to task parameters that may influence the sensitivity of various delay discounting measures to medication effects. PMID:19803628

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, delay discounting, and risky financial behaviors: A preliminary analysis of self-report data

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Delay discounting—often referred to as hyperbolic discounting in the financial literature—is defined by a consistent preference for smaller, immediate rewards over larger, delayed rewards, and by failure of future consequences to curtail current consummatory behaviors. Previous research demonstrates (1) excessive delay discounting among individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), (2) common neural substrates of delay discounting and hyperactive-impulsive symptoms of ADHD, and (3) associations between delay discounting and both debt burden and high interest rate borrowing. This study extends prior research by examining associations between ADHD symptoms, delay discounting, and an array of previously unevaluated financial outcomes among 544 individuals (mean age 35 years). Controlling for age, income, sex, education, and substance use, ADHD symptoms were associated with delay discounting, late credit card payments, credit card balances, use of pawn services, personal debt, and employment histories (less time spent at more jobs). Consistent with neural models of reward processing and associative learning, more of these relations were attributable to hyperactive-impulsive symptoms than inattentive symptoms. Implications for financial decision-making and directions for future research are discussed. PMID:28481903

A Mechanism for Reducing Delay Discounting by Altering Temporal Attention

PubMed Central

Radu, Peter T; Yi, Richard; Bickel, Warren K; Gross, James J; McClure, Samuel M

2011-01-01

Rewards that are not immediately available are discounted compared to rewards that are immediately available. The more a person discounts a delayed reward, the more likely that person is to have a range of behavioral problems, including clinical disorders. This latter observation has motivated the search for interventions that reduce discounting. One surprisingly simple method to reduce discounting is an “explicit-zero” reframing that states default or null outcomes. Reframing a classical discounting choice as “something now but nothing later” versus “nothing now but more later” decreases discount rates. However, it is not clear how this “explicit-zero” framing intervention works. The present studies delineate and test two possible mechanisms to explain the phenomenon. One mechanism proposes that the explicit-zero framing creates the impression of an improving sequence, thereby enhancing the present value of the delayed reward. A second possible mechanism posits an increase in attention allocation to temporally distant reward representations. In four experiments, we distinguish between these two hypothesized mechanisms and conclude that the temporal attention hypothesis is superior for explaining our results. We propose a model of temporal attention whereby framing affects intertemporal preferences by modifying present bias. PMID:22084496

Social Discounting and the Prisoner’s Dilemma Game

PubMed Central

Locey, Matthew L.; Safin, Vasiliy; Rachlin, Howard

2014-01-01

Altruistic behavior has been defined in economic terms as “…costly acts that confer economic benefits on other individuals” (Fehr & Fischbacher, 2003). In a prisoner’s dilemma game, cooperation benefits the group but is costly to the individual (relative to defection), yet a significant number of players choose to cooperate. We propose that people do value rewards to others, albeit at a discounted rate (social discounting), in a manner similar to discounting of delayed rewards (delay discounting). Two experiments opposed the personal benefit from defection to the socially discounted benefit to others from cooperation. The benefit to others was determined from a social discount function relating the individual’s subjective value of a reward to another person and the social distance between that individual and the other person. In Experiment 1, the cost of cooperating was held constant while its social benefit was varied in terms of the number of other players, each gaining a fixed, hypothetical amount of money. In Experiment 2, the cost of cooperating was again held constant while the social benefit of cooperating was varied by the hypothetical amount of money earned by a single other player. In both experiments, significantly more participants cooperated when the social benefit was higher. PMID:23344990

Delay and probability discounting of multiple commodities in smokers and never-smokers using multiple-choice tasks.

PubMed

Poltavski, Dmitri V; Weatherly, Jeffrey N

2013-12-01

The purpose of the present study was to investigate temporal and probabilistic discounting in smokers and never-smokers, across a number of commodities, using a multiple-choice method. One hundred and eighty-two undergraduate university students, of whom 90 had never smoked, 73 were self-reported light smokers (<10 cigarettes/day), and 17 were heavy smokers (10+cigarettes/day), completed computerized batteries of delay and probability discounting questions pertaining to a total of eight commodities and administered in a multiple-choice format. In addition to cigarettes, monetary rewards, and health outcomes, the tasks included novel commodities such as ideal dating partner and retirement income. The results showed that heavy smokers probability discounted commodities at a significantly shallower rate than never-smokers, suggesting greater risk-taking. No effect of smoking status was observed for delay discounting questions. The only commodity that was probability discounted significantly less than others was 'finding an ideal dating partner'. The results suggest that probability discounting tasks using the multiple-choice format can discriminate between non-abstaining smokers and never-smokers and could be further explored in the context of behavioral and drug addictions.

77 FR 59456 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request for Form 8281

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-09-27

... 8281, Information Return for Publicity Offered Original Issue Discount Instructions. DATES: Written... Offered Original Issue Discount Instruments. OMB Number: 1545-0887. Form Number: 8281. Abstract: Internal... publicity offered debt instruments having original issue discount. Regulations section 1.1275- 3 prescribes...

The Students Decision Making in Solving Discount Problem

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abdillah; Nusantara, Toto; Subanji; Susanto, Hery; Abadyo

2016-01-01

This research is reviewing students' process of decision making intuitively, analytically, and interactively. The research done by using discount problem which specially created to explore student's intuition, analytically, and interactively. In solving discount problems, researcher exploring student's decision in determining their attitude which…

Alcohol Increases Delay and Probability Discounting of Condom-Protected Sex: A Novel Vector for Alcohol-Related HIV Transmission.

PubMed

Johnson, Patrick S; Sweeney, Mary M; Herrmann, Evan S; Johnson, Matthew W

2016-06-01

Alcohol use, especially at binge levels, is associated with sexual HIV risk behavior, but the mechanisms through which alcohol increases sexual risk taking are not well-examined. Delay discounting, that is, devaluation of future consequences as a function of delay to their occurrence, has been implicated in a variety of problem behaviors, including risky sexual behavior. Probability discounting is studied with a similar framework as delay discounting, but is a distinct process in which a consequence is devalued because it is uncertain or probabilistic. Twenty-three, nondependent alcohol users (13 male, 10 female; mean age = 25.3 years old) orally consumed alcohol (1 g/kg) or placebo in 2 separate experimental sessions. During sessions, participants completed tasks examining delay and probability discounting of hypothetical condom-protected sex (Sexual Delay Discounting Task, Sexual Probability Discounting Task) and of hypothetical and real money. Alcohol decreased the likelihood that participants would wait to have condom-protected sex versus having immediate, unprotected sex. Alcohol also decreased the likelihood that participants would use an immediately available condom given a specified level of sexually transmitted infection (STI) risk. Alcohol did not affect delay discounting of money, but it did increase participants' preferences for larger, probabilistic monetary rewards over smaller, certain rewards. Acute, binge-level alcohol intoxication may increase sexual HIV risk by decreasing willingness to delay sex in order to acquire a condom in situations where one is not immediately available, and by decreasing sensitivity to perceived risk of STI contraction. These findings suggest that delay and probability discounting are critical, but heretofore unrecognized, processes that may mediate the relations between alcohol use and HIV risk. Copyright © 2016 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.

Optimal harvesting of fish stocks under a time-varying discount rate.

PubMed

Duncan, Stephen; Hepburn, Cameron; Papachristodoulou, Antonis

2011-01-21

Optimal control theory has been extensively used to determine the optimal harvesting policy for renewable resources such as fish stocks. In such optimisations, it is common to maximise the discounted utility of harvesting over time, employing a constant time discount rate. However, evidence from human and animal behaviour suggests that we have evolved to employ discount rates which fall over time, often referred to as "hyperbolic discounting". This increases the weight on benefits in the distant future, which may appear to provide greater protection of resources for future generations, but also creates challenges of time-inconsistent plans. This paper examines harvesting plans when the discount rate declines over time. With a declining discount rate, the planner reduces stock levels in the early stages (when the discount rate is high) and intends to compensate by allowing the stock level to recover later (when the discount rate will be lower). Such a plan may be feasible and optimal, provided that the planner remains committed throughout. However, in practice there is a danger that such plans will be re-optimized and adjusted in the future. It is shown that repeatedly restarting the optimization can drive the stock level down to the point where the optimal policy is to harvest the stock to extinction. In short, a key contribution of this paper is to identify the surprising severity of the consequences flowing from incorporating a rather trivial, and widely prevalent, "non-rational" aspect of human behaviour into renewable resource management models. These ideas are related to the collapse of the Peruvian anchovy fishery in the 1970's. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Susceptibility to price discounting of soda by neighbourhood educational status: an ecological analysis of disparities in soda consumption using point-of-purchase transaction data in Montreal, Canada.

PubMed

Mamiya, Hiroshi; Moodie, Erica E M; Ma, Yu; Buckeridge, David L

2018-06-22

Price discounting is a marketing tactic used frequently by food industries and retailers, but the extent to which education modifies the effect of discounting on the purchasing of unhealthy foods has received little attention. We investigated whether there was a differential association of price discounting of soda with store-level soda purchasing records between 2008 and 2013 by store-neighbourhood education in Montreal, Canada. Using data on grocery purchase transactions from a sample of supermarkets, pharmacies, supercentres and convenience stores, we performed an ecological time-series analysis, modelling weekly store-level sales of soda as a function of store-level price discounting, store- and neighbourhood-level confounders and an interaction term between discounting and categorical education in the neighbourhood of each store. Analysis by store type (n = 18 743, 12 437, 3965 and 49 533 store-weeks for superstores, pharmacies, supercentres and convenience stores, respectively) revealed that the effect measure modification of discounting by neighbourhood education on soda purchasing was lower in stores in the more educated neighbourhoods, most notably in pharmacies: -0.020 [95% confidence interval (CI): -0.028, -0.012] and -0.038 (95% CI: -0.051, -0.025), for middle- and high-education categories, respectively). Weaker effect modification was observed in convenience stores. There was no evidence of effect modification in supercentres or superstores. Price discounting is an important environmental risk factor for soda purchasing and can widen education inequalities in excess sugar intake across levels of education. Interventions to regulate price discounting warrant further investigation as a public health strategy to improve population nutrition, particularly in lower-education neighbourhoods.

Genetic basis of delay discounting in frequent gamblers: examination of a priori candidates and exploration of a panel of dopamine-related loci

PubMed Central

Gray, Joshua C; MacKillop, James

2014-01-01

Introduction Delay discounting is a behavioral economic index of impulsivity that reflects preferences for small immediate rewards relative to larger delayed rewards. It has been consistently linked to pathological gambling and other forms of addictive behavior, and has been proposed to be a behavioral characteristic that may link genetic variation and risk of developing addictive disorders (i.e., an endophenotype). Studies to date have revealed significant associations with polymorphisms associated with dopamine neurotransmission. The current study examined associations between delay discounting and both previously linked variants and a novel panel of dopamine-related variants in a sample of frequent gamblers. Methods Participants were 175 weekly gamblers of European ancestry who completed the Monetary Choice Questionnaire to assess delay discounting preferences and provided a DNA via saliva. Results In a priori tests, two loci previously associated with delayed reward discounting (rs1800497 and rs4680) were not replicated, however, the long form of DRD4 VNTR was significantly associated with lower discounting of delayed rewards. Exploratory analysis of the dopamine-related panel revealed 11 additional significant associations in genes associated with dopamine synthesis, breakdown, reuptake, and receptor function (DRD3, SLC6A3, DDC, DBH, and SLC18A2). An aggregate genetic risk score from the nominally significant loci accounted for 17% of the variance in discounting. Mediational analyses largely supported the presence of indirect effects between the associated loci, delay discounting, and pathological gambling severity. Conclusions These findings do not replicate previously reported associations but identify several novel candidates and provide preliminary support for a systems biology approach to understand the genetic basis of delay discounting. PMID:25365808

Discounts and rebates granted to public payers for medicines in European countries

PubMed Central

Vogler, Sabine; Zimmermann, Nina; Habl, Claudia; Piessnegger, Jutta; Bucsics, Anna

2012-01-01

Objective: The objective of this study was to provide an overview about the existence and types of discounts and rebates granted to public payers by the pharmaceutical industry in European countries. Methods: Data were collected via a questionnaire in spring 2011. Officials from public authorities for pharmaceutical pricing and reimbursement represented in the PPRI (Pharmaceutical Pricing and Reimbursement Information) network provided the information and reviewed the compilation. Results: Information is available from 31 European countries. Discounts and rebates granted to public payers by pharmaceutical industry were reported for 25 European countries. Such discounts exist both in the in- and out-patient sectors in 21 countries and in the in-patient sector only in four countries. Six countries reported not having any regulations or agreements regarding the discounts and rebates granted by industry. The most common discounts and rebates are price reductions and refunds linked to sales volume but types such as in-kind support, price-volume and risk-sharing agreements are also in place. A mix of various types of discounts and rebates is common. Many of these arrangements are confidential. Differences regarding types, the organizational and legal framework, validity and frequency of updates and the amount of the discounts and rebates granted exist among the surveyed countries. Conclusions: In Europe, discounts and rebates on medicines granted by pharmaceutical industry to public payers are common tools to contain public pharmaceutical expenditure. They appear to be used as a complimentary measure when price regulation does not achieve the desired results and in the few European countries with no or limited price regulation. The confidential character of many of these arrangements impedes transparency and may lead to a distortion of medicines prices. An analysis of the impact on these measures is recommended. PMID:23093898

Tuition Discounting and Socioeconomic Diversity at Larger Private Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reinoehl, Jason K.; Kowalski, Theodore J.

2015-01-01

Tuition discounting is a tactic deployed by many private four-year institutions as a means for enhancing either tuition revenue or institutional image. This study examines associations between "socioeconomic diversity" and two aspects of institutional grants--"freshman discount rate" and "freshman grant recipient discount…

Tuition Discounting in Challenging Times.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hubbell, Loren Loomis; Lapovsky, Lucie

2002-01-01

The twelfth annual tuition discounting survey by the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) revealed that tuition discounts are up slightly; it also provided data on participation rates, grant levels, distribution changes, correlation with endowments, shifts on the horizon, and other significant changes. (EV)

Towards a General Model of Temporal Discounting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van den Bos, Wouter; McClure, Samuel M.

2013-01-01

Psychological models of temporal discounting have now successfully displaced classical economic theory due to the simple fact that many common behavior patterns, such as impulsivity, were unexplainable with classic models. However, the now dominant hyperbolic model of discounting is itself becoming increasingly strained. Numerous factors have…

Towards a healthier discount procedure.

PubMed

Klock, Rogier M; Brouwer, Werner Bf; Annemans, Lieven Jp; Bos, Jasper M; Postma, Maarten J

2005-02-01

Most national guidelines for pharmacoeconomic research prescribe discounting, mostly of money and health against the same rate. There is much debate on whether this is adequate. Two theoretical arguments, the consistency argument of Weinstein and Stason, and the paralyzing paradox of Keeler and Cretin, are mostly responsible for the current standards. However, more recently, several authors have indicated that the basis to claim the necessity of using similar discount rates is rather weak, both practically and theoretically. In terms of finding a new theoretical basis on which to base discount rates for money and, in particular, health, Van Hout has made an important suggestion arguing that the discount rate for health could be based on the expected growth in life expectancy and the diminishing marginal utility related to such additional health. Similarly, Gravelle and Smith argue that if the value of health grows over time, discount rates that are used for costs cannot directly be applied to effects, but should be adjusted downwards.

Effects of episodic future thinking on discounting: Personalized age-progressed pictures improve risky long-term health decisions.

PubMed

Kaplan, Brent A; Reed, Derek D; Jarmolowicz, David P

2016-03-01

Many everyday choices are associated with both delayed and probabilistic outcomes. The temporal attention hypothesis suggests that individuals' decision making can be improved by focusing attention on temporally distal events and implies that environmental manipulations that bring temporally distal outcomes into focus may alter an individual's degree of discounting. One such manipulation, episodic future thinking, has shown to lower discount rates; however, several questions remain about the applicability of episodic future thinking to domains other than delay discounting. The present experiments examine the effects of a modified episodic-future-thinking procedure in which participants viewed age-progressed computer-generated images of themselves and answered questions related to their future, on probability discounting in the context of both a delayed health gain and loss. Results indicate that modified episodic future thinking effectively altered individuals' degree of discounting in the predicted directions and demonstrate the applicability of episodic future thinking to decision making of socially significant outcomes. © 2015 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

A two-level discount model for coordinating a decentralized supply chain considering stochastic price-sensitive demand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heydari, Jafar; Norouzinasab, Yousef

2015-12-01

In this paper, a discount model is proposed to coordinate pricing and ordering decisions in a two-echelon supply chain (SC). Demand is stochastic and price sensitive while lead times are fixed. Decentralized decision making where downstream decides on selling price and order size is investigated. Then, joint pricing and ordering decisions are extracted where both members act as a single entity aim to maximize whole SC profit. Finally, a coordination mechanism based on quantity discount is proposed to coordinate both pricing and ordering decisions simultaneously. The proposed two-level discount policy can be characterized from two aspects: (1) marketing viewpoint: a retail price discount to increase the demand, and (2) operations management viewpoint: a wholesale price discount to induce the retailer to adjust its order quantity and selling price jointly. Results of numerical experiments demonstrate that the proposed policy is suitable to coordinate SC and improve the profitability of SC as well as all SC members in comparison with decentralized decision making.

Biphasic Effects of Alcohol on Delay and Probability Discounting

PubMed Central

Bidwell, L. Cinnamon; MacKillop, James; Murphy, James G.; Grenga, Andrea; Swift, Robert M.; McGeary, John E.

2014-01-01

Delay discounting and probability discounting are behavioral economic indices of impulsive and risky decision making that have been associated with addictive behavior, but the acute biphasic effects of alcohol on these decision-making processes are not well understood. This study sought to investigate the biphasic effects of alcohol on delay and probability discounting across the ascending and descending limbs of the breath alcohol concentration (BAC) curve, which are respectively characterized by the stimulant and sedative effects of alcohol. Delay and probability discounting were measured at four time points (Baseline, Ascending, Descending, and Endpoint) across the BAC curve at two target alcohol doses (40 mg/dl and 80 mg/dl) in healthy adults (N = 23 and 27, for both doses, respectively). There was no significant effect of alcohol on delay discounting at either dose. Alcohol significantly affected probability discounting, such that reduced discounting for uncertain rewards was evident during the descending limb of the BAC curve at the lower dose (p<.05) and during both the ascending and descending limb of the BAC curve at the higher dose (p<.05). Thus, alcohol resulted in increased risky decision making, particularly during the descending limb which is primarily characterized by the sedative effects of alcohol. These findings suggest that the biphasic effects of alcohol across the ascending and descending limbs of the BAC have differential effects on behavior related to decision-making for probabilistic, but not delayed, rewards. Parallels to and distinctions from previous findings are discussed. PMID:23750692

Stated time preferences for health: a systematic review and meta analysis of private and social discount rates.

PubMed

Mahboub-Ahari, Alireza; Pourreza, Abolghasem; Sari, Ali Akbari; Rahimi Foroushani, Abbas; Heydari, Hassan

2014-01-01

The present study aimed to provide better insight on methodological issues related to time preference studies, and to estimate private and social discount rates, using a rigorous systematic review and meta-analysis. We searched PubMed, EMBASE and Proquest databases in June 2013. All studies had estimated private and social time preference rates for health outcomes through stated preference approach, recognized eligible for inclusion. We conducted both fixed and random effect meta-analyses using mean discount rate and standard deviation of the included studies. I-square statistics was used for testing heterogeneity of the studies. Private and social discount rates were estimated separately via Stata11 software. Out of 44 screened full texts, 8 population-based empirical studies were included in qualitative synthesis. Reported time preference rates for own health were from 0.036 to 0.07 and for social health from 0.04 to 0.2. Private and social discount rates were estimated at 0.056 (95% CI: 0.038, 0.074) and 0.066 (95% CI: 0.064, 0.068), respectively. Considering the impact of time preference on healthy behaviors and because of timing issues, individual's time preference as a key determinant of policy making should be taken into account. Direct translation of elicited discount rates to the official discount rates has been remained questionable. Decisions about the proper discount rate for health context, may need a cross-party consensus among health economists and policy makers.

Probability Weighting Functions Derived from Hyperbolic Time Discounting: Psychophysical Models and Their Individual Level Testing.

PubMed

Takemura, Kazuhisa; Murakami, Hajime

2016-01-01

A probability weighting function (w(p)) is considered to be a nonlinear function of probability (p) in behavioral decision theory. This study proposes a psychophysical model of probability weighting functions derived from a hyperbolic time discounting model and a geometric distribution. The aim of the study is to show probability weighting functions from the point of view of waiting time for a decision maker. Since the expected value of a geometrically distributed random variable X is 1/p, we formulized the probability weighting function of the expected value model for hyperbolic time discounting as w(p) = (1 - k log p)(-1). Moreover, the probability weighting function is derived from Loewenstein and Prelec's (1992) generalized hyperbolic time discounting model. The latter model is proved to be equivalent to the hyperbolic-logarithmic weighting function considered by Prelec (1998) and Luce (2001). In this study, we derive a model from the generalized hyperbolic time discounting model assuming Fechner's (1860) psychophysical law of time and a geometric distribution of trials. In addition, we develop median models of hyperbolic time discounting and generalized hyperbolic time discounting. To illustrate the fitness of each model, a psychological experiment was conducted to assess the probability weighting and value functions at the level of the individual participant. The participants were 50 university students. The results of individual analysis indicated that the expected value model of generalized hyperbolic discounting fitted better than previous probability weighting decision-making models. The theoretical implications of this finding are discussed.

Unhealthy diets, obesity and time discounting: a systematic literature review and network analysis

PubMed Central

Reeves, Aaron; McKee, Martin; Galea, Gauden; Stuckler, David

2016-01-01

Summary There is an increasing policy commitment to address the avoidable burdens of unhealthy diet, overweight and obesity. However, to design effective policies, it is important to understand why people make unhealthy dietary choices. Research from behavioural economics suggests a critical role for time discounting, which describes how people's value of a reward, such as better health, decreases with delay to its receipt. We systematically reviewed the literature on the relationship of time discounting with unhealthy diets, overweight and obesity in Web of Science and PubMed. We identified 41 studies that met our inclusion criteria as they examined the association between time discount rates and (i) unhealthy food consumption; (ii) overweight and (iii) response to dietary and weight loss interventions. Nineteen out of 25 cross‐sectional studies found time discount rates positively associated with overweight, obesity and unhealthy diets. Experimental studies indicated that lower time discounting was associated with greater weight loss. Findings varied by how time discount rates were measured; stronger results were observed for food than monetary‐based measurements. Network co‐citation analysis revealed a concentration of research in nutrition journals. Overall, there is moderate evidence that high time discounting is a significant risk factor for unhealthy diets, overweight and obesity and may serve as an important target for intervention. © 2016 The Authors Obesity Reviews published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association for the Study of Obesity (IASO) PMID:27256685

The use of integer programming to select bulls across breeding companies with volume price discounts.

PubMed

McConnel, M B; Galligan, D T

2004-10-01

Optimization programs are currently used to aid in the selection of bulls to be used in herd breeding programs. While these programs offer a systematic approach to the problem of semen selection, they ignore the impact of volume discounts. Volume discounts are discounts that vary depending on the number of straws purchased. The dynamic nature of volume discounts means that, in order to be adequately accounted for, they must be considered in the optimization routine. Failing to do this creates a missed economic opportunity because the potential benefits of optimally selecting and combining breeding company discount opportunities are not captured. To address these issues, an integer program was created which used binary decision variables to incorporate the effects of quantity discounts into the optimization program. A consistent set of trait criteria was used to select a group of bulls from 3 sample breeding companies. Three different selection programs were used to select the bulls, 2 traditional methods and the integer method. After the discounts were applied using each method, the integer program resulted in the lowest cost portfolio of bulls. A sensitivity analysis showed that the integer program also resulted in a low cost portfolio when the genetic trait goals were changed to be more or less stringent. In the sample application, a net benefit of the new approach over the traditional approaches was a 12.3 to 20.0% savings in semen cost.

78 FR 48606 - Guidance Regarding Deferred Discharge of Indebtedness Income of Corporations and Deferred...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-09

... Regarding Deferred Discharge of Indebtedness Income of Corporations and Deferred Original Issue Discount... deduction of deferred original issue discount (OID) (deferred OID deductions) under section 108(i)(5)(D... original issue discount deductions of C corporations. * * * * * (b) * * * (2) * * * (iii) * * * (D...

49 CFR 377.203 - Extension of credit to shippers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... payment of the full, nondiscounted rate instead of the discounted rate otherwise applicable. The difference between the discount and the full rate constitutes a carrier's liquidated damages for its collection effort. Under this method the tariff shall identify the discount rates that are subject to the...

75 FR 55677 - Guidance Regarding Deferred Discharge of Indebtedness Income of Corporations and Deferred...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-09-14

... Regarding Deferred Discharge of Indebtedness Income of Corporations and Deferred Original Issue Discount... deferred discharge of indebtedness (COD) income (deferred COD income) and deferred original issue discount...)-1T Deferred discharge of indebtedness income and deferred original issue discount deductions of C...

Time Horizons, Discounting, and Intertemporal Choice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Streich, Philip; Levy, Jack S.

2007-01-01

Although many decisions involve a stream of payoffs over time, political scientists have given little attention to how actors make the required tradeoffs between present and future payoffs, other than applying the standard exponential discounting model from economics. After summarizing the basic discounting model, we identify some of its leading…

Who Benefits from Tuition Discounts at Public Universities?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hillman, Nicholas W.

2010-01-01

This article uses data from the 2004 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study to provide insight about the range of tuition discounting practices at public institutions. Specifically, it examines the characteristics of students who receive tuition discounts from public four-year colleges and universities. A binary logistic regression is applied to…

Smoking, Discount Rates, and Returns to Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fersterer, Josef; Winter-Ebmer, Rudolf

2003-01-01

Individual time preference determines schooling enrolment. Moreover, smoking behavior in early ages has been shown to be highly related to time preference rates. Insofar as discount rates are uncorrelated to ability, predicting school enrolment by discount rates can get rid of the ability bias in an earnings regression. Accordingly, we use smoking…

Tuition Discounting to Optimize Enrollment and Revenue

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parrott, Sarah A.

2008-01-01

As the borders between higher education systems continue to erode and competition for qualified students increases, many institutions are exploring variable pricing options, known in the USA as "tuition discounting." The goal of tuition discounting is to use institutional funds to attract and retain desired students while maximizing net…

47 CFR 54.523 - Payment for the non-discount portion of supported services.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

...) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED) UNIVERSAL SERVICE Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries § 54.523 Payment for the non-discount portion of supported services. An eligible school, library, or... discounts. An eligible school, library, or consortium may not receive rebates for services or products...

47 CFR 54.523 - Payment for the non-discount portion of supported services.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

...) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED) UNIVERSAL SERVICE Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries § 54.523 Payment for the non-discount portion of supported services. An eligible school, library, or... discounts. An eligible school, library, or consortium may not receive rebates for services or products...

Literature Searching Services--Choosing the Contract with the Best Discount Plan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buckel, William L. (Bill)

1982-01-01

Focuses on the cost-saving technique--selecting the contract that offers the best discount--available when using the Lockheed DIALOG system. Examples of savings, password/contract options, and discount plans are given and a microcomputer program written in BASIC II to aid in calculating savings is described. (EJS)

47 CFR 54.523 - Payment for the non-discount portion of supported services.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... discounts. An eligible school, library, or consortium may not receive rebates for services or products...) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED) UNIVERSAL SERVICE Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries § 54.523 Payment for the non-discount portion of supported services. An eligible school, library, or...

Rats bred for high alcohol drinking are more sensitive to delayed and probabilistic outcomes.

PubMed

Wilhelm, C J; Mitchell, S H

2008-10-01

Alcoholics and heavy drinkers score higher on measures of impulsivity than nonalcoholics and light drinkers. This may be because of factors that predate drug exposure (e.g. genetics). This study examined the role of genetics by comparing impulsivity measures in ethanol-naive rats selectively bred based on their high [high alcohol drinking (HAD)] or low [low alcohol drinking (LAD)] consumption of ethanol. Replicates 1 and 2 of the HAD and LAD rats, developed by the University of Indiana Alcohol Research Center, completed two different discounting tasks. Delay discounting examines sensitivity to rewards that are delayed in time and is commonly used to assess 'choice' impulsivity. Probability discounting examines sensitivity to the uncertain delivery of rewards and has been used to assess risk taking and risk assessment. High alcohol drinking rats discounted delayed and probabilistic rewards more steeply than LAD rats. Discount rates associated with probabilistic and delayed rewards were weakly correlated, while bias was strongly correlated with discount rate in both delay and probability discounting. The results suggest that selective breeding for high alcohol consumption selects for animals that are more sensitive to delayed and probabilistic outcomes. Sensitivity to delayed or probabilistic outcomes may be predictive of future drinking in genetically predisposed individuals.

Food and beverage price discounts to improve health in remote Aboriginal communities: mixed method evaluation of a natural experiment.

PubMed

Ferguson, Megan; O'Dea, Kerin; Holden, Stacey; Miles, Eddie; Brimblecombe, Julie

2017-02-01

Retrospectively evaluate food price discounts in remote Aboriginal community stores. Four price discount strategies of 10% were designed in 2010, aiming to influence grocery, fruit, vegetables and diet soft-drink sales. This natural experiment across a group of stores was evaluated using an explanatory, sequential mixed method design through analysis of store point-of-sale, document, observation and interview data. The outcome was measured by change in: 1) percentage of grocery sales to total food and beverage; 2) fruit and vegetable sales; and 3) diet soft-drink sales. Qualitative data enabled the interpretation of outcomes through understanding perceived success and benefits, and enablers and barriers to implementation. Eighteen community stores and 54 informants participated. While targeted price discounts were considered important to improving health, no discernible effect was evident, due to inadequate design and communication of discount promotion, and probably inadequate magnitude of discount. Strategy impact on food and beverage sales was limited by promotion and magnitude of discount. Implication for Public Health: This study demonstrates key factors and commitment required to design, communicate, implement and monitor strategies to improve health in this challenging remote retail context. Evaluation of natural experiments can contribute evidence to policy-making. © 2016 The Authors.

Heroin and cocaine abusers have higher discount rates for delayed rewards than alcoholics or non-drug-using controls.

PubMed

Kirby, Kris N; Petry, Nancy M

2004-04-01

To test a prediction of the discounting model of impulsiveness that discount rates would be positively associated with addiction. The delay-discount rate refers to the rate of reduction in the present value of a future reward as the delay to that reward increases. We estimated participants' discount rates on the basis of their pattern of choices between smaller immediate rewards ($11-80) and larger, delayed rewards ($25-85; at delays from 1 week to 6 months) in a questionnaire format. Participants had a one-in-six chance of winning a reward that they chose on one randomly selected trial. Heroin (n = 27), cocaine (n = 41) and alcohol (n = 33) abusers and non-drug-using controls (n = 44) were recruited from advertisements. They were tested in a drug abuse research clinic at a medical school. On average, the cocaine and heroin groups had higher rates than controls (both P < 0.001), but alcoholics did not (P = 0.44). Abstinence was associated with lower rates for heroin abusers (P = 0.03), but not for cocaine or alcohol abusers (both P > 0.50). These data suggest that discount rates vary with the preferred drug of abuse, and that high discount rates should be considered in the development of substance abuse prevention and treatment efforts.

The discounting model selector: Statistical software for delay discounting applications.

PubMed

Gilroy, Shawn P; Franck, Christopher T; Hantula, Donald A

2017-05-01

Original, open-source computer software was developed and validated against established delay discounting methods in the literature. The software executed approximate Bayesian model selection methods from user-supplied temporal discounting data and computed the effective delay 50 (ED50) from the best performing model. Software was custom-designed to enable behavior analysts to conveniently apply recent statistical methods to temporal discounting data with the aid of a graphical user interface (GUI). The results of independent validation of the approximate Bayesian model selection methods indicated that the program provided results identical to that of the original source paper and its methods. Monte Carlo simulation (n = 50,000) confirmed that true model was selected most often in each setting. Simulation code and data for this study were posted to an online repository for use by other researchers. The model selection approach was applied to three existing delay discounting data sets from the literature in addition to the data from the source paper. Comparisons of model selected ED50 were consistent with traditional indices of discounting. Conceptual issues related to the development and use of computer software by behavior analysts and the opportunities afforded by free and open-sourced software are discussed and a review of possible expansions of this software are provided. © 2017 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

Delay Discounting and the use of Mindful Attention versus Distraction in the Treatment of Drug Addiction: A Conceptual Review

PubMed Central

Ashe, Melinda L.; Newman, Michelle G.; Wilson, Stephen J.

2015-01-01

In recent decades, researchers have integrated measurements of delay discounting, how the subjective valuation of a reward changes as a function of time, into their study of addiction. Research has begun to explore the idea that delay discounting may serve as both a marker for the effectiveness of existing treatments for addiction and a potential target for novel intervention strategies. As this work is in its infancy, many potentially significant connections between the construct of delay discounting and the treatment of addiction have yet to be explored. Here, we present a conceptual review highlighting novel points of intersection between delay discounting and two approaches to treating addiction that have become increasingly popular in recent years: those that focus on the development of mindfulness skills and those that emphasize the use of distraction techniques. Viewing these two techniques through the lens of delay discounting is particularly intriguing because of the very different way that they address the experience of drug cravings in the present moment (nonjudgmentally attending to versus shifting attention away from subjective cravings, respectively). We propose that these opposing strategies for dealing with cravings may interact with delay discounting in ways that have important implications for treatment effectiveness. PMID:25545725

Effects of blood glucose on delay discounting, food intake and counterregulation in lean and obese men.

PubMed

Klement, Johanna; Kubera, Britta; Eggeling, Jonas; Rädel, Christin; Wagner, Christin; Park, Soyoung Q; Peters, Achim

2018-03-01

Delay discounting as a measure of impulsivity has been shown to be higher in obesity with an association of increased food intake. Moreover, obese humans showed a higher wanting for high-calorie food than lean men when blood glucose concentrations were low. First studies linking blood glucose levels to delay discounting yielded mixed results. We hypothesized that obese people - in comparison to lean men - have a relative lack of energy, especially when blood glucose levels are low, that results in higher levels of delay discounting, food intake and hormonal counterregulation. We investigated 20 lean and 20 obese healthy young men in a single-blind balanced cross-over design. With a standardized glucose clamp technique, subjects underwent a hypoglycemic state in one condition and a euglycemic state in the control condition. Regularly, blood was sampled for assessment of hormonal status, and questionnaires were filled out to assess delay discounting and symptom awareness. After normalizing blood glucose concentrations, subjects were free to eat from a standardized test buffet, followed by a snack test. Delay discounting was higher in obese than in lean men throughout experiments (p < 0.03). However, we did not observe significant discounting differences between glucose conditions (p > 0.1). Furthermore, the discounting performance did not correlate with food intake from the test buffet or snack test (p > 0.3). As a response to hypoglycemia, hormonal counterregulation was pronounced in both weight groups (p < 0.03), but responses of ACTH, norepinephrine and glucagon were stronger in obese compared to lean men (p < 0.03). Also, intake from the high-calorie buffet after hypoglycemia compared to euglycemia was higher in obese subjects (p < 0.02) but comparable in lean men (p > 0.5). Our data suggest that augmented delay discounting is a robust feature in obesity that is not linked to glucose levels or actual food intake. With our systematically controlled approach, combining performance in delay discounting with regard to distinct blood glucose levels, different weight groups, counterregulatory behavior and food intake, our results imply that delay discounting is not susceptible to fluctuations of blood glucose and do not support the assumption that a low body's energy content leads to increased impulsivity. Further replications including women and larger sample sizes are needed to corroborate our data. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cigarette brand preference as a function of price among smoking youths in Canada: are they smoking premium, discount or native brands?

PubMed

Leatherdale, S T; Ahmed, R; Barisic, A; Murnaghan, D; Manske, S

2009-12-01

Given that little is known about the price-related cigarette brand preferences of youths, the current study seeks to characterise cigarette brand preferences and examine factors associated with smoking discount or native cigarette brands among Canadian youths who are current smokers. This study used nationally representative data collected from 71,003 grade 5-12 students as part of the 2006-7 Canadian Youth Smoking Survey (YSS). Using data from current smokers, logistic regression models were used to examine factors associated with smoking discount or native cigarette brands relative to premium cigarette brands. In 2006, premium cigarettes were the most prevalent brand of cigarette youths report usually smoking (49.4%); a substantial number of youths do report usually smoking either discount (12.9%) or native (9.3%) cigarette brands. Occasional smokers were more likely to report usually smoking premium cigarettes whereas daily smokers were more likely to report smoking either discount or native cigarettes. In particular, discount and native brands appear to be appealing among smoking youths with less spending money or those who are heavier smokers compared to youths smoking premium brands. Discount and native cigarette brands are commonly used by a substantial number of smoking youths in Canada. Additional research is required to better understand the reasons behind different cigarette brand preferences and how youths are able to access premium, discount and illicit native cigarettes. Moreover, ongoing surveillance of the cigarette brand preferences of youths is required for guiding future tobacco control policy and programming activities.

Delay discounting rates: a strong prognostic indicator of smoking relapse.

PubMed

Sheffer, Christine E; Christensen, Darren R; Landes, Reid; Carter, Larry P; Jackson, Lisa; Bickel, Warren K

2014-11-01

Recent evidence suggests that several dimensions of impulsivity and locus of control are likely to be significant prognostic indicators of relapse. One-hundred and thirty-one treatment seeking smokers were enrolled in six weeks of multi-component cognitive-behavioral therapy with eight weeks of nicotine replacement therapy. Cox proportional hazard regressions were used to model days to relapse with each of the following: delay discounting of $100, delay discounting of $1000, six subscales of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS), Rotter's Locus of Control (RLOC), Fagerstrom's Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND), and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Hazard ratios for a one standard deviation increase were estimated with 95% confidence intervals for each explanatory variable. Likelihood ratios were used to examine the level of association with days to relapse for different combinations of the explanatory variables while accounting for nicotine dependence and stress level. These analyses found that the $100 delay discounting rate had the strongest association with days to relapse. Further, when discounting rates were combined with the FTND and PSS, the associations remained significant. When the other measures were combined with the FTND and PSS, their associations with relapse non-significant. These findings indicate that delay discounting is independently associated with relapse and adds to what is already accounted for by nicotine dependence and stress level. They also signify that delay discounting is a productive new target for enhancing treatment for tobacco dependence. Consequently, adding an intervention designed to decrease discounting rates to a comprehensive treatment for tobacco dependence has the potential to decrease relapse rates. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

No food for thought: moderating effects of delay discounting and future time perspective on the relation between income and food insecurity.

PubMed

Epstein, Leonard H; Jankowiak, Noelle; Lin, Henry; Paluch, Rocco; Koffarnus, Mikhail N; Bickel, Warren K

2014-09-01

Low income is related to food insecurity, and research has suggested that a scarcity of resources associated with low income can shift attention to the present, thereby discounting the future. We tested whether attending to the present and discounting the future may moderate the influence of income on food insecurity. Delay discounting and measures of future time perspective (Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory, Consideration of Future Consequences Scale, time period of financial planning, and subjective probability of living to age 75 y) were studied as moderators of the relation between income and food insecurity in a diverse sample of 975 adults, 31.8% of whom experienced some degree of food insecurity. Income, financial planning, subjective probability of living to age 75 y, and delay discounting predicted food insecurity as well as individuals who were high in food insecurity. Three-way interactions showed that delay discounting interacted with financial planning and income to predict food insecurity (P = 0.003). At lower levels of income, food insecurity was lowest for subjects who had good financial planning skills and did not discount the future, whereas having good financial skills and discounting the future had minimal influence on food insecurity. The same 3-way interaction was observed when high food insecurity was predicted (P = 0.008). Because of the role of scarce resources on narrowing attention and reducing prospective thinking, research should address whether modifying future orientation may reduce food insecurity even in the face of diminishing financial resources. © 2014 American Society for Nutrition.

Unhealthy diets, obesity and time discounting: a systematic literature review and network analysis.

PubMed

Barlow, Pepita; Reeves, Aaron; McKee, Martin; Galea, Gauden; Stuckler, David

2016-09-01

There is an increasing policy commitment to address the avoidable burdens of unhealthy diet, overweight and obesity. However, to design effective policies, it is important to understand why people make unhealthy dietary choices. Research from behavioural economics suggests a critical role for time discounting, which describes how people's value of a reward, such as better health, decreases with delay to its receipt. We systematically reviewed the literature on the relationship of time discounting with unhealthy diets, overweight and obesity in Web of Science and PubMed. We identified 41 studies that met our inclusion criteria as they examined the association between time discount rates and (i) unhealthy food consumption; (ii) overweight and (iii) response to dietary and weight loss interventions. Nineteen out of 25 cross-sectional studies found time discount rates positively associated with overweight, obesity and unhealthy diets. Experimental studies indicated that lower time discounting was associated with greater weight loss. Findings varied by how time discount rates were measured; stronger results were observed for food than monetary-based measurements. Network co-citation analysis revealed a concentration of research in nutrition journals. Overall, there is moderate evidence that high time discounting is a significant risk factor for unhealthy diets, overweight and obesity and may serve as an important target for intervention. © 2016 The Authors Obesity Reviews published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association for the Study of Obesity (IASO). © 2016 The Authors Obesity Reviews published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association for the Study of Obesity (IASO).

Trends in the use and advertising of discount versus premium snuff.

PubMed

Timberlake, David S; Pechmann, Cornelia

2013-02-01

The Conwood Company, a major producer of discount moist snuff, was awarded a $1 billion antitrust settlement in the year 2000 against its leading competitor, the U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company. The objective of this study was to examine the trends in use and advertising of discount versus premium snuff since the Conwood settlement, a topic seldom addressed in the tobacco control literature. 2 sources of data were analyzed in 2011: (a) male snuff users from the 2002-2009 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health (N = 13,172) and (b) total advertisements of moist snuff identified from over 350 consumer magazines dated 2005-2009 (N = 861). For the survey data, demographic and tobacco-related measures were assessed as predictors of use of discount versus premium snuff in logistic regression models. For the advertising data, associations were examined between the snuff category and nicotine content, magazine youth readership, and year of magazine publication. The prevalence of discount and premium snuff use among males increased and decreased, respectively, from 2002 to 2009. Significant predictors of using discount versus premium snuff were being an adolescent, being an African-American, being a current or former smoker, living in a less populated region of the country, and using snuff frequently. Discount snuff advertising was associated with publication in magazines with a high youth readership. Discount snuff has grown in popularity among male adolescents who have been a target of advertising. The tobacco's cheap price and high nicotine content pose a public health problem because of the potential for long-term tobacco use and dependence.

Me, Myself, and Money II: Relative Deprivation Predicts Disordered Gambling Severity via Delay Discounting, Especially Among Gamblers Who Have a Financially Focused Self-Concept.

PubMed

Tabri, Nassim; Will Shead, N; Wohl, Michael J A

2017-12-01

In the current research, we examined whether the known link between relative deprivation and disordered gambling (via delay discounting; i.e., preferences for immediate smaller rewards relative to delayed larger rewards) is moderated by the extent to which gamblers have a financially focused self-concept. Specifically, we hypothesized that delay discounting would be a strong predictor of disordered gambling among those who base their self-worth on their financial success. To test this moderated-mediation model, a community sample of gamblers (N = 239) completed measures that assessed relative deprivation, delay discounting, financially focused self-concept, and disordered gambling severity. As predicted, people who felt more relative deprivation reported more severe symptoms of disordered gambling and this association was mediated by delay discounting. Importantly, this mediated relationship was moderated by the extent to which participants' self-concept was focused on financial success. Among participants whose self-concept was high in financial focus, greater delay discounting (stemming from relative deprivation) was a strong predictor of disordered gambling. Among people whose self-concept was low in financial focus, delay discounting (stemming from relative deprivation) was a weak predictor of disordered gambling. Thus, the magnitude of the indirect effect of relative deprivation on disordered gambling severity was larger among people with a more financially focused self-concept-an effect mediated by delay discounting. These findings suggest that targeting gamblers' financial focus in prevention and treatment interventions may be instrumental in curtailing the development and maintenance of disordered gambling.

Quality defects in market beef and dairy cows and bulls sold through livestock auction markets in the Western United States: II. Relative effects on selling price.

PubMed

Ahola, J K; Foster, H A; Vanoverbeke, D L; Jensen, K S; Wilson, R L; Glaze, J B; Fife, T E; Gray, C W; Nash, S A; Panting, R R; Rimbey, N R

2011-05-01

Relative effects of Beef Quality Assurance (BQA)-related defects in market beef and dairy cows and bulls on selling price at auction was evaluated during 2008. The presence and severity of 23 BQA-related traits were determined during sales in Idaho, California, and Utah. Overall, 18,949 unique lots consisting of 23,479 animals were assessed during 125 dairy sales and 79 beef sales. Mean sale price ± SD (per 45.5 kg) for market beef cows, beef bulls, dairy cows, and dairy bulls was $45.15 ± 9.42, $56.30 ± 9.21, $42.23 ± 12.26, and $55.10 ± 9.07, respectively. When combined, all recorded traits explained 36% of the variation in selling price in beef cows, 35% in beef bulls, 61% in dairy cows, and 56% in dairy bulls. Premiums and discounts were determined in comparison with a "par" or "base" animal. Compared with a base BCS 5 beef cow (on a 9-point beef scale), BCS 1 to 4 cows were discounted (P < 0.0001), whereas premiums (P < 0.05) were estimated for BCS 6 to 8. Compared with a base BCS 3.0 dairy cow (on a 5-point dairy scale), more body condition resulted in a premium (P ≤ 0.001), whereas a less-than-desirable BCS of 2.0 or 2.5 was discounted (P < 0.0001). Emaciated or near-emaciated cows (beef BCS 1 or 2; dairy BCS 1.0 or 1.5) were discounted (P < 0.0001). Compared with base cows weighing 545 to 635 kg, lighter BW beef cows were discounted (P < 0.0001), whereas heavier beef cows received (P < 0.05) a premium. Compared with a base dairy cow weighing 636 to 727 kg, lighter BW cows were discounted (P < 0.0001), whereas heavier cows (727 to 909 kg) received a premium (P < 0.01). Beef and dairy cows with any evidence of lameness were discounted (P < 0.0001). Presence of ocular neoplasia in the precancerous stage discounted (P = 0.05) beef cows and discounted (P < 0.01) dairy cows, whereas at the cancerous stage, it discounted (P < 0.0001) all cows. Hide color influenced (P < 0.0001) selling price in beef cattle but had no effect (P = 0.17) in dairy cows. Animals that were visibly sick were discounted (P < 0.0001). Results suggest that improving BCS and BW, which producers can do at the farm or ranch level, positively affects sale price. Furthermore, animals that are visibly sick or have a defect associated with a possible antibiotic risk will be discounted. Ultimately, animals with minor quality defects should be sold in a timely manner before the defect advances and the discount increases.

78 FR 8226 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request for Form 1099-OID

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-02-05

... Form 1099-OID, Original Issue Discount. DATES: Written comments should be received on or before April 8... . SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title: Original Issue Discount. OMB Number: 1545-0117. Form Number: 1099-OID. Abstract: Form 1099-OID is used for reporting original issue discount as required by section 6049 of the...

Delay Discounting of Self-Determined and Experimenter-Determined Commodities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weatherly, Jeffrey N.; Gudding, Jennifer; Derenne, Adam

2010-01-01

Research suggests that individuals prefer self-determined reinforcers over experimenter-determined ones. The present study had 518 college students complete a delay-discounting task in which the commodity was cigarettes, a grocery store gift card, casino tokens, cash, or the choice of the four. The least amount of delay discounting was observed…

75 FR 61747 - Discount Energy Group, LLC; Supplemental Notice That Initial Market-Based Rate Filing Includes...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-06

... proceeding of Discount Energy Group, LLC's application for market-based rate authority, with an accompanying... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. ER10-2803-000] Discount Energy Group, LLC; Supplemental Notice That Initial Market-Based Rate Filing Includes Request for Blanket...

Tuition Discounting Is on the Rise: Results of a NACUBO Study of Independent Institutions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hubbell, Loren Loomis

1995-01-01

A study by the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) analyzed tuition discount ratios for small colleges with lower tuition, small colleges with higher tuition, and large colleges/universities. It examined average tuition discount percentages, average tuition rates and enrollments, percent of students aided, and…

Internet Addiction and Delay Discounting in College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saville, Bryan K.; Gisbert, Amanda; Kopp, Jason; Telesco, Carolyn

2010-01-01

To examine the relation between Internet addiction and delay discounting, we gave 276 college students a survey designed to measure Internet addiction and a paper-based delay-discounting task. In our larger sample, we identified 14 students who met the criteria for Internet addiction; we also identified 14 matched controls who were similar to the…

The Impact of Delays on Parents' Perceptions of Treatments for Problem Behavior

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Call, Nathan A.; Reavis, Andrea R.; McCracken, Courtney E.; Gillespie, Scott E.; Scheithauer, Mindy C.

2015-01-01

Parent engagement in behavioral interventions is critical for treatments to succeed. Parental decision-making regarding treatments can be impacted by systematic biases, such as the tendency to discount the value of delayed benefits, or "delay discounting". This study examined the impact of delay discounting on parents' perceptions of…

Future Rice Is Discounted Less Steeply than Future Money in Thailand

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Takahashi, Masaharu; Masataka, Nobuo; Malaivijitnond, Suchinda; Wongsiri, Siriwat

2008-01-01

There is evidence that people discount food more steeply than money, suggesting that primary or consumable reinforcers lose value quickly, whereas conditioned or nonconsumable reinforcers lose value slowly. In the present study, discounting rates of baht (unstable currency) and rice (preservable food) were compared during a period of unstable…

Determining a Relationship between Higher Education Financial Position and Tuition Discount Rates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Browning, Julianna

2013-01-01

Institutions have increased the practice of tuition discounting, that is, the strategic use of price discrimination. During the past 30 years, both the average percent discount given to students and the proportion of students receiving tuition breaks have increased. As this practice has increased, there are financial determinants and implications…

Delay Discounting of Qualitatively Different Reinforcers in Rats

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Calvert, Amanda L.; Green, Leonard; Myerson, Joel

2010-01-01

Humans discount larger delayed rewards less steeply than smaller rewards, whereas no such magnitude effect has been observed in rats (and pigeons). It remains possible that rats' discounting is sensitive to differences in the quality of the delayed reinforcer even though it is not sensitive to amount. To evaluate this possibility, Experiment 1…

Discounting Future Green: Money versus the Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hardisty, David J.; Weber, Elke U.

2009-01-01

In 3 studies, participants made choices between hypothetical financial, environmental, and health gains and losses that took effect either immediately or with a delay of 1 or 10 years. In all 3 domains, choices indicated that gains were discounted more than losses. There were no significant differences in the discounting of monetary and…

Discounting of Monetary Rewards that are Both Delayed and Probabilistic: Delay and Probability Combine Multiplicatively, not Additively

PubMed Central

Vanderveldt, Ariana; Green, Leonard; Myerson, Joel

2014-01-01

The value of an outcome is affected both by the delay until its receipt (delay discounting) and by the likelihood of its receipt (probability discounting). Despite being well-described by the same hyperboloid function, delay and probability discounting involve fundamentally different processes, as revealed, for example, by the differential effects of reward amount. Previous research has focused on the discounting of delayed and probabilistic rewards separately, with little research examining more complex situations in which rewards are both delayed and probabilistic. In two experiments, participants made choices between smaller rewards that were both immediate and certain and larger rewards that were both delayed and probabilistic. Analyses revealed significant interactions between delay and probability factors inconsistent with an additive model. In contrast, a hyperboloid discounting model in which delay and probability were combined multiplicatively provided an excellent fit to the data. These results suggest that the hyperboloid is a good descriptor of decision making in complicated monetary choice situations like those people encounter in everyday life. PMID:24933696

THE DISCOUNTED REPRODUCTIVE NUMBER FOR EPIDEMIOLOGY

PubMed Central

Reluga, Timothy C.; Medlock, Jan; Galvani, Alison

2013-01-01

The basic reproductive number, , and the effective reproductive number, , are commonly used in mathematical epidemiology as summary statistics for the size and controllability of epidemics. However, these commonly used reproductive numbers can be misleading when applied to predict pathogen evolution because they do not incorporate the impact of the timing of events in the life-history cycle of the pathogen. To study evolution problems where the host population size is changing, measures like the ultimate proliferation rate must be used. A third measure of reproductive success, which combines properties of both the basic reproductive number and the ultimate proliferation rate, is the discounted reproductive number . The discounted reproductive number is a measure of reproductive success that is an individual’s expected lifetime offspring production discounted by the background population growth rate. Here, we draw attention to the discounted reproductive number by providing an explicit definition and a systematic application framework. We describe how the discounted reproductive number overcomes the limitations of both the standard reproductive numbers and proliferation rates, and show that is closely connected to Fisher’s reproductive values for different life-history stages PMID:19364158

Temporal discounting and heart rate reactivity to stress.

PubMed

Diller, James W; Patros, Connor H G; Prentice, Paula R

2011-07-01

Temporal discounting is the reduction of the value of a reinforcer as a function of increasing delay to its presentation. Impulsive individuals discount delayed consequences more rapidly than self-controlled individuals, and impulsivity has been related to substance abuse, gambling, and other problem behaviors. A growing body of literature has identified biological correlates of impulsivity, though little research to date has examined relations between delay discounting and markers of poor health (e.g., cardiovascular reactivity to stress). We evaluated the relation between one aspect of impulsivity, measured using a computerized temporal discounting task, and heart rate reactivity, measured as a change in heart rate from rest during a serial subtraction task. A linear regression showed that individuals who were more reactive to stress responded more impulsively (i.e., discounted delayed reinforcers more rapidly). When results were stratified by gender, the effect was observed for females, but not for males. This finding supports previous research on gender differences in cardiovascular reactivity and suggests that this type of reactivity may be an important correlate of impulsive behavior. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Agreeing to disagree on climate policy.

PubMed

Heal, Geoffrey M; Millner, Antony

2014-03-11

Disagreements about the value of the utility discount rate--the rate at which our concern for the welfare of future people declines with their distance from us in time--are at the heart of the debate about the appropriate intensity of climate policy. Seemingly small differences in the discount rate yield very different policy prescriptions, and no consensus "correct" value has been identified. We argue that the choice of discount rate is an ethical primitive: there are many different legitimate opinions as to its value, and none should receive a privileged place in economic analysis of climate policy. Rather, we advocate a social choice-based approach in which a diverse set of individual discount rates is aggregated into a "representative" rate. We show that performing this aggregation efficiently leads to a time-dependent discount rate that declines monotonically to the lowest rate in the population. We apply this discounting scheme to calculations of the social cost of carbon recently performed by the US government and show that it provides an attractive compromise between competing ethical positions, and thus provides a possible resolution to the ethical impasse in climate change economics.

Cross-cultural comparisons of delay discounting of gain and loss.

PubMed

Ishii, Keiko; Gang, Lili; Takahashi, Taiki

2016-11-01

People generally tend to discount future outcomes in favor of smaller but immediate gains (i.e., delay discounting). The present research examined cultural similarities and differences in delay discounting of gain and loss between Chinese and Japanese, based on a q-exponential model of intertemporal choice. Using a hypothetical situation, we asked 65 Japanese participants and 51 Chinese participants to choose between receiving (or paying) a different amount of money immediately or with a specified delay (1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month, 6 months, 1 year, 5 years, and 25 years). For each delay, participants completed a series of 40 binary choices for gain or loss. Regardless of cultures, the q-exponential model was the optimal model. Both impulsivity and time-inconsistency were higher for future gains than for future losses. In addition to the cultural similarities, Chinese participants discounted future gains and losses more steeply than did Japanese. In contrast, Japanese participants were more time-inconsistent in delay discounting than were Chinese, suggesting that the reduction in their subjective value depended relatively on delay.

Food reinforcement and delay discounting in zBMI-discordant siblings.

PubMed

Feda, Denise M; Roemmich, James N; Roberts, April; Epstein, Leonard H

2015-02-01

The interaction of food reinforcement and the inability to delay gratification are related to adult energy intake and obesity. This study was designed to test the association of sibling pair differences in relative reinforcing efficacy of food and delay discounting on sibling pair differences in zBMI scores of same-gender zBMI-discordant siblings. We tested main and interactive relationships between delay discounting and relative reinforcing efficacy of food on zBMI discordance in 14 zBMI-discordant biological sibling pairs (6 female pairs) using a discordant sibling study design. Sibling pair differences in relative reinforcing efficacy of food were associated with sibling pair differences in zBMI (p= 0.046); this effect was moderated by delay discounting (p <0.002). Sibling pairs with greater differences in relative reinforcing efficacy and delay discounting had greater differences in zBMI. The combination of greater sibling pair differences in delay discounting and relative reinforcing efficacy is associated with greater discordance in zBMI in adolescent sibling pairs. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

What Makes You Generous? The Influence of Rural and Urban Rearing on Social Discounting in China

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

An individual’s willingness to share resources declines as the social distance between the decision maker and the recipient increases, which is known as social discounting. This social-distance-dependent prosocial behavior is likely to be influenced by the region in which individuals were raised. Based on previous studies on social discounting, this research focuses on the differing social distance-dependent prosocial behaviors between rural- and urban-reared participants in China. Our data showed that both groups’ behaviors conform to the social discounting function and fit the hyperbolic model, as reported in previous studies about social discounting. Interestingly, individuals who were raised in rural areas yielded a smaller discount rate than those who were raised in urban areas, which indicated that a rural upbringing produced people who were more generous than those with an urban upbringing. Furthermore, this distinct type of generosity occurred notably among individuals with greater social distance, such as strangers or distant acquaintances. The reason may be due to the difference in dominant culture, production mode and lifestyle between rural and urban people. PMID:26172452

An alternative approach to calculating Area-Under-the-Curve (AUC) in delay discounting research.

PubMed

Borges, Allison M; Kuang, Jinyi; Milhorn, Hannah; Yi, Richard

2016-09-01

Applied to delay discounting data, Area-Under-the-Curve (AUC) provides an atheoretical index of the rate of delay discounting. The conventional method of calculating AUC, by summing the areas of the trapezoids formed by successive delay-indifference point pairings, does not account for the fact that most delay discounting tasks scale delay pseudoexponentially, that is, time intervals between delays typically get larger as delays get longer. This results in a disproportionate contribution of indifference points at long delays to the total AUC, with minimal contribution from indifference points at short delays. We propose two modifications that correct for this imbalance via a base-10 logarithmic transformation and an ordinal scaling transformation of delays. These newly proposed indices of discounting, AUClog d and AUCor d, address the limitation of AUC while preserving a primary strength (remaining atheoretical). Re-examination of previously published data provides empirical support for both AUClog d and AUCor d . Thus, we believe theoretical and empirical arguments favor these methods as the preferred atheoretical indices of delay discounting. © 2016 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

Social Discounting under Risk.

PubMed

Jin, Jia; Pei, Guanxiong; Ma, Qingguo

2017-01-01

As a measure of how prosocial behavior depends on social distance, social discounting is defined as the decrease in generosity between the decision maker and the recipient as the social distance increases. While risk is a ubiquitous part of modern life, there is limited research on the relationship between risk and prosocial behavior. In the present experiment, we empirically test whether risk has an influence on social discounting. We use the choice titration procedure to examine this effect. Our data show that independent of risk, participants are less eager to forego money and exhibit more selfishness toward a specific person when the social distance increases; these findings are reflected in the hyperbolic model. Interestingly, risk influences the shape of the social discounting function, which is reflected in the notable different discount rates. Individuals who make decisions under risk yield a smaller discount rate than those who make decisions without risk, i.e., under risk subjects reduce less their generosity as a function of the social distance. Furthermore, this distinct type of generosity occurs typically among individuals with 10-distance recipients but not with the closest- and furthest-social-distance recipients.

Food reinforcement and delay discounting in zBMI-discordant siblings ☆

PubMed Central

Feda, Denise M.; Roemmich, James N.; Roberts, April; Epstein, Leonard H.

2014-01-01

Objective The interaction of food reinforcement and the inability to delay gratification are related to adult energy intake and obesity. This study was designed to test the association of sibling pair differences in relative reinforcing efficacy of food and delay discounting on sibling pair differences in zBMI scores of same-gender zBMI-discordant siblings. Design and methods We tested main and interactive relationships between delay discounting and relative reinforcing efficacy of food on zBMI discordance in 14 zBMI-discordant biological sibling pairs (6 female pairs) using a discordant sibling study design. Results Sibling pair differences in relative reinforcing efficacy of food were associated with sibling pair differences in zBMI (p = 0.046); this effect was moderated by delay discounting (p < 0.002). Sibling pairs with greater differences in relative reinforcing efficacy and delay discounting had greater differences in zBMI. Conclusions The combination of greater sibling pair differences in delay discounting and relative reinforcing efficacy is associated with greater discordance in zBMI in adolescent sibling pairs. PMID:25464024

Bleak Present, Bright Future: Online Episodic Future Thinking, Scarcity, Delay Discounting, and Food Demand.

PubMed

Sze, Yan Yan; Stein, Jeffrey S; Bickel, Warren K; Paluch, Rocco A; Epstein, Leonard H

2017-07-01

Obesity is associated with steep discounting of the future and increased food reinforcement. Episodic future thinking (EFT), a type of prospective thinking, has been observed to reduce delay discounting (DD) and improve dietary decision making. In contrast, negative income shock (i.e., abrupt transitions to poverty) has been shown to increase discounting and may worsen dietary decision-making. Scalability of EFT training and protective effects of EFT against simulated negative income shock on DD and demand for food were assessed. In two experiments we showed online-administered EFT reliably reduced DD. Furthermore, EFT reduced DD and demand for fast foods even when challenged by negative income shock. Our findings suggest EFT is a scalable intervention that has implications for improving public health by reducing discounting of the future and demand for high energy dense food.

Can you refuse these discounts? An evaluation of the use and price discount impact of price-related promotions among US adult smokers by cigarette manufacturers

PubMed Central

Caraballo, Ralph S; Wang, Xu; Xu, Xin

2014-01-01

Objectives The raising unit price of cigarette has been shown to be one of the most effective ways of reducing cigarette consumption and increasing rates of successful quitting. However, researchers have shown that price-sensitive smokers have used a variety of strategies to mitigate the effect of the rising price of cigarettes on their smoking habits. In particular, 23–34% of adult smokers in the US use cheaper brands, and 18–55% use coupons or promotions. Little is known about the discount use by type of brands. As such, the main purpose of this analysis is to evaluate the uses and price discount effects of these price-related discounts by manufacturers and major brands. Setting An analysis based on the cross-sectional 2009–2010 National Adult Tobacco Survey (NATS). Participants 11 766 current smokers aged 18 or above in the USA. Primary outcome measures Price-related discount was defined as smokers who used coupons, rebates, buy-one-get-one-free, two-for-one or any other special promotions for their last cigarettes purchase. Results The use of price-related discounts and associated price impact vary widely by cigarette manufacturer and brand. Approximately one of three Camel, one of four Marlboro and one of eight Newport smokers used price-related discounts on their latest cigarette purchases. The average price reductions of discounts offered by Philip Morris (PM) or R.J. Reynolds (RJR) were around 29 cents per pack while that of Lorillard (Newport only) was 24 cents per pack. Cigarette brands that provided significant per pack price reductions include: PM Marlboro (28 cents), RJR brand Camel (41 cents), Doral (50 cents), Kool (73 cents) and Salem (80 cents), and Lorillard Newport (24 cents). Conclusions Policies that decrease price-minimisation strategies will benefit public health. PMID:24898086

Can you refuse these discounts? An evaluation of the use and price discount impact of price-related promotions among US adult smokers by cigarette manufacturers.

PubMed

Caraballo, Ralph S; Wang, Xu; Xu, Xin

2014-06-04

The raising unit price of cigarette has been shown to be one of the most effective ways of reducing cigarette consumption and increasing rates of successful quitting. However, researchers have shown that price-sensitive smokers have used a variety of strategies to mitigate the effect of the rising price of cigarettes on their smoking habits. In particular, 23-34% of adult smokers in the US use cheaper brands, and 18-55% use coupons or promotions. Little is known about the discount use by type of brands. As such, the main purpose of this analysis is to evaluate the uses and price discount effects of these price-related discounts by manufacturers and major brands. An analysis based on the cross-sectional 2009-2010 National Adult Tobacco Survey (NATS). 11 766 current smokers aged 18 or above in the USA. Price-related discount was defined as smokers who used coupons, rebates, buy-one-get-one-free, two-for-one or any other special promotions for their last cigarettes purchase. The use of price-related discounts and associated price impact vary widely by cigarette manufacturer and brand. Approximately one of three Camel, one of four Marlboro and one of eight Newport smokers used price-related discounts on their latest cigarette purchases. The average price reductions of discounts offered by Philip Morris (PM) or R.J. Reynolds (RJR) were around 29 cents per pack while that of Lorillard (Newport only) was 24 cents per pack. Cigarette brands that provided significant per pack price reductions include: PM Marlboro (28 cents), RJR brand Camel (41 cents), Doral (50 cents), Kool (73 cents) and Salem (80 cents), and Lorillard Newport (24 cents). Policies that decrease price-minimisation strategies will benefit public health. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Insulin, Central Dopamine D2 Receptors, and Monetary Reward Discounting in Obesity

PubMed Central

Eisenstein, Sarah A.; Gredysa, Danuta M.; Antenor–Dorsey, Jo Ann; Green, Leonard; Arbeláez, Ana Maria; Koller, Jonathan M.; Black, Kevin J.; Perlmutter, Joel S.; Moerlein, Stephen M.; Hershey, Tamara

2015-01-01

Animal research finds that insulin regulates dopamine signaling and reward behavior, but similar research in humans is lacking. We investigated whether individual differences in body mass index, percent body fat, pancreatic β-cell function, and dopamine D2 receptor binding were related to reward discounting in obese and non-obese adult men and women. Obese (n = 27; body mass index>30) and non-obese (n = 20; body mass index<30) adults were assessed for percent body fat with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and for β-cell function using disposition index. Choice of larger, but delayed or less certain, monetary rewards relative to immediate, certain smaller monetary rewards was measured using delayed and probabilistic reward discounting tasks. Positron emission tomography using a non-displaceable D2-specific radioligand, [11C](N-methyl)benperidol quantified striatal D2 receptor binding. Groups differed in body mass index, percent body fat, and disposition index, but not in striatal D2 receptor specific binding or reward discounting. Higher percent body fat in non-obese women related to preference for a smaller, certain reward over a larger, less likely one (greater probabilistic discounting). Lower β-cell function in the total sample and lower insulin sensitivity in obese related to stronger preference for an immediate and smaller monetary reward over delayed receipt of a larger one (greater delay discounting). In obese adults, higher striatal D2 receptor binding related to greater delay discounting. Interestingly, striatal D2 receptor binding was not significantly related to body mass index, percent body fat, or β-cell function in either group. Our findings indicate that individual differences in percent body fat, β-cell function, and striatal D2 receptor binding may each contribute to altered reward discounting behavior in non-obese and obese individuals. These results raise interesting questions about whether and how striatal D2 receptor binding and metabolic factors, including β-cell function, interact to affect reward discounting in humans. PMID:26192187

Insulin, Central Dopamine D2 Receptors, and Monetary Reward Discounting in Obesity.

PubMed

Eisenstein, Sarah A; Gredysa, Danuta M; Antenor-Dorsey, Jo Ann; Green, Leonard; Arbeláez, Ana Maria; Koller, Jonathan M; Black, Kevin J; Perlmutter, Joel S; Moerlein, Stephen M; Hershey, Tamara

2015-01-01

Animal research finds that insulin regulates dopamine signaling and reward behavior, but similar research in humans is lacking. We investigated whether individual differences in body mass index, percent body fat, pancreatic β-cell function, and dopamine D2 receptor binding were related to reward discounting in obese and non-obese adult men and women. Obese (n = 27; body mass index>30) and non-obese (n = 20; body mass index<30) adults were assessed for percent body fat with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and for β-cell function using disposition index. Choice of larger, but delayed or less certain, monetary rewards relative to immediate, certain smaller monetary rewards was measured using delayed and probabilistic reward discounting tasks. Positron emission tomography using a non-displaceable D2-specific radioligand, [11C](N-methyl)benperidol quantified striatal D2 receptor binding. Groups differed in body mass index, percent body fat, and disposition index, but not in striatal D2 receptor specific binding or reward discounting. Higher percent body fat in non-obese women related to preference for a smaller, certain reward over a larger, less likely one (greater probabilistic discounting). Lower β-cell function in the total sample and lower insulin sensitivity in obese related to stronger preference for an immediate and smaller monetary reward over delayed receipt of a larger one (greater delay discounting). In obese adults, higher striatal D2 receptor binding related to greater delay discounting. Interestingly, striatal D2 receptor binding was not significantly related to body mass index, percent body fat, or β-cell function in either group. Our findings indicate that individual differences in percent body fat, β-cell function, and striatal D2 receptor binding may each contribute to altered reward discounting behavior in non-obese and obese individuals. These results raise interesting questions about whether and how striatal D2 receptor binding and metabolic factors, including β-cell function, interact to affect reward discounting in humans.

A tutorial on the use of Excel 2010 and Excel for Mac 2011 for conducting delay-discounting analyses.

PubMed

Reed, Derek D; Kaplan, Brent A; Brewer, Adam T

2012-01-01

In recent years, researchers and practitioners in the behavioral sciences have profited from a growing literature on delay discounting. The purpose of this article is to provide readers with a brief tutorial on how to use Microsoft Office Excel 2010 and Excel for Mac 2011 to analyze discounting data to yield parameters for both the hyperbolic discounting model and area under the curve. This tutorial is intended to encourage the quantitative analysis of behavior in both research and applied settings by readers with relatively little formal training in nonlinear regression.

A TUTORIAL ON THE USE OF EXCEL 2010 AND EXCEL FOR MAC 2011 FOR CONDUCTING DELAY-DISCOUNTING ANALYSES

PubMed Central

Reed, Derek D; Kaplan, Brent A; Brewer, Adam T

2012-01-01

In recent years, researchers and practitioners in the behavioral sciences have profited from a growing literature on delay discounting. The purpose of this article is to provide readers with a brief tutorial on how to use Microsoft Office Excel 2010 and Excel for Mac 2011 to analyze discounting data to yield parameters for both the hyperbolic discounting model and area under the curve. This tutorial is intended to encourage the quantitative analysis of behavior in both research and applied settings by readers with relatively little formal training in nonlinear regression. PMID:22844143

Discount rates in risk versus money and money versus money tradeoffs.

PubMed

Alberini, Anna; Chiabai, Aline

2007-04-01

We use data from a survey of residents of five Italian cities conducted in late spring 2004 to estimate the discount rates implicit in (1) money versus future risk reductions and (2) money versus money tradeoffs. We find that the mean personal discount rate is 0.3-1.7% in (1) and 8.7% in (2). The latter is lower than the discount rates estimated in comparable situations in many recent studies, greater than market interest rates in Italy at the time, and exhibits modest variation with age and gender. The discount rate implicit in money versus risk tradeoffs is within the range of estimates from studies in the United States and Europe, and does not depend on observable individual characteristics. We use split samples to investigate whether a completely abstract risk reduction - one where the risk reduction delivery has been stripped of all specifics, so that respondents should focus on the risks without being distracted by details - results in WTP and discount figures comparable to those from an identified delivery mechanism (a medical test). We find that while WTP for an immediate risk reduction is 42-73% higher with the abstract risk reduction, the discount rate in the money versus risk tradeoffs and the variance of the error term in the WTP equation are the same across the two variants of the questionnaire.

Apathy but not diminished expression in schizophrenia is associated with discounting of monetary rewards by physical effort.

PubMed

Hartmann, Matthias N; Hager, Oliver M; Reimann, Anna V; Chumbley, Justin R; Kirschner, Matthias; Seifritz, Erich; Tobler, Philippe N; Kaiser, Stefan

2015-03-01

Negative symptoms in schizophrenia have been grouped into the 2 factors of apathy and diminished expression, which might be caused by separable pathophysiological mechanisms. Recently, it has been proposed that apathy could be due to dysfunctional integration of reward and effort during decision making. We asked whether apathy in particular is associated with stronger devaluation ("discounting") of monetary rewards that require physical effort. Thirty-one patients with schizophrenia and 20 healthy control participants performed a computerized effort discounting task in which they could choose to exert physical effort on a handgrip to obtain monetary rewards. This procedure yields an individual measure for the strength of effort discounting. The degree of effort discounting was strongly correlated with apathy, but not with diminished expression. Importantly, the association between apathy and effort discounting was not driven by cognitive ability, antipsychotic medication, or other clinical and demographic variables. This study provides the first evidence for a highly specific association of apathy with effort-based decision making in patients with schizophrenia. Within a translational framework, the present effort discounting task could provide a bridge between apathy as a psychopathological phenomenon and established behavioral tasks to address similar states in animals. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Physical and cognitive effort discounting across different reward magnitudes: Tests of discounting models

PubMed Central

Ostaszewski, Paweł

2017-01-01

The effort required to obtain a rewarding outcome is an important factor in decision-making. Describing the reward devaluation by increasing effort intensity is substantial to understanding human preferences, because every action and choice that we make is in itself effortful. To investigate how reward valuation is affected by physical and cognitive effort, we compared mathematical discounting functions derived from research on discounting. Seven discounting models were tested across three different reward magnitudes. To test the models, data were collected from a total of 114 participants recruited from the general population. For one-parameter models (hyperbolic, exponential, and parabolic), the data were explained best by the exponential model as given by a percentage of explained variance. However, after introducing an additional parameter, data obtained in the cognitive and physical effort conditions were best described by the power function model. Further analysis, using the second order Akaike and Bayesian Information Criteria, which account for model complexity, allowed us to identify the best model among all tested. We found that the power function best described the data, which corresponds to conventional analyses based on the R2 measure. This supports the conclusion that the function best describing reward devaluation by physical and cognitive effort is a concave one and is different from those that describe delay or probability discounting. In addition, consistent magnitude effects were observed that correspond to those in delay discounting research. PMID:28759631

Delay Discounting in Lewis and Fischer 344 Rats: Steady-state and Rapid-determination Adjusting-amount Procedures

PubMed Central

Stein, Jeffrey S; Pinkston, Jonathan W; Brewer, Adam T; Francisco, Monica T; Madden, Gregory J

2012-01-01

Lewis rats have been shown to make more impulsive choices than Fischer 344 rats in discrete-trial choice procedures that arrange fixed (i.e., nontitrating) reinforcement parameters. However, nontitrating procedures yield only gross estimates of preference, as choice measures in animal subjects are rarely graded at the level of the individual subject. The present study was designed to examine potential strain differences in delay discounting using an adjusting-amount procedure, in which distributed (rather than exclusive) choice is observed due to dynamic titration of reinforcer magnitude across trials. Using a steady-state version of the adjusting-amount procedure in which delay was manipulated between experimental conditions, steeper delay discounting was observed in Lewis rats compared to Fischer 344 rats; further, delay discounting in both strains was well described by the traditional hyperbolic discounting model. However, upon partial completion of the present study, a study published elsewhere (Wilhelm & Mitchell, 2009) demonstrated no difference in delay discounting between these strains with the use of a more rapid version of the adjusting-amount procedure (i.e., in which delay is manipulated daily). Thus, following completion of the steady-state assessment in the present study, all surviving Lewis and Fischer 344 rats completed an approximation of this rapid-determination procedure in which no strain difference in delay discounting was observed. PMID:22693360

Delay discounting in Lewis and Fischer 344 rats: steady-state and rapid-determination adjusting-amount procedures.

PubMed

Stein, Jeffrey S; Pinkston, Jonathan W; Brewer, Adam T; Francisco, Monica T; Madden, Gregory J

2012-05-01

Lewis rats have been shown to make more impulsive choices than Fischer 344 rats in discrete-trial choice procedures that arrange fixed (i.e., nontitrating) reinforcement parameters. However, nontitrating procedures yield only gross estimates of preference, as choice measures in animal subjects are rarely graded at the level of the individual subject. The present study was designed to examine potential strain differences in delay discounting using an adjusting-amount procedure, in which distributed (rather than exclusive) choice is observed due to dynamic titration of reinforcer magnitude across trials. Using a steady-state version of the adjusting-amount procedure in which delay was manipulated between experimental conditions, steeper delay discounting was observed in Lewis rats compared to Fischer 344 rats; further, delay discounting in both strains was well described by the traditional hyperbolic discounting model. However, upon partial completion of the present study, a study published elsewhere (Wilhelm & Mitchell, 2009) demonstrated no difference in delay discounting between these strains with the use of a more rapid version of the adjusting-amount procedure (i.e., in which delay is manipulated daily). Thus, following completion of the steady-state assessment in the present study, all surviving Lewis and Fischer 344 rats completed an approximation of this rapid-determination procedure in which no strain difference in delay discounting was observed.

Predictive Validity of Delay Discounting Behavior in Adolescence: A Longitudinal Twin Study

PubMed Central

Isen, Joshua D.; Sparks, Jordan C.; Iacono, William G.

2014-01-01

A standard assumption in the delay discounting literature is that individuals who exhibit steeper discounting of hypothetical rewards also experience greater difficulty deferring gratification to real-world rewards. There is ample cross-sectional evidence that delay discounting paradigms reflect a variety of maladaptive psychosocial outcomes, including substance use pathology. We sought to determine whether a computerized assessment of hypothetical delay discounting (HDD) taps into behavioral impulsivity in a community sample of adolescent twins (N = 675). Using a longitudinal design, we hypothesized that greater HDD at age 14–15 predicts real-world impulsive choices and risk for substance use disorders in late adolescence. We also examined the genetic and environmental structure of HDD performance. Individual differences in HDD behavior showed moderate heritability, and were prospectively associated with real-world temporal discounting at age 17–18. Contrary to expectations, HDD was not consistently related to substance use or trait impulsivity. Although a significant association between HDD behavior and past substance use emerged in males, this effect was mediated by cognitive ability. In both sexes, HDD failed to predict a comprehensive index of substance use problems and behavioral disinhibition in late adolescence. In sum, we present some of the first evidence that HDD performance is heritable and predictive of real-world temporal discounting of rewards. Nevertheless, HDD might not serve as a valid marker of substance use disorder risk in younger adolescents, particularly females. PMID:24999868

Delay and Probability Discounting in Humans: An Overview

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKerchar, Todd L.; Renda, C. Renee

2012-01-01

The purpose of this review is to introduce the reader to the concepts of delay and probability discounting as well as the major empirical findings to emerge from research with humans on these concepts. First, we review a seminal discounting study by Rachlin, Raineri, and Cross (1991) as well as an influential extension of this study by Madden,…

Changing Delay Discounting in the Light of the Competing Neurobehavioral Decision Systems Theory: A Review

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koffarnus, Mikhail N.; Jarmolowicz, David P.; Mueller, E. Terry; Bickel, Warren K.

2013-01-01

Excessively devaluing delayed reinforcers co-occurs with a wide variety of clinical conditions such as drug dependence, obesity, and excessive gambling. If excessive delay discounting is a trans-disease process that underlies the choice behavior leading to these and other negative health conditions, efforts to change an individual's discount rate…

Valuing the Future: Should Educational Benefits Be Discounted?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gilead, Tal

2015-01-01

The practice of assigning a lesser value to benefits the further they are into the future, or, in economic terms, discounting, has long played a significant role in shaping public policy. Recently, due to the growing influence of economic modes of thinking on the educational realm, the concept of discounting is also starting to have an influence…

Beyond the Shadow of a Trait: Understanding Discounting through Item-Level Analysis of Personality Scales

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Charlton, Shawn R.; Gossett, Bradley D.; Charlton, Veda A.

2011-01-01

Temporal discounting, the loss in perceived value associated with delayed outcomes, correlates with a number of personality measures, suggesting that an item-level analysis of trait measures might provide a more detailed understanding of discounting. The current report details two studies that investigate the utility of such an item-level…

Unintended Consequences of Tuition Discounting. New Agenda Series[TM].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Jerry Sheehan

Tuition discounting, the use of institutionally funded grants to help defray students' college costs, came into vogue in the late 1970s and has since become standard practice at U.S. four-year colleges and universities. Institutions use the discounts for a variety of purposes, but generally their use is to manage or tailor enrollment in some…

Discounting of Delayed Food Rewards in Pigeons and Rats: Is There a Magnitude Effect

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Leonard; Myerson, Joel; Holt, Daniel D.; Slavin, John R.; Estle, Sara J.

2004-01-01

Temporal discounting refers to the decrease in the present, subjective value of a reward as the time to its receipt increases. Results from humans have shown that a hyperbola-like function describes the form of the discounting function when choices involve hypothetical monetary rewards. In addition, magnitude effects have been reported in which…

78 FR 14597 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; NASDAQ OMX PHLX LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-03-06

... assessed different fees than other indexes.\\21\\ In addition, the concept of offering a volume discount to.... This volume discount on trading Options on Treasury Securities will serve to increase order flow, which... options transaction charge. It is also reasonable and equitable to offer a floor volume discount on...

26 CFR 1.132-3T - Qualified employee discount-1985 through 1988 (temporary).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... the amount of an employee discount, the price at which the property or service is being offered to... employee purchases the product at a discount, the price at which the product is being offered to customers... are treated as employees of the person operating the department store as well as employees of their...

Representation of Odds in Terms of Frequencies Reduces Probability Discounting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yi, Richard; Bickel, Warren K.

2005-01-01

In studies of probability discounting, the reduction in the value of an outcome as a result of its degree of uncertainty is calculated. Decision making studies suggest two issues with probability that may play a role in data obtained in probability discounting studies. The first issue involves the reduction of risk aversion via subdivision of…

77 FR 37947 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; International Securities Exchange, LLC; Notice of Filing and...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-06-25

... Rule Change To Extend a Fee Discount Pilot Program for Large-Sized Foreign Currency Options June 19... proposing to extend for an additional year the fee discount for large-sized foreign currency (``FX'') option... change is to extend for an additional year the fee discount for large-sized FX option orders. The...

26 CFR 1.163-12 - Deduction of original issue discount on instrument held by related foreign person.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... on which the amount is includible in income is determined with reference to the method of accounting... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Deduction of original issue discount on... Deductions for Individuals and Corporations § 1.163-12 Deduction of original issue discount on instrument...

26 CFR 1.163-12 - Deduction of original issue discount on instrument held by related foreign person.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... on which the amount is includible in income is determined with reference to the method of accounting... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Deduction of original issue discount on... Deductions for Individuals and Corporations § 1.163-12 Deduction of original issue discount on instrument...

26 CFR 1.163-12 - Deduction of original issue discount on instrument held by related foreign person.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... on which the amount is includible in income is determined with reference to the method of accounting... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Deduction of original issue discount on... Deductions for Individuals and Corporations § 1.163-12 Deduction of original issue discount on instrument...

Sales Trends in Price-Discounted Cigarettes, Large Cigars, Little Cigars, and Cigarillos-United States, 2011-2016.

PubMed

Wang, Teresa W; Falvey, Kyle; Gammon, Doris G; Loomis, Brett R; Kuiper, Nicole M; Rogers, Todd; King, Brian A

2017-12-15

Tobacco manufacturers continue to implement a range of pricing strategies to increase the affordability and consumption of tobacco products. To demonstrate the extent of retail- and brand-level price discounts at the point of sale, this study assessed national sales trends in price-discounted cigarettes, large cigars, little cigars, and cigarillos. Retail scanner data for tobacco product sales were obtained for convenience stores (C-store) and all-other-outlets-combined (AOC) from September 25, 2011, to January 9, 2016. The proportion of price-discounted sales, average nondiscounted unit price, and average discounted unit price were examined by product category and brand. JoinPoint regression was used to assess average monthly percentage change. Overall, price-discounted sales accounted for 11.3% of cigarette, 3.4% of large cigar, 4.1% of little cigar, and 3.9% of cigarillo sales. The average difference between nondiscounted and discounted prices was 25.5% (C-store) and 36.7% (AOC) for cigarettes; 11.0% (C-store) and 11.2% (AOC) for large cigars; 19.2% (C-store) and 9.6% (AOC) for little cigars; and 5.3% (C-store) and 14.7% (AOC) for cigarillos. Furthermore, price-discounted sales of top-selling tobacco brands comprised up to 36% of cigarette, 7.4% of large cigar, 7.7% of little cigar, and 4.2% of cigarillo unit sales. These findings highlight the use of price discounts by tobacco manufacturers to reduce the cost of cigarettes, large cigars, little cigars, and cigarillos to consumers. These sales patterns underscore the importance of sustained efforts to implement evidence-based strategies to increase prices and reduce availability and consumption of combustible tobacco in the United States. This study highlights the prevalence and provides a baseline of price-discounted cigarettes, large cigars, little cigars, and cigarillos. Surveillance of tobacco sales data, including state-level trends and additional product types, is critical for informing approaches to reduce tobacco consumption. These approaches include countering tobacco product price-discounting practices and raising and maintaining a high sales price for all tobacco products. The implementation of evidence-based population-level interventions, together with local, state, and federal regulation of tobacco products, could prevent tobacco initiation, increase tobacco cessation, and reduce overall tobacco use among US youth and adults. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco 2017. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

Risk preferences impose a hidden distortion on measures of choice impulsivity

PubMed Central

Konova, Anna B.; Louie, Kenway; Glimcher, Paul W.

2018-01-01

Measuring temporal discounting through the use of intertemporal choice tasks is now the gold standard method for quantifying human choice impulsivity (impatience) in neuroscience, psychology, behavioral economics, public health and computational psychiatry. A recent area of growing interest is individual differences in discounting levels, as these may predispose to (or protect from) mental health disorders, addictive behaviors, and other diseases. At the same time, more and more studies have been dedicated to the quantification of individual attitudes towards risk, which have been measured in many clinical and non-clinical populations using closely related techniques. Economists have pointed to interactions between measurements of time preferences and risk preferences that may distort estimations of the discount rate. However, although becoming standard practice in economics, discount rates and risk preferences are rarely measured simultaneously in the same subjects in other fields, and the magnitude of the imposed distortion is unknown in the assessment of individual differences. Here, we show that standard models of temporal discounting —such as a hyperbolic discounting model widely present in the literature which fails to account for risk attitudes in the estimation of discount rates— result in a large and systematic pattern of bias in estimated discounting parameters. This can lead to the spurious attribution of differences in impulsivity between individuals when in fact differences in risk attitudes account for observed behavioral differences. We advance a model which, when applied to standard choice tasks typically used in psychology and neuroscience, provides both a better fit to the data and successfully de-correlates risk and impulsivity parameters. This results in measures that are more accurate and thus of greater utility to the many fields interested in individual differences in impulsivity. PMID:29373590

No food for thought: moderating effects of delay discounting and future time perspective on the relation between income and food insecurity1234

PubMed Central

Epstein, Leonard H; Jankowiak, Noelle; Lin, Henry; Paluch, Rocco; Koffarnus, Mikhail N; Bickel, Warren K

2014-01-01

Background: Low income is related to food insecurity, and research has suggested that a scarcity of resources associated with low income can shift attention to the present, thereby discounting the future. Objective: We tested whether attending to the present and discounting the future may moderate the influence of income on food insecurity. Design: Delay discounting and measures of future time perspective (Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory, Consideration of Future Consequences Scale, time period of financial planning, and subjective probability of living to age 75 y) were studied as moderators of the relation between income and food insecurity in a diverse sample of 975 adults, 31.8% of whom experienced some degree of food insecurity. Results: Income, financial planning, subjective probability of living to age 75 y, and delay discounting predicted food insecurity as well as individuals who were high in food insecurity. Three-way interactions showed that delay discounting interacted with financial planning and income to predict food insecurity (P = 0.003). At lower levels of income, food insecurity was lowest for subjects who had good financial planning skills and did not discount the future, whereas having good financial skills and discounting the future had minimal influence on food insecurity. The same 3-way interaction was observed when high food insecurity was predicted (P = 0.008). Conclusion: Because of the role of scarce resources on narrowing attention and reducing prospective thinking, research should address whether modifying future orientation may reduce food insecurity even in the face of diminishing financial resources. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02099812. PMID:25008855

Risk preferences impose a hidden distortion on measures of choice impulsivity.

PubMed

Lopez-Guzman, Silvia; Konova, Anna B; Louie, Kenway; Glimcher, Paul W

2018-01-01

Measuring temporal discounting through the use of intertemporal choice tasks is now the gold standard method for quantifying human choice impulsivity (impatience) in neuroscience, psychology, behavioral economics, public health and computational psychiatry. A recent area of growing interest is individual differences in discounting levels, as these may predispose to (or protect from) mental health disorders, addictive behaviors, and other diseases. At the same time, more and more studies have been dedicated to the quantification of individual attitudes towards risk, which have been measured in many clinical and non-clinical populations using closely related techniques. Economists have pointed to interactions between measurements of time preferences and risk preferences that may distort estimations of the discount rate. However, although becoming standard practice in economics, discount rates and risk preferences are rarely measured simultaneously in the same subjects in other fields, and the magnitude of the imposed distortion is unknown in the assessment of individual differences. Here, we show that standard models of temporal discounting -such as a hyperbolic discounting model widely present in the literature which fails to account for risk attitudes in the estimation of discount rates- result in a large and systematic pattern of bias in estimated discounting parameters. This can lead to the spurious attribution of differences in impulsivity between individuals when in fact differences in risk attitudes account for observed behavioral differences. We advance a model which, when applied to standard choice tasks typically used in psychology and neuroscience, provides both a better fit to the data and successfully de-correlates risk and impulsivity parameters. This results in measures that are more accurate and thus of greater utility to the many fields interested in individual differences in impulsivity.

Comparison of Biomarkers of Tobacco Exposure between Premium and Discount Brand Cigarette Smokers in the NHANES 2011-2012 Special Sample.

PubMed

Wasserman, Emily J; Reilly, Samantha M; Goel, Reema; Foulds, Jonathan; Richie, John P; Muscat, Joshua E

2018-05-01

Background: Increased cigarette costs have inadvertently strengthened the appeal of discounted brands to price-sensitive smokers. Although smokers perceive discounted brands as having poorer quality, little is known about their delivery of toxic tobacco smoke constituents compared with premium-branded tobacco products. Methods: We investigated the differences between discount and premium brand smokers using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2011-2012 Special Smoker Sample. Our analyses focused on demographic differences and 27 biomarkers of harmful and potentially harmful constituents (HPHC) listed by the FDA, including volatile organic compounds, 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol and its glucuronide [4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol glucuronide; reported as total NNAL (tNNAL)], metals, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Data were analyzed using linear regression models adjusting for potential confounders. Results: A total of 976 non-tobacco users and 578 recent cigarette smokers were eligible for analysis, of which 141 (26.0% weighted) smoked discount brand cigarettes and 437 (74.0% weighted) smoked premium. Discount brand smokers were older, predominantly non-Hispanic white, and had higher serum cotinine. Discount brand smokers had significantly higher levels of 13 smoking-related biomarkers, including tNNAL, uranium, styrene, xylene, and biomarkers of exposure to PAHs (naphthalene, fluorene, and phenanthrene), compared with premium brand smokers. Conclusions: These findings suggest that discount cigarette use is associated with higher exposure to several carcinogenic and toxic HPHCs. Impact: These results may have important regulatory implications for product standards, as higher exposures could lead to a greater degree of harm. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 27(5); 601-9. ©2018 AACR . ©2018 American Association for Cancer Research.

Role of ionotropic glutamate receptors in delay and probability discounting in the rat.

PubMed

Yates, Justin R; Batten, Seth R; Bardo, Michael T; Beckmann, Joshua S

2015-04-01

Discounting of delayed and probabilistic reinforcement is linked to increased drug use and pathological gambling. Understanding the neurobiology of discounting is important for designing treatments for these disorders. Glutamate is considered to be involved in addiction-like behaviors; however, the role of ionotropic glutamate receptors (iGluRs) in discounting remains unclear. The current study examined the effects of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) and α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) glutamate receptor blockade on performance in delay and probability discounting tasks. Following training in either delay or probability discounting, rats (n = 12, each task) received pretreatments of the NMDA receptor antagonists MK-801 (0, 0.01, 0.03, 0.1, or 0.3 mg/kg, s.c.) or ketamine (0, 1.0, 5.0, or 10.0 mg/kg, i.p.), as well as the AMPA receptor antagonist CNQX (0, 1.0, 3.0, or 5.6 mg/kg, i.p.). Hyperbolic discounting functions were used to estimate sensitivity to delayed/probabilistic reinforcement and sensitivity to reinforcer amount. An intermediate dose of MK-801 (0.03 mg/kg) decreased sensitivity to both delayed and probabilistic reinforcement. In contrast, ketamine did not affect the rate of discounting in either task but decreased sensitivity to reinforcer amount. CNQX did not alter sensitivity to reinforcer amount or delayed/probabilistic reinforcement. These results show that blockade of NMDA receptors, but not AMPA receptors, decreases sensitivity to delayed/probabilistic reinforcement (MK-801) and sensitivity to reinforcer amount (ketamine). The differential effects of MK-801 and ketamine demonstrate that sensitivities to delayed/probabilistic reinforcement and reinforcer amount are pharmacologically dissociable.

Do higher-priced generic medicines enjoy a competitive advantage under reference pricing?

PubMed

Puig-Junoy, Jaume

2012-11-01

In many countries with generic reference pricing, generic producers and distributors compete by means of undisclosed discounts offered to pharmacies in order to reduce acquisition costs and to induce them to dispense their generic to patients in preference over others. The objective of this article is to test the hypothesis that under prevailing reference pricing systems for generic medicines, those medicines sold at a higher consumer price may enjoy a competitive advantage. Real transaction prices for 179 generic medicines acquired by pharmacies in Spain have been used to calculate the discount rate on acquisition versus reimbursed costs to pharmacies. Two empirical hypotheses are tested: the discount rate at which pharmacies acquire generic medicines is higher for those pharmaceutical presentations for which there are more generic competitors; and, the discount rate at which pharmacies acquire generic medicines is higher for those pharmaceutical forms for which the consumer price has declined less in relation to the consumer price of the brand drug before generic entry (higher-priced generic medicines). An average discount rate of 39.3% on acquisition versus reimbursed costs to pharmacies has been observed. The magnitude of the discount positively depends on the number of competitors in the market. The higher the ratio of the consumer price of the generic to that of the brand drug prior to generic entry (i.e. the smaller the price reduction of the generic in relation to the brand drug), the larger the discount rate. Under reference pricing there is intense price competition among generic firms in the form of unusually high discounts to pharmacies on official ex-factory prices reimbursed to pharmacies. However, this effect is highly distorting because it favours those medicines with a higher relative price in relation to the brand price before generic entry.

A Developmental Perspective on Neuroeconomic Mechanisms of Contingency Management

PubMed Central

Stanger, Catherine; Budney, Alan J.; Bickel, Warren K.

2012-01-01

This paper provides a developmental overview of relevant theory and research on delay discounting and neuroeconomics, and their implications for CM approaches to treatment. Recent advances in neuroscience, and in particular the neuroscience of decision making, have the potential to inform treatment development for adolescent substance use in general, and contingency management (CM) treatments in particular. CM utilizes abstinence-based reinforcement to enhance motivation to engage in treatment and engender abstinence. CM interventions may be informed by research on delay discounting, a type of decision making that reflects how individuals value immediate vs. delayed rewards. Delay discounting reliably distinguishes substance abusers from non abusers and is a significant predictor of individual differences in response to substance use treatments. Delay discounting is also of high potential importance in the development of substance use problems in adolescence. Discounting may also be important in predicting response to CM, as CM attempts to directly influence this decision making process, shifting the preference from the immediate rewards of use to delayed rewards for choosing not to use. Multiple neural processes underlie decision making, and those processes have implications for adolescent substance abuse. There are significant neurodevelopmental processes that differentiate adolescents from adults. These processes are implicated in delay discounting, suggesting that adolescence may reflect a period of plasticity in temporal decision making. Understanding the neural mechanisms of delay discounting has led to promising working memory interventions directly targeting the executive functions that underlie individual choices. These interventions may be particularly helpful in combination with CM interventions that offer immediate rewards for brief periods of abstinence, and may show particular benefit in adolescence due to the heightened neural plasticity of systems that underlie temporal discounting in adolescence. PMID:22663343

Test-retest reliability and gender differences in the sexual discounting task among cocaine-dependent individuals.

PubMed

Johnson, Matthew W; Bruner, Natalie R

2013-08-01

The Sexual Discounting Task uses the delay discounting framework to examine sexual HIV risk behavior. Previous research showed task performance to be significantly correlated with self-reported HIV risk behavior in cocaine dependence. Test-retest reliability and gender differences had remained unexamined. The present study examined the test-retest reliability of the Sexual Discounting Task. Cocaine-dependent individuals (18 men, 13 women) completed the task in two laboratory visits ∼7 days apart. Participants selected photographs of individuals with whom they were willing to have casual sex. Among these, participants identified the individual most (and least) likely to have a sexually transmitted infection (STI), and the individual with whom he or she most (and least) wanted to have sex. In reference to these individuals, participants rated their likelihood of having unprotected sex versus waiting to have sex with a condom, at various delays. A money delay discounting task was also completed at the first visit. Significant differences in discounting among partner conditions were shown. Differential stability was demonstrated by significant, positive correlations between test and retest for all four partner conditions. Absolute stability was demonstrated by statistical equivalence tests between test and retest, and also supported by a lack of significant differences between test and retest. Men generally discounted significantly more than women for sexual outcomes but not money. Results suggest the Sexual Discounting Task to be a reliable measure in cocaine-dependent individuals, which supports its use as a repeated measure in clinical research, for example, studies examining acute drug effects on sexual risk and the effects of addiction treatment and HIV prevention interventions on sexual risk. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved

The effect of reinforcer magnitude on probability and delay discounting of experienced outcomes in a computer game task in humans.

PubMed

Greenhow, Anna K; Hunt, Maree J; Macaskill, Anne C; Harper, David N

2015-09-01

Delay and uncertainty of receipt both reduce the subjective value of reinforcers. Delay has a greater impact on the subjective value of smaller reinforcers than of larger ones while the reverse is true for uncertainty. We investigated the effect of reinforcer magnitude on discounting of delayed and uncertain reinforcers using a novel approach: embedding relevant choices within a computer game. Participants made repeated choices between smaller, certain, immediate outcomes and larger, but delayed or uncertain outcomes while experiencing the result of each choice. Participants' choices were generally well described by the hyperbolic discounting function. Smaller numbers of points were discounted more steeply than larger numbers as a function of delay but not probability. The novel experiential choice task described is a promising approach to investigating both delay and probability discounting in humans. © Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

Bi-frontal direct current stimulation affects delay discounting choices.

PubMed

Hecht, David; Walsh, Vincent; Lavidor, Michal

2013-01-01

In delay discounting tasks, participants decide between receiving a certain amount of money now or a larger sum sometime in the future. This study investigated the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation on delay discounting. Participants made delay discounting choices while receiving a bi-frontal stimulation of right-hemisphere anodal/left-hemisphere cathodal, left-hemisphere anodal/right-hemisphere cathodal, and sham stimulation, in three separate sessions. When the difference between the alternatives was 10% or more, participants generally preferred to wait for the larger sum. Nevertheless, there were more choices of smaller "immediate" gains, instead of the larger delayed options, when the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) was facilitated and the right DLPFC inhibited, compared to the sham stimulation. These observations indicate the significant role of the prefrontal cortex in delay discounting choices, and demonstrate that increased left frontal activation combined with decreased right frontal activation can alter decision-making by intensifying a tendency to choose immediate gains.

Reviewing and piloting methods for decreasing discount rates; someone, somewhere in time.

PubMed

Parouty, Mehraj B Y; Krooshof, Daan G M; Westra, Tjalke A; Pechlivanoglou, Petros; Postma, Maarten J

2013-08-01

There has been substantial debate on the need for decreasing discounting for monetary and health gains in economic evaluations. Next to the discussion on differential discounting, a way to identify the need for such discounting strategies is through eliciting the time preferences for monetary and health outcomes. In this article, the authors investigate the perceived time preference for money and health gains through a pilot survey on Dutch university students using methods on functional forms previously suggested. Formal objectives of the study were to review such existing methods and to pilot them on a convenience sample using a questionnaire designed for this specific purpose. Indeed, a negative relation between the time of delay and the variance of the discounting rate for all models was observed. This study was intended as a pilot for a large-scale population-based investigation using the findings from this pilot on wording of the questionnaire, interpretation, scope and analytic framework.

Heaven can wait. How religion modulates temporal discounting.

PubMed

Paglieri, Fabio; Borghi, Anna M; Colzato, Lorenza S; Hommel, Bernhard; Scorolli, Claudia

2013-11-01

Evidence suggests that religious systems have specific effects on attentional and action control processes. The present study investigated whether religions also modulate choices that involve higher-order knowledge and the delay of gratification in particular. We tested Dutch Calvinists, Italian Catholics, and Atheists from both countries/cultures using an intertemporal choice task where participants could choose between a small immediate and a larger delayed monetary reward. Based on the Calvinist theory of predestination and the Catholic concept of a cycle of sin-confession-expiation, we predicted a reduced delay tolerance, i.e., higher discount rate, for Italian Catholics than for Dutch Calvinists, and intermediate rates for the two atheist groups. Analyses of discount rates support our hypotheses. We also found a magnitude effect on temporal discounting and faster responses for large than for small rewards across religions and countries/cultures. We conclude that temporal discounting is specifically modulated by religious upbringing rather than by generic cultural differences.

On the expected discounted penalty functions for two classes of risk processes under a threshold dividend strategy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Zhaoyang; Xu, Wei; Sun, Decai; Han, Weiguo

2009-10-01

In this paper, the discounted penalty (Gerber-Shiu) functions for a risk model involving two independent classes of insurance risks under a threshold dividend strategy are developed. We also assume that the two claim number processes are independent Poisson and generalized Erlang (2) processes, respectively. When the surplus is above this threshold level, dividends are paid at a constant rate that does not exceed the premium rate. Two systems of integro-differential equations for discounted penalty functions are derived, based on whether the surplus is above this threshold level. Laplace transformations of the discounted penalty functions when the surplus is below the threshold level are obtained. And we also derive a system of renewal equations satisfied by the discounted penalty function with initial surplus above the threshold strategy via the Dickson-Hipp operator. Finally, analytical solutions of the two systems of integro-differential equations are presented.

Time management problems and discounted utility.

PubMed

König, Cornelius J; Kleinmann, Martin

2007-05-01

The lens of behavioral decision theory offers a new perspective for research on time management. The basic idea of this approach is that people discount future consequences of their time management decisions, meaning that they work on tasks with smaller but sooner outcomes rather than on tasks with larger but later outcomes. The authors performed 2 experimental studies to test whether people are sensitive to differences in the discounted utility of time management decisions. In Experiment 1, they used vignettes of typical time management situations; Experiment 2 was a laboratory simulation (an in-basket task that was part of a training assessment). Participants in both studies were German students. As expected, manipulating the discounted utility of options resulted in different time management decisions. In Experiment 1, reactions to time management situations were judged as less likely if the reactions had lower discounted utilities. In Experiment 2, people spent less time on an interruption.

The evolution of self-fertilization and inbreeding depression under pollen discounting and pollen limitation.

PubMed

Porcher, E; Lande, R

2005-05-01

We model the evolution of plant mating systems under the joint effects of pollen discounting and pollen limitation, using a dynamic model of inbreeding depression, allowing for partial purging of recessive lethal mutations by selfing. Stable mixed mating systems occur for a wide range of parameter values with pollen discounting alone. However, when typical levels of pollen limitation are combined with pollen discounting, stable selfing rates are always high but less than 1 (0.9

Positive mood effects on delay discounting.

PubMed

Hirsh, Jacob B; Guindon, Alex; Morisano, Dominique; Peterson, Jordan B

2010-10-01

Delay discounting is the process by which the value of an expected reward decreases as the delay to obtaining that reward increases. Individuals with higher discounting rates tend to prefer smaller immediate rewards over larger delayed rewards. Previous research has indicated that personality can influence an individual's discounting rates, with higher levels of Extraversion predicting a preference for immediate gratification. The current study examined how this relationship would be influenced by situational mood inductions. While main effects were observed for both Extraversion and cognitive ability in the prediction of discounting rates, a significant interaction was also observed between Extraversion and positive affect. Extraverted individuals were more likely to prefer an immediate reward when first put in a positive mood. Extraverts thus appear particularly sensitive to impulsive, incentive-reward-driven behavior by temperament and by situational factors heightening positive affect. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved).

Accounting for Exchange Transactions: An Alternative Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holland, Rodger G.; Kaminski, Kathleen A.

2007-01-01

In general, the two basic methods for recording exchange transactions are to record them at gross, and then account for the discounts that are taken, or record them at net, and adjust for discounts that are not taken (are lost). Most principles texts cover only the gross method, and some do not even deal with the discount issue at all. Others may…

12 CFR 201.107 - Eligibility of demand paper for discount and as security for advances by Reserve Banks.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Eligibility of demand paper for discount and as... BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM EXTENSIONS OF CREDIT BY FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS (REGULATION A) Interpretations § 201.107 Eligibility of demand paper for discount and as security for advances...

7 CFR 1786.168 - Borrowers who prepaid under this part prior to October 21, 1992.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... the date of enactment of Public Law 102-428 (106 Stat. 2183) on October 21, 1992, at a discount rate... INSURED LOANS TO ELECTRIC AND TELEPHONE BORROWERS Discounted Prepayments on RUS Electric Loans § 1786.168...) The amount (if any) by which the discount the borrower received by reason of the prepayment exceeds...

75 FR 64769 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-20

... are provided an option to pay for only the service they desire at a discounted rate. Use of Clearly... believes that offering the Clearly Erroneous Module at a further discounted rate applicable to each MPID... nature of their businesses. As such, offering the service at a discounted rate to members that subscribe...

48 CFR 9904.415-60 - Illustrations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... in 9904.415-50(a) are met. Year Amount of future payment × discount rate 8-percent present value... future payment×Discount rate present value factor for 2 yr at 8 pct=Assignable cost $2,000×0.8573=$1,714... was used as the discount rate at the time the cost was assigned. The IRS rate in effect at the date of...

State regulation of medical discount programs: a new frontier.

PubMed

Rich, J Peter

2006-01-01

Over the past several years, discount medical programs have flourished as a result of double digit increases in health insurance premiums. Given the rapid growth and sometimes questionable practices of such programs, several states have taken notice and have begun to regulate discount medical programs. This article summarizes the laws of several states that have chosen to oversee these programs.

Integrating Behavioral Economics and Behavioral Genetics: Delayed Reward Discounting as an Endophenotype for Addictive Disorders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacKillop, James

2013-01-01

Delayed reward discounting is a behavioral economic index of impulsivity, referring to how much an individual devalues a reward based on its delay in time. As a behavioral process that varies considerably across individuals, delay discounting has been studied extensively as a model for self-control, both in the general population and in clinical…

Delay Discounting Rates Are Temporally Stable in an Equivalent Present Value Procedure Using Theoretical and Area under the Curve Analyses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harrison, Justin; McKay, Ryan

2012-01-01

Temporal discounting rates have become a popular dependent variable in social science research. While choice procedures are commonly employed to measure discounting rates, equivalent present value (EPV) procedures may be more sensitive to experimental manipulation. However, their use has been impeded by the absence of test-retest reliability data.…

Differential discounting and present impact of past information.

PubMed

Brandimarte, Laura; Vosgerau, Joachim; Acquisti, Alessandro

2018-01-01

How does information about a person's past, accessed now, affect individuals' impressions of that person? In 2 survey experiments and 2 experiments with actual incentives, we compare whether, when evaluating a person, information about that person's past greedy or immoral behaviors is discounted similarly to information about her past generous or moral behaviors. We find that, no matter how far in the past a person behaved greedily or immorally, information about her negative behaviors is hardly discounted at all. In contrast, information about her past positive behaviors is discounted heavily: recent behaviors are much more influential than behaviors that occurred a long time ago. The lesser discounting of information about immoral and greedy behaviors is not caused by these behaviors being more influential, memorable, extreme, or attention-grabbing; rather, they are perceived as more diagnostic of a person's character than past moral or generous behaviors. The phenomenon of differential discounting of past information has particular relevance in the digital age, where information about people's past is easily retrieved. Our findings have significant implications for theories of impression formation and social information processing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Time discounting and time preference in animals: A critical review.

PubMed

Hayden, Benjamin Y

2016-02-01

Animals are an important model for studies of impulsivity and self-control. Many studies have made use of the intertemporal choice task, which pits small rewards available sooner against larger rewards available later (typically several seconds), repeated over many trials. Preference for the sooner reward is often taken to indicate impulsivity and/or a failure of self-control. This review shows that very little evidence supports this assumption; on the contrary, ostensible discounting behavior may reflect a boundedly rational but not necessarily impulsive reward-maximizing strategy. Specifically, animals may discount weakly, or even adopt a long-term rate-maximizing strategy, but fail to fully incorporate postreward delays into their choices. This failure may reflect learning biases. Consequently, tasks that measure animal discounting may greatly overestimate the true discounting and may be confounded by processes unrelated to time preferences. If so, animals may be much more patient than is widely believed; human and animal intertemporal choices may reflect unrelated mental operations; and the shared hyperbolic shape of the human and animal discount curves, which is used to justify cross-species comparisons, may be coincidental. The discussion concludes with a consideration of alternative ways to measure self-control in animals.

Effects of mindful eating training on delay and probability discounting for food and money in obese and healthy-weight individuals.

PubMed

Hendrickson, Kelsie L; Rasmussen, Erin B

2013-07-01

Obese individuals tend to behave more impulsively than healthy weight individuals across a variety of measures, but it is unclear whether this pattern can be altered. The present study examined the effects of a mindful eating behavioral strategy on impulsive and risky choice patterns for hypothetical food and money. In Experiment 1, 304 participants completed computerized delay and probability discounting tasks for food-related and monetary outcomes. High percent body fat (PBF) predicted more impulsive choice for food, but not small-value money, replicating previous work. In Experiment 2, 102 randomly selected participants from Experiment 1 were assigned to participate in a 50-min workshop on mindful eating or to watch an educational video. They then completed the discounting tasks again. Participants who completed the mindful eating session showed more self-controlled and less risk-averse discounting patterns for food compared to baseline; those in the control condition discounted similarly to baseline rates. There were no changes in discounting for money for either group, suggesting stimulus specificity for food for the mindful eating condition. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Agreeing to disagree on climate policy

PubMed Central

Heal, Geoffrey M.; Millner, Antony

2014-01-01

Disagreements about the value of the utility discount rate—the rate at which our concern for the welfare of future people declines with their distance from us in time—are at the heart of the debate about the appropriate intensity of climate policy. Seemingly small differences in the discount rate yield very different policy prescriptions, and no consensus “correct” value has been identified. We argue that the choice of discount rate is an ethical primitive: there are many different legitimate opinions as to its value, and none should receive a privileged place in economic analysis of climate policy. Rather, we advocate a social choice-based approach in which a diverse set of individual discount rates is aggregated into a “representative” rate. We show that performing this aggregation efficiently leads to a time-dependent discount rate that declines monotonically to the lowest rate in the population. We apply this discounting scheme to calculations of the social cost of carbon recently performed by the US government and show that it provides an attractive compromise between competing ethical positions, and thus provides a possible resolution to the ethical impasse in climate change economics. PMID:24567383

Using 340B drug discounts to provide a financially sustainable medication discharge service.

PubMed

Wu, Timothy; Williams, Carla; Vranek, Kathryn; Mattingly, T Joseph

2018-03-27

The 340B Drug Pricing Program was intended to stretch federal resources by providing significant discounts to covered entities providing care to underserved populations. Program implementation and evidence of expanding services to higher income patients has brought more scrutiny and calls for elimination of the program. While additional review and reform may be warranted, profitability from 340B discounts enables covered entities to provide additional services that may not be feasible in absence of the program. This case report demonstrates one institution's use of 340B discounts to financially justify providing bedside medication delivery services for patients at the time of discharge from an inpatient admission. A simple financial model was developed using hospital data and inputs from available literature to estimate gross profit and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) with and without 340B discounts. Without the 340B drug price discounts, the service would operate at a financial loss, and further investigation must be done to determine whether other clinical or economic benefits would warrant discharge medication delivery at the institution. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Caudate responses to reward anticipation associated with delay discounting behavior in healthy youth

PubMed Central

Benningfield, Margaret M.; Blackford, Jennifer U.; Ellsworth, Melissa E.; Samanez-Larkin, Gregory R.; Martin, Peter R.; Cowan, Ronald L.; Zald, David H.

2014-01-01

Background Choices requiring delay of gratification made during adolescence can have significant impact on life trajectory. Willingness to delay gratification can be measured using delay discounting tasks that require a choice between a smaller immediate reward and a larger delayed reward. Individual differences in the subjective value of delayed rewards are associated with risk for development of psychopathology including substance abuse. The neurobiological underpinnings related to these individual differences early in life are not fully understood. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we tested the hypothesis that individual differences in delay discounting behavior in healthy youth are related to differences in responsiveness to potential reward. Method Nineteen 10 to 14 year-olds performed a monetary incentive delay task to assess neural sensitivity to potential reward and a questionnaire to measure discounting of future monetary rewards. Results Left ventromedial caudate activation during anticipation of potential reward was negatively correlated with delay discounting behavior. There were no regions where brain responses during notification of reward outcome were associated with discounting behavior. Conclusions Brain activation during anticipation of potential reward may serve as a marker for individual differences in ability or willingness to delay gratification in healthy youth. PMID:24309299

Physics of risk and uncertainty in quantum decision making

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yukalov, V. I.; Sornette, D.

2009-10-01

The Quantum Decision Theory, developed recently by the authors, is applied to clarify the role of risk and uncertainty in decision making and in particular in relation to the phenomenon of dynamic inconsistency. By formulating this notion in precise mathematical terms, we distinguish three types of inconsistency: time inconsistency, planning paradox, and inconsistency occurring in some discounting effects. While time inconsistency is well accounted for in classical decision theory, the planning paradox is in contradiction with classical utility theory. It finds a natural explanation in the frame of the Quantum Decision Theory. Different types of discounting effects are analyzed and shown to enjoy a straightforward explanation within the suggested theory. We also introduce a general methodology based on self-similar approximation theory for deriving the evolution equations for the probabilities of future prospects. This provides a novel classification of possible discount factors, which include the previously known cases (exponential or hyperbolic discounting), but also predicts a novel class of discount factors that decay to a strictly positive constant for very large future time horizons. This class may be useful to deal with very long-term discounting situations associated with intergenerational public policy choices, encompassing issues such as global warming and nuclear waste disposal.

Maximizing the Spread of Influence via Generalized Degree Discount.

PubMed

Wang, Xiaojie; Zhang, Xue; Zhao, Chengli; Yi, Dongyun

2016-01-01

It is a crucial and fundamental issue to identify a small subset of influential spreaders that can control the spreading process in networks. In previous studies, a degree-based heuristic called DegreeDiscount has been shown to effectively identify multiple influential spreaders and has severed as a benchmark method. However, the basic assumption of DegreeDiscount is not adequate, because it treats all the nodes equally without any differences. To consider a general situation in real world networks, a novel heuristic method named GeneralizedDegreeDiscount is proposed in this paper as an effective extension of original method. In our method, the status of a node is defined as a probability of not being influenced by any of its neighbors, and an index generalized discounted degree of one node is presented to measure the expected number of nodes it can influence. Then the spreaders are selected sequentially upon its generalized discounted degree in current network. Empirical experiments are conducted on four real networks, and the results show that the spreaders identified by our approach are more influential than several benchmark methods. Finally, we analyze the relationship between our method and three common degree-based methods.

Exploratory study on the effect of discount pricing strategies for new product introduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mat Zaib, Nurul Afiqah; Bazin, Nor Erne Nazira; Mustaffa, Noorfa Haszlinna

2013-04-01

Rapid introduction of new product into the market has resulted in growing competition between retailers. Nowadays, retailers compete with one another in order to increase revenue and to maintain their position in the marketplace. This situation has forced the retailers to enhance their strategic management as well as creating competitive advantages. Generally, this situation can be observed in highly demanded product such as fashion goods and high technology electronic devices (smart phone, notebook). The consequence from the intense competition and new product introduction is difficulties in retailers pricing management. Retailers are now facing with complexity in making decisions on suitable pricing strategies and discount level for new product in association with the product life cycle. Thus, this research aims to investigate the suitable discount pricing strategies that can be integrated in every phase of product life cycle. This paper presents relationships between the discount pricing and the stages in the product life cycle in the form of conceptual diagram and mathematical expression. A system dynamic approach is used for developing the conceptual diagram and formulating the mathematical expression for the discount pricing strategies to visualize the relationship between discount pricing and product life cycle.

Maximizing the Spread of Influence via Generalized Degree Discount

PubMed Central

Wang, Xiaojie; Zhang, Xue; Zhao, Chengli; Yi, Dongyun

2016-01-01

It is a crucial and fundamental issue to identify a small subset of influential spreaders that can control the spreading process in networks. In previous studies, a degree-based heuristic called DegreeDiscount has been shown to effectively identify multiple influential spreaders and has severed as a benchmark method. However, the basic assumption of DegreeDiscount is not adequate, because it treats all the nodes equally without any differences. To consider a general situation in real world networks, a novel heuristic method named GeneralizedDegreeDiscount is proposed in this paper as an effective extension of original method. In our method, the status of a node is defined as a probability of not being influenced by any of its neighbors, and an index generalized discounted degree of one node is presented to measure the expected number of nodes it can influence. Then the spreaders are selected sequentially upon its generalized discounted degree in current network. Empirical experiments are conducted on four real networks, and the results show that the spreaders identified by our approach are more influential than several benchmark methods. Finally, we analyze the relationship between our method and three common degree-based methods. PMID:27732681

Temporal discounting in major depressive disorder.

PubMed

Pulcu, E; Trotter, P D; Thomas, E J; McFarquhar, M; Juhasz, G; Sahakian, B J; Deakin, J F W; Zahn, R; Anderson, I M; Elliott, R

2014-07-01

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with abnormalities in financial reward processing. Previous research suggests that patients with MDD show reduced sensitivity to frequency of financial rewards. However, there is a lack of conclusive evidence from studies investigating the evaluation of financial rewards over time, an important aspect of reward processing that influences the way people plan long-term investments. Beck's cognitive model posits that patients with MDD hold a negative view of the future that may influence the amount of resources patients are willing to invest into their future selves. We administered a delay discounting task to 82 participants: 29 healthy controls, 29 unmedicated participants with fully remitted MDD (rMDD) and 24 participants with current MDD (11 on medication). Patients with current MDD, relative to remitted patients and healthy subjects, discounted large-sized future rewards at a significantly higher rate and were insensitive to changes in reward size from medium to large. There was a main effect of clinical group on discounting rates for large-sized rewards, and discounting rates for large-sized rewards correlated with severity of depressive symptoms, particularly hopelessness. Higher discounting of delayed rewards in MDD seems to be state dependent and may be a reflection of depressive symptoms, specifically hopelessness. Discounting distant rewards at a higher rate means that patients are more likely to choose immediate financial options. Such impairments related to long-term investment planning may be important for understanding value-based decision making in MDD, and contribute to ongoing functional impairment.

A cost/benefit analysis of commercial fusion-fission hybrid reactor development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kostoff, Ronald N.

1983-04-01

A simple algorithm was developed that allows rapid computation of the ratio, R, of present worth of benefits to present worth of hybrid R&D program costs as a function of potential hybrid unit electricity cost savings, discount rate, electricity demand growth rate, total hybrid R&D program cost, and time to complete a demonstration reactor. In the sensitivity study, these variables were assigned nominal values (unit electricity cost savings of 4 mills/kW-hr, discount rate of 4%/year, growth rate of 2.25%/year, total R&D program cost of 20 billion, and time to complete a demonstration reactor of 30 years), and the variable of interest was varied about its nominal value. Results show that R increases with decreasing discount rate and increasing unit electricity savings and ranges from 4 to 94 as discount rate ranges from 5 to 3%/year and unit electricity savings range from 2 to 6 mills/kW-hr. R increases with increasing growth rate and ranges from 3 to 187 as growth rate ranges from 1 to 3.5%/year and unit electricity cost savings range from 2 to 6 mills/kW-hr. R attains a maximum value when plotted against time to complete a demonstration reactor. The location of this maximum value occurs at shorter completion times as discount rate increases, and this optimal completion time ranges from 20 years for a discount rate of 4%/year to 45 years for a discount rate of 3%/year.

Delay discounting in opioid use disorder: Differences between heroin and prescription opioid users.

PubMed

Karakula, Sterling L; Weiss, Roger D; Griffin, Margaret L; Borges, Allison M; Bailey, Allen J; McHugh, R Kathryn

2016-12-01

Among those with opioid use disorder, heroin use is associated with poorer prognosis relative to use of prescription opioids alone. However, relatively little is known about distinguishing features between those who use heroin relative to those who use prescription opioids. In the present study we evaluated differences in delay discounting in those with opioid use disorder based on primary opioid of use. Delay discounting is associated with a range of negative outcomes and is an important therapeutic target in this population. Treatment-seeking adults with opioid dependence completed self-report measures including past-month opioid use and the Monetary Choice Questionnaire (Kirby and Marakovic, 1996; Kirby et al., 1999), a measure of delay discounting. Participants were divided into two groups based on whether they used any heroin in the past 30days or only prescription opioids, and delay discounting scores were compared between the groups. Group differences in sociodemographic or clinical variables were included in the analysis as covariates. Results from a forward stepwise linear regression indicated that heroin use was associated with significantly higher delay discounting (B=-0.99, SE B =0.34, t=-2.88, p=0.005), even when considering covariates. Adults with opioid dependence who exclusively used prescription opioids had lower delay discounting relative to those who used heroin. This finding contributes further to the literature suggesting that heroin use is associated with greater clinical severity among those with opioid use disorder. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of discounting on estimation of benefits determined by hepatitis C treatment.

PubMed

Messori, Andrea; Fadda, Valeria; Maratea, Dario; Trippoli, Sabrina

2012-06-21

The combination of either boceprevir or telaprevir with ribavirin and interferon (triple therapy) has been shown to be more effective than ribavirin+interferon (dual therapy) for the treatment of genotype 1 hepatitis C. Since the benefit of these treatments takes place after years, simulation models are needed to predict long-term outcomes. In simulation models, the choice of different values of yearly discount rates (e.g., 6%, 3.5%, 2%, 1.5% or 0%) influences the results, but no studies have specifically addressed this issue. We examined this point by determining the long-term benefits under different conditions on the basis of standard modelling and using quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) to quantify the benefits. In our base case scenario, we compared the long-term benefit between patients given a treatment with a 40% sustained virologic response (SVR) (dual therapy) and patients given a treatment with a 70% SVR (triple therapy), and we then examined how these specific yearly discount rates influenced the incremental benefit. The gain between a 70% SVR and a 40% SVR decreased from 0.45 QALYs with a 0% discount rate to 0.22 QALYs with a 6% discount rate (ratio between the two values = 2.04). Testing the other discounting assumptions confirmed that the discount rate has a marked impact on the magnitude of the model-estimated incremental benefit. In conclusion, the results of our analysis can be helpful to better interpret cost-effectiveness studies evaluating new treatment for hepatitis C.

Haloperidol and Rimonabant Increase Delay Discounting in Rats Fed High-Fat and Standard-Chow Diets

PubMed Central

Boomhower, Steven R.; Rasmussen, Erin B.

2016-01-01

The dopamine and endocannabinoid neurotransmitter systems have been implicated in delay discounting, a measure of impulsive choice, and obesity. The current study was designed to determine the extent to which haloperidol and rimonabant affected delay discounting in rats fed standard-chow and high-fat diets. Sprague-Dawley rats were allowed to free-feed under a high-fat diet (4.73 kcal/g) or a standard-chow diet (3.0 kcal/g) for three months. Then, operant sessions began in which rats (n = 9 standard chow; n = 10 high-fat) chose between one sucrose pellet delivered immediately vs. three sucrose pellets after a series of delays. In another condition, carrot-flavored pellets replaced sucrose pellets. After behavior stabilized, acute injections of rimonabant (0.3-10 mg/kg) and haloperidol (0.003-0.1 mg/kg) were administered i.p. before some choice sessions in both pellet conditions. Haloperidol and rimonabant increased discounting in both groups of rats by decreasing percent choice for the larger reinforcer and area-under-the-curve (AUC) values. Rats in the high-fat diet condition demonstrated increased sensitivity to haloperidol compared to chow-fed controls: haloperidol increased discounting in both dietary groups in the sucrose condition,, but only in the high-fat-fed rats in the carrot-pellet condition. These findings indicate that blocking D2 and CB1 receptors results in increased delay discounting, and that a high-fat diet may alter sensitivity to dopaminergic compounds using the delay-discounting task. PMID:25000488

What Money Can't Buy: Different Patterns in Decision Making About Sex and Money Predict Past Sexual Coercion Perpetration.

PubMed

Carrier Emond, Fannie; Gagnon, Jean; Nolet, Kevin; Cyr, Gaëlle; Rouleau, Joanne-Lucine

2018-02-01

Self-reported impulsivity has been found to predict the perpetration of sexual coercion in both sexual offenders and male college students. Impulsivity can be conceptualized as a generalized lack of self-control (i.e., general perspective) or as a multifaceted construct that can vary from one context to the other (i.e., domain-specific perspective). Delay discounting, the tendency to prefer sooner smaller rewards over larger delayed rewards, is a measure of impulsive decision making. Recent sexual adaptations of delay discounting tasks can be used to test domain-specific assumptions. The present study used the UPPS-P impulsivity questionnaire, a standard money discounting task, and a sexual discounting task to predict past use of sexual coercion in a sample of 98 male college students. Results indicated that higher negative urgency scores, less impulsive money discounting, and more impulsive sexual discounting all predicted sexual coercion. Consistent with previous studies, sexuality was discounted more steeply than money by both perpetrators and non-perpetrators of sexual coercion, but this difference was twice as large in perpetrators compared to non-perpetrators. Our study identified three different predictors of sexual coercion in male college students: a broad tendency to act rashly under negative emotions, a specific difficulty to postpone sexual gratification, and a pattern of optimal non-sexual decision making. Results highlight the importance of using multiple measures, including sexuality-specific measures, to get a clear portrait of the links between impulsivity and sexual coercion.

The Surprisingly Low Motivational Power of Future Rewards: Comparing Conventional Money-Based Measures of Discounting with Motivation-Based Measures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ebert, Jane E. J.

2010-01-01

Temporal discount rates are often poor predictors of behaviors that we expect will be motivated by the future. The current research suggests this may be because conventional discounting measures are poor measures of the motivational value of future rewards. In six studies, I develop motivation-based measures of the present value (PV) of future…

A Tutorial on the Use of Excel 2010 and Excel for Mac 2011 for Conducting Delay-Discounting Analyses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Derek D.; Kaplan, Brent A.; Brewer, Adam T.

2012-01-01

In recent years, researchers and practitioners in the behavioral sciences have profited from a growing literature on delay discounting. The purpose of this article is to provide readers with a brief tutorial on how to use Microsoft Office Excel 2010 and Excel for Mac 2011 to analyze discounting data to yield parameters for both the hyperbolic…

26 CFR 1.1232-3A - Inclusion as interest of original issue discount on certain obligations issued after May 27, 1969.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 11 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 true Inclusion as interest of original issue discount... Special Rules for Determining Capital Gains and Losses § 1.1232-3A Inclusion as interest of original issue discount on certain obligations issued after May 27, 1969. (a) Ratable inclusion as interest—(1) General...

26 CFR 1.163-3 - Deduction for discount on bond issued on or before May 27, 1969.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... case of a callable bond, at the earlier call date) over the issue price of the bond (as defined in... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Deduction for discount on bond issued on or... and Corporations § 1.163-3 Deduction for discount on bond issued on or before May 27, 1969. (a...

Towards a social discount rate for the economic evaluation of health technologies in Germany: an exploratory analysis.

PubMed

Schad, Mareike; John, Jürgen

2012-04-01

Over the last decades, methods for the economic evaluation of health care technologies were increasingly used to inform reimbursement decisions. For a short time, the German Statutory Health Insurance makes use of these methods to support reimbursement decisions on patented drugs. In this context, the discounting procedure emerges as a critical component of these methods, as discount rates can strongly affect the resulting incremental cost-effectiveness ratios. The aim of this paper is to identify the appropriate value of a social discount rate to be used by the German Statutory Health Insurance for the economic evaluation of health technologies. On theoretical grounds, we build on the widespread view of contemporary economists that the social rate of time preference (SRTP) is the adequate social discount rate. For quantifying the SRTP, we first apply the market behaviour approach, which assumes that the SRTP is reflected in observable market interest rates. As a second approach, we derive the SRTP from optimal growth theory by using the Ramsey equation. A major part of the paper is devoted to specify the parameters of this equation. Depending on various assumptions, our empirical findings result in the range of 1.75-4.2% for the SRTP. A reasonable base case discount rate for Germany, thus, would be about 3%. Furthermore, we deal with the much debated question whether a common discount rate for costs and health benefits or a lower rate for health should be applied in health economic evaluations. In the German social health insurance system, no exogenously fixed budget constraint does exist. When evaluating a new health technology, the health care decision maker is obliged to conduct an economic evaluation in order to examine whether there is an economically appropriate relation between the value of the health gains and the additional costs which are given by the value of the consumption losses due to the additional health care expenditures. Therefore, a discount rate lower than the SRTP for consumption should be applied if an increase in the consumption value of health is expected. However, given the limited empirical evidence on the relationship between consumption and the value of health, it is hardly possible to make reliable forecasts of this value. Regarding the practice of the German evaluation authority, it is not recommended to use differential discounting in the base case. Instead, the issue of differential discounting should be addressed in sensitivity analyses. Reducing the discount rate for health compared to the rate for costs by a figure in the range between near 0% and 3% may be considered to be appropriate for Germany.

Alternatives for discounting in the analysis of noninferiority trials.

PubMed

Snapinn, Steven M

2004-05-01

Determining the efficacy of an experimental therapy relative to placebo on the basis of an active-control noninferiority trial requires reference to historical placebo-controlled trials. The validity of the resulting comparison depends on two key assumptions: assay sensitivity and constancy. Since the truth of these assumptions cannot be verified, it seems logical to raise the standard of evidence required to declare efficacy; this concept is referred to as discounting. It is not often recognized that two common design and analysis approaches, setting a noninferiority margin and requiring preservation of a fraction of the standard therapy's effect, are forms of discounting. The noninferiority margin is a particularly poor approach, since its degree of discounting depends on an irrelevant factor. Preservation of effect is more reasonable, but it addresses only the constancy assumption, not the issue of assay sensitivity. Gaining consensus on the most appropriate approach to the design and analysis of noninferiority trials will require a common understanding of the concept of discounting.

Implicit discount rates of vascular surgeons in the management of abdominal aortic aneurysms.

PubMed

Enemark, U; Lyttkens, C H; Troëng, T; Weibull, H; Ranstam, J

1998-01-01

A growing empirical literature has investigated attitudes towards discounting of health benefits with regard to social choices of life-saving and health-improving measures and individuals' time preferences for the management of their own health. In this study, the authors elicited the time preferences of vascular surgeons in the context of management of small abdominal aortic aneurysms, for which the choice between early elective surgery and watchful waiting is not straightforward. They interviewed 25 of a random sample of 30 Swedish vascular surgeons. Considerable variation in the time preferences was found in the choices between watchful waiting and surgical intervention among the otherwise very homogeneous group of surgeons. The discount rates derived ranged from 5.3% to 19.4%. The median discount rate (10.4%) is similar to those usually reported for social choices concerning life-saving measures. The surgeons who were employed in university hospitals had higher discount rates than did their colleagues in county and district hospitals.

Delay Discounting of Video Game Players: Comparison of Time Duration Among Gamers

PubMed Central

Sprong, Matthew E.; Lloyd, Daniel P.; Cutter, Christopher J.; Printz, Destiny M.B.; Sullivan, Ryan M.; Moore, Brent A.

2017-01-01

Abstract Video game addiction or Internet game disorder, as proposed by the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition), has similar criterion characteristics to other impulse control disorders. There is limited research examining video game addiction within a behavioral economic framework using delay discounting. The current study evaluated delay-discounting patterns of money and video game play by usual weekly hours of video game play. A total of 104 participants were split into 1 of 3 groups of video game players (low, medium, and high) and were asked to complete a monetary and video game discounting procedure through an online survey. Results showed significant differences between groups within both the monetary (p = 0.003) and video game discounting procedures (p = 0.004). Additionally, a positive linear relationship was noted between the groups across both procedures. The results of the current article reinforce previous findings that more hours of video game use are associated with greater impulsivity and provide implications for future research. PMID:28118044

Delay Discounting of Video Game Players: Comparison of Time Duration Among Gamers.

PubMed

Buono, Frank D; Sprong, Matthew E; Lloyd, Daniel P; Cutter, Christopher J; Printz, Destiny M B; Sullivan, Ryan M; Moore, Brent A

2017-02-01

Video game addiction or Internet game disorder, as proposed by the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition), has similar criterion characteristics to other impulse control disorders. There is limited research examining video game addiction within a behavioral economic framework using delay discounting. The current study evaluated delay-discounting patterns of money and video game play by usual weekly hours of video game play. A total of 104 participants were split into 1 of 3 groups of video game players (low, medium, and high) and were asked to complete a monetary and video game discounting procedure through an online survey. Results showed significant differences between groups within both the monetary (p = 0.003) and video game discounting procedures (p = 0.004). Additionally, a positive linear relationship was noted between the groups across both procedures. The results of the current article reinforce previous findings that more hours of video game use are associated with greater impulsivity and provide implications for future research.

Statistical equivalence and test-retest reliability of delay and probability discounting using real and hypothetical rewards.

PubMed

Matusiewicz, Alexis K; Carter, Anne E; Landes, Reid D; Yi, Richard

2013-11-01

Delay discounting (DD) and probability discounting (PD) refer to the reduction in the subjective value of outcomes as a function of delay and uncertainty, respectively. Elevated measures of discounting are associated with a variety of maladaptive behaviors, and confidence in the validity of these measures is imperative. The present research examined (1) the statistical equivalence of discounting measures when rewards were hypothetical or real, and (2) their 1-week reliability. While previous research has partially explored these issues using the low threshold of nonsignificant difference, the present study fully addressed this issue using the more-compelling threshold of statistical equivalence. DD and PD measures were collected from 28 healthy adults using real and hypothetical $50 rewards during each of two experimental sessions, one week apart. Analyses using area-under-the-curve measures revealed a general pattern of statistical equivalence, indicating equivalence of real/hypothetical conditions as well as 1-week reliability. Exceptions are identified and discussed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Gambling, Delay, and Probability Discounting in Adults With and Without ADHD.

PubMed

Dai, Zhijie; Harrow, Sarah-Eve; Song, Xianwen; Rucklidge, Julia J; Grace, Randolph C

2016-11-01

We investigated the relationship between impulsivity, as measured by delay and probability discounting, and gambling-related cognitions and behavior in adults with and without ADHD. Adults who met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; DSM-IV) diagnostic criteria for ADHD (n = 31) and controls (n = 29) were recruited from the community. All completed an interview that included an assessment of psychiatric disorders, gambling questionnaires, and simulated gambling, delay, and probability discounting tasks. The ADHD group was more likely to meet the criteria for problem gambling and was more impulsive than controls based on a composite discounting measure. ADHD symptoms were correlated with gambling-related cognitions and behavior. Probability, but not delay discounting, explained significant variance in gambling-related measures after controlling for ADHD symptoms. Results confirm an association between adult ADHD and gambling, and suggest that the facets of impulsivity related to risk proneness may be an independent risk factor for problem gambling in this population. © The Author(s) 2013.

Two Person Zero-Sum Semi-Markov Games with Unknown Holding Times Distribution on One Side: A Discounted Payoff Criterion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Minjarez-Sosa, J. Adolfo, E-mail: aminjare@gauss.mat.uson.mx; Luque-Vasquez, Fernando

This paper deals with two person zero-sum semi-Markov games with a possibly unbounded payoff function, under a discounted payoff criterion. Assuming that the distribution of the holding times H is unknown for one of the players, we combine suitable methods of statistical estimation of H with control procedures to construct an asymptotically discount optimal pair of strategies.

Domain-General and Domain-Specific Aspects of Temporal Discounting in Children with ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD): A Proof of Concept Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Demurie, Ellen; Roeyers, Herbert; Baeyens, Dieter; Sonuga-Barke, Edmund

2013-01-01

It has been shown that delayed consumable rewards are discounted to a higher degree than money, which has been referred to as the "domain effect". Until now the effects of reward type on temporal discounting (TD) have mainly been studied in adults. Although there is evidence that children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) tend…

A behavioral economic analysis of texting while driving: Delay discounting processes

PubMed Central

Hayashi, Yusuke; Miller, Kimberly; Foreman, Anne M.; Wirth, Oliver

2016-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to examine an impulsive decision-making process underlying texting while driving from a behavioral economic perspective. A sample of 108 college students completed a novel discounting task that presented participants with a hypothetical scenario in which, after receiving a text message while driving, they rated the likelihood of replying to a text message immediately versus waiting to reply for a specific period of time. Participants also completed a delay discounting task in which they made repeated hypothetical choices between obtaining a larger amount of money available after a delay and an equal or lesser amount of money available immediately. The results show that the duration of the delay is a critical variable that strongly determines whether participants choose to wait to reply to a text message, and that the decrease in the likelihood of waiting as a function of delay is best described by a hyperbolic delay discounting function. The results also show that participants who self-reported higher frequency of texting while driving discounted the opportunity to reply to a text message at greater rates, whereas there was no relation between the rates of discounting of hypothetical monetary rewards and the frequency of texting while driving. The results support the conclusion that texting while driving is fundamentally an impulsive choice. PMID:27614547

Syntax for calculation of discounting indices from the monetary choice questionnaire and probability discounting questionnaire.

PubMed

Gray, Joshua C; Amlung, Michael T; Palmer, Abraham A; MacKillop, James

2016-09-01

The 27-item Monetary Choice Questionnaire (MCQ; Kirby, Petry, & Bickel, 1999) and 30-item Probability Discounting Questionnaire (PDQ; Madden, Petry, & Johnson, 2009) are widely used, validated measures of preferences for immediate versus delayed rewards and guaranteed versus risky rewards, respectively. The MCQ measures delayed discounting by asking individuals to choose between rewards available immediately and larger rewards available after a delay. The PDQ measures probability discounting by asking individuals to choose between guaranteed rewards and a chance at winning larger rewards. Numerous studies have implicated these measures in addiction and other health behaviors. Unlike typical self-report measures, the MCQ and PDQ generate inferred hyperbolic temporal and probability discounting functions by comparing choice preferences to arrays of functions to which the individual items are preconfigured. This article provides R and SPSS syntax for processing the MCQ and PDQ. Specifically, for the MCQ, the syntax generates k values, consistency of the inferred k, and immediate choice ratios; for the PDQ, the syntax generates h indices, consistency of the inferred h, and risky choice ratios. The syntax is intended to increase the accessibility of these measures, expedite the data processing, and reduce risk for error. © 2016 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

If brands are built over years, why are they managed over quarters?

PubMed

Lodish, Leonard M; Mela, Carl F

2007-01-01

Brands are on the wane. Many consumer-goods companies blame the big-box discount retailers, but the Wharton School's Leonard Lodish and the Fuqua School's Carl Mela have a different explanation. Their research suggests that companies have damaged their brands by investing too much in short-term price promotions and too little in long-term brand building. To rescue their brands and increase profitability, corporate managers must arm themselves with long-term measures of brand performance and use them to make smarter marketing decisions. Several factors explain the short-sightedness of brand management: the increased availability of weekly, or even hourly, scanner data, which show a clear link between discounts and immediate boosts in sales; the relative difficulty of measuring the effects of advertising, new-product development, and distribution--all of which can contribute to a brand's long-term health; the short tenure of most brand managers; and the near-term orientation of Wall Street analysts. Although discounts do increase sales in the short-term, they ultimately lower profit margins. If a product is often discounted, consumers learn to buy it only when it's on sale. Moreover, when one firm increases its discounts, others usually follow suit, lowering everyone's margins. Executives can monitor a brand's long-term performance by watching a dashboard of measures. Only after examining such measures, for example, did managers at Clorox discover that the company's heavy discounting and decreased advertising had caused a steady decline in overall bleach sales and profit margins. In response, Clorox reduced discounting and increased television advertising, moves that ultimately strengthened the brand and reversed the firm's downward trends.

Episodic Future Thinking about the Ideal Self Induces Lower Discounting, Leading to a Decreased Tendency toward Cheating.

PubMed

Wu, Wen-Hsiung; Cheng, Wen; Chiou, Wen-Bin

2017-01-01

Delay discounting refers to a pervasive tendency toward preferring smaller immediate gains over larger future gains. Recent empirical research has shown that episodic future thinking (EFT; i.e., projecting oneself into the future to pre-experience forthcoming events) can reduce the tendency toward discounting. A common tenet of psychological theories of crime is that delinquency results from focusing on short-term gains while failing to consider adequately the longer-term consequences of delinquent behavior. We investigated whether an EFT intervention involving the ideal self could induce lower discounting rates and, as a consequence, reduced delinquency. The results showed that, compared with control participants, participants engaging in EFT, that is, envisaging life events that would be experienced by their ideal selves, exhibited a lower discounting rate in a monetary choice task (Experiments 1 and 2), as well as a decreased tendency to make delinquent choices in imaginary scenarios (Experiment 1) and cheat in a matrix task (Experiment 2). The discounting tendency mediated the relationship between engaging in EFT pertaining to the ideal self and the tendency toward morally questionable behavior (Experiments 1 and 2). The findings of the two experiments indicate that engagement in EFT with a focus on the ideal self is sufficient to induce lower discounting rates, by promoting consideration of distant costs and thus increasing resistance to delinquent involvement and cheating (given the temptation of the immediate benefits that may accrue from such behavior). The current research constitutes an innovative approach to delinquency prevention and the promotion of morality.

Episodic Future Thinking about the Ideal Self Induces Lower Discounting, Leading to a Decreased Tendency toward Cheating

PubMed Central

Wu, Wen-Hsiung; Cheng, Wen; Chiou, Wen-Bin

2017-01-01

Delay discounting refers to a pervasive tendency toward preferring smaller immediate gains over larger future gains. Recent empirical research has shown that episodic future thinking (EFT; i.e., projecting oneself into the future to pre-experience forthcoming events) can reduce the tendency toward discounting. A common tenet of psychological theories of crime is that delinquency results from focusing on short-term gains while failing to consider adequately the longer-term consequences of delinquent behavior. We investigated whether an EFT intervention involving the ideal self could induce lower discounting rates and, as a consequence, reduced delinquency. The results showed that, compared with control participants, participants engaging in EFT, that is, envisaging life events that would be experienced by their ideal selves, exhibited a lower discounting rate in a monetary choice task (Experiments 1 and 2), as well as a decreased tendency to make delinquent choices in imaginary scenarios (Experiment 1) and cheat in a matrix task (Experiment 2). The discounting tendency mediated the relationship between engaging in EFT pertaining to the ideal self and the tendency toward morally questionable behavior (Experiments 1 and 2). The findings of the two experiments indicate that engagement in EFT with a focus on the ideal self is sufficient to induce lower discounting rates, by promoting consideration of distant costs and thus increasing resistance to delinquent involvement and cheating (given the temptation of the immediate benefits that may accrue from such behavior). The current research constitutes an innovative approach to delinquency prevention and the promotion of morality. PMID:28303111

Tobacco demand, delay discounting, and smoking topography among smokers with and without psychopathology.

PubMed

Farris, Samantha G; Aston, Elizabeth R; Abrantes, Ana M; Zvolensky, Michael J

2017-10-01

Tobacco demand (i.e., relative value attributed to a given reinforcer) and delay discounting (i.e., relative preference for smaller immediate rewards over larger delayed rewards) are two behavioral economic processes that are linked to the progression of problematic substance use. These processes have not been studied among those with psychopathology, a vulnerable group of smokers. The current study examined differences in tobacco demand and delay discounting, and their association with smoking topography among smokers with (n=43) and without (n=64) past-year psychopathology. Adult daily smokers (n=107,M age =43.5; SD=9.7) participated in a study on "smoking behavior." Past-year psychological disorders were assessed via a clinician-administered diagnostic assessment. All subjects participated in an ad libitum smoking trial and then completed an assessment of delay discounting (Monetary Choice Questionnaire) and tobacco demand (Cigarette Purchase Task) approximately 45-60min post-smoking. Smokers with psychopathology, compared to those without, had significantly higher demand intensity and maximum expenditure on tobacco (O max ), but did not differ on other demand indices or delay discounting. Smokers with psychopathology had shorter average inter-puff intervals and shorter time to cigarette completion than smokers without psychopathology. Tobacco demand and delay discounting measures were significantly intercorrelated among smokers with psychopathology, but not those without. Both behavioral economic measures were associated with specific aspects of smoking topography in smokers with psychopathology. The association between tobacco demand and delay discounting is evident among smokers with psychopathology and both measures were most consistently related to smoking behavior. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Pathways Linking Adverse Childhood Experiences to Cigarette Smoking Among Young Black Men: a Prospective Analysis of the Role of Sleep Problems and Delayed Reward Discounting.

PubMed

Oshri, Assaf; Kogan, Steven; Liu, Sihong; Sweet, Lawrence; Mackillop, James

2017-12-01

African American men experience increases in smoking during the young adult transition. Exposure to childhood adversity, a risk factor which disproportionately affects African American men, has been identified as a robust precursor to health risk behavior in general and cigarette smoking in particular. The intermediate mechanisms that transmit the influence of early adversity to smoking behavior are not well understood. We tested a model of the escalation of smoking behaviors among young adult African American men, investigating sleep disturbance and delayed reward discounting as intermediate factors linking adverse childhood experiences with smoking. Hypotheses were tested with three waves of data (M age-T1  = 20.34, M age-T2  = 21.92, M age-T3  = 23.02) from 505 African American men living in rural counties in South Georgia. Men provided self-report data on their adverse childhood experiences, sleep problems, and smoking behavior using audio-assisted computer self-interviews. Men also completed a computer-based delayed reward discounting task. Structural equation modeling analyses supported our hypotheses: Adverse childhood experiences predicted poor sleep adequacy, which forecast increases in delayed reward discounting; discounting, in turn, predicted increased smoking. Significant indirect pathways were detected linking adversity to discounting via sleep adequacy and linking sleep adequacy to smoking via discounting. Prevention and intervention researchers can draw on these findings to develop programs that focus on sleep adequacy to reduce smoking in African American men exposed to childhood adversity.

Delay discounting and impulsivity traits in young and older gambling disorder patients.

PubMed

Steward, Trevor; Mestre-Bach, Gemma; Fernández-Aranda, Fernando; Granero, Roser; Perales, José C; Navas, Juan Francisco; Soriano-Mas, Carles; Baño, Marta; Fernández-Formoso, Jose A; Martín-Romera, Virginia; Menchón, José M; Jiménez-Murcia, Susana

2017-08-01

Impulsivity is understood to be a multidimensional construct involving aspects such as impulsive choice and impulsive traits. Delay discounting, the tendency to place greater value in immediate rewards over larger, long-term rewards, has been associated with maladaptive choices in gambling disorder (GD). Delay discounting is known to evolve with age; though no study to date has evaluated the interactions between impulsivity, GD severity and age in treatment-seeking patients. We aimed to examine whether associations between delay discounting and impulsivity traits differed between younger and older-aged GD patients. Secondly, we sought to untangle the mediating role of impulsivity in determining gambling behavior in these two age groups. GD patients (N=335) were evaluated using the UPPS-P Impulsive Behavior Scale and a delay discounting task. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to explore associations between impulsivity measures and gambling severity in young (18-30years) and old (31-70) GD patients. No differences in delay discounting were found between young and old GD patients. Significant correlations between delay discounting and urgency levels (the tendency to act rashly under emotional states) were identified only in the young GD group. Path analyses also revealed both positive and negative urgency to be a mediator of GD severity levels in young GD patients. Significant associations between impulsive choice and positive urgency are only present in young gamblers, suggesting that positive urgency influence choice behavior to a greater degree at younger ages. Implications for targeted interventions are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of different discount levels on healthy products coupled with a healthy choice label, special offer label or both: results from a web-based supermarket experiment.

PubMed

Waterlander, Wilma E; Steenhuis, Ingrid H M; de Boer, Michiel R; Schuit, Albertine J; Seidell, Jacob C

2013-05-16

Two strategies commonly recommended to improve population diets include food labels and food taxes/subsidies. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of both strategies separately and in combination. An experiment with a 3x3 factorial design was conducted, including: three levels of price reduction (10%; 25%; and 50%) x three labels ('special offer', 'healthy choice' and 'special offer & healthy choice') on healthy foods defined following the Choices front-of-pack nutrition label. N=109 participants completed the experiment by conducting a typical weekly shop for their household at a three-dimensional web-based supermarket. Data were analysed using analysis of covariance. Participants receiving a 50% price discount purchased significantly more healthy foods for their household in a typical weekly shop than the 10% discount (+8.7 items; 95%CI=3.8-13.6) and the 25% discount group (+7.7 items; 95%CI=2.74 - 12.6). However, the proportion of healthy foods was not significantly higher and the discounts lead to an increased amount of energy purchased. No significant effects of the labels were found. This study brings some relevant insights into the effects of price discounts on healthier foods coupled with different labels and shows that price effects over shadowed food labels. However, price discounts seem to have ambiguous effects; they do encourage the purchase of healthy products, but also lead to increased energy purchases. More research is needed to examine how pricing strategies can work in directing consumers towards interchanging unhealthier options for healthier alternatives.

Effects of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor ligands on sensitivity to reinforcer magnitude and delayed reinforcement in a delay-discounting procedure

PubMed Central

Yates, Justin R; Gunkel, Benjamin T; Rogers, Katherine K; Hughes, Mallory N; Prior, Nicholas A

2016-01-01

Rationale The N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor has been recently identified as an important mediator of impulsive choice, as assessed in delay discounting. Although discounting is independently influenced by sensitivity to reinforcer magnitude and delayed reinforcement, few studies have examined how NMDA receptor ligands differentially affect these parameters. Objectives The current study examined the effects of various NMDA receptor ligands on sensitivity to reinforcer magnitude and delayed reinforcement in a delay-discounting procedure. Methods Following behavioral training, rats received treatments of the following NMDA receptor ligands: the uncompetitive antagonists ketamine (0, 1.0, 5.0, or 10.0 mg/kg; i.p.), MK-801 (0, 0.003, 0.01, or 0.03 mg/kg; s.c.), and memantine (0, 2.5, 5.0, or 10.0 mg/kg; i.p.), the competitive antagonist CGS 19755 (0, 5.0, 10.0, or 20.0 mg/kg; s.c.), the non-competitive NR2B subunit-selective antagonist ifenprodil (0, 1.0, 3.0, or 10.0 mg/kg; i.p), and the partial agonist D-cycloserine (0, 3.25, 15.0, or 30.0 mg/kg; s.c.). Results When an exponential model was used to describe discounting, CGS 19755 (5.0 mg/kg) increased impulsive choice without altering sensitivity to reinforcer magnitude. Conversely, ketamine (10.0 mg/kg), memantine (5.0 mg/kg), and ifenprodil (10.0 mg/kg) decreased sensitivity to reinforcer magnitude without altering impulsive choice. MK-801 and D-cycloserine did not alter delay-discounting performance, although two-way ANOVA analyses indicated D-cycloserine (15.0 mg/kg) decreased impulsive choice. Conclusions The behavioral changes observed in delay discounting following administration of NMDA receptor antagonists do not always reflect an alteration in impulsive choice. These results emphasize the utility in employing quantitative methods to assess drug effects in delay discounting. PMID:27837332

Cognitive Decline Is Associated with Risk Aversion and Temporal Discounting in Older Adults without Dementia

PubMed Central

James, Bryan D.; Boyle, Patricia A.; Yu, Lei; Han, S. Duke; Bennett, David A.

2015-01-01

Risk aversion and temporal discounting are preferences that are strongly linked to sub-optimal financial and health decision making ability. Prior studies have shown they differ by age and cognitive ability, but it remains unclear whether differences are due to age-related cognitive decline or lower cognitive abilities over the life span. We tested the hypothesis that cognitive decline is associated with higher risk aversion and temporal discounting in 455 older persons without dementia from the Memory and Aging Project, a longitudinal cohort study of aging in Chicago. All underwent repeated annual cognitive evaluations using a detailed battery including 19 tests. Risk aversion was measured using standard behavioral economics questions: participants were asked to choose between a certain monetary payment versus a gamble in which they could gain more or nothing; potential gamble gains varied across questions. Temporal discounting: participants were asked to choose between an immediate, smaller payment and a delayed, larger one; two sets of questions addressed small and large stakes based on payment amount. Regression analyses were used to examine whether prior rate of cognitive decline predicted level of risk aversion and temporal discounting, controlling for age, sex, and education. Over an average of 5.5 (SD=2.9) years, cognition declined at an average of 0.016 units per year (SD=0.03). More rapid cognitive decline predicted higher levels of risk aversion (p=0.002) and temporal discounting (small stakes: p=0.01, high stakes: p=0.006). Further, associations between cognitive decline and risk aversion (p=0.015) and large stakes temporal discounting (p=0.026) persisted in analyses restricted to persons without any cognitive impairment (i.e., no dementia or mild cognitive impairment); the association of cognitive decline and small stakes temporal discounting was no longer statistically significant (p=0.078). These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that subtle age-related changes in cognition can detrimentally affect individual preferences that are critical for maintaining health and well being. PMID:25838074

Cognitive decline is associated with risk aversion and temporal discounting in older adults without dementia.

PubMed

James, Bryan D; Boyle, Patricia A; Yu, Lei; Han, S Duke; Bennett, David A

2015-01-01

Risk aversion and temporal discounting are preferences that are strongly linked to sub-optimal financial and health decision making ability. Prior studies have shown they differ by age and cognitive ability, but it remains unclear whether differences are due to age-related cognitive decline or lower cognitive abilities over the life span. We tested the hypothesis that cognitive decline is associated with higher risk aversion and temporal discounting in 455 older persons without dementia from the Memory and Aging Project, a longitudinal cohort study of aging in Chicago. All underwent repeated annual cognitive evaluations using a detailed battery including 19 tests. Risk aversion was measured using standard behavioral economics questions: participants were asked to choose between a certain monetary payment versus a gamble in which they could gain more or nothing; potential gamble gains varied across questions. Temporal discounting: participants were asked to choose between an immediate, smaller payment and a delayed, larger one; two sets of questions addressed small and large stakes based on payment amount. Regression analyses were used to examine whether prior rate of cognitive decline predicted level of risk aversion and temporal discounting, controlling for age, sex, and education. Over an average of 5.5 (SD=2.9) years, cognition declined at an average of 0.016 units per year (SD=0.03). More rapid cognitive decline predicted higher levels of risk aversion (p=0.002) and temporal discounting (small stakes: p=0.01, high stakes: p=0.006). Further, associations between cognitive decline and risk aversion (p=0.015) and large stakes temporal discounting (p=0.026) persisted in analyses restricted to persons without any cognitive impairment (i.e., no dementia or mild cognitive impairment); the association of cognitive decline and small stakes temporal discounting was no longer statistically significant (p=0.078). These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that subtle age-related changes in cognition can detrimentally affect individual preferences that are critical for maintaining health and well being.

An adaptive, individualized fMRI delay discounting procedure to increase flexibility and optimize scanner time.

PubMed

Koffarnus, Mikhail N; Deshpande, Harshawardhan U; Lisinski, Jonathan M; Eklund, Anders; Bickel, Warren K; LaConte, Stephen M

2017-11-01

Research on the rate at which people discount the value of future rewards has become increasingly prevalent as discount rate has been shown to be associated with many unhealthy patterns of behavior such as drug abuse, gambling, and overeating. fMRI research points to a fronto-parietal-limbic pathway that is active during decisions between smaller amounts of money now and larger amounts available after a delay. Researchers in this area have used different variants of delay discounting tasks and reported various contrasts between choice trials of different types from these tasks. For instance, researchers have compared 1) choices of delayed monetary amounts to choices of the immediate monetary amounts, 2) 'hard' choices made near one's point of indifference to 'easy' choices that require little thought, and 3) trials where an immediate choice is available versus trials where one is unavailable, regardless of actual eventual choice. These differences in procedure and analysis make comparison of results across studies difficult. In the present experiment, we designed a delay discounting task with the intended capability of being able to construct contrasts of all three comparisons listed above while optimizing scanning time to reduce costs and avoid participant fatigue. This was accomplished with an algorithm that customized the choice trials presented to each participant with the goal of equalizing choice trials of each type. We compared this task, which we refer to here as the individualized discounting task (IDT), to two other delay discounting tasks previously reported in the literature (McClure et al., 2004; Amlung et al., 2014) in 18 participants. Results show that the IDT can examine each of the three contrasts mentioned above, while yielding a similar degree of activation as the reference tasks. This suggests that this new task could be used in delay discounting fMRI studies to allow researchers to more easily compare their results to a majority of previous research while minimizing scanning duration. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Obese and overweight individuals are less sensitive to information about meal times in portion size judgements.

PubMed

Zimmerman, A R; Mason, A; Rogers, P J; Brunstrom, J M

2017-11-16

Obesity is related to a tendency to discount the future. Information regarding inter-meal interval (IMI) allows meal planning. We sought to assess how obese, overweight, and lean people select portion sizes based on the length of an IMI. We hypothesised that individuals with a high BMI would discount information about the IMI. In addition, we investigated how reduced sensitivity to IMIs relates to monetary temporal discounting. Participants (lean, n=35; overweight, n=31; obese, n=22), selected lunchtime portion sizes in response to information about the timings of their next meal. In seven trials, the time of the IMI was systematically manipulated, ranging from 'right now' to '8 h'. Participants then completed a monetary temporal discounting task. BMI was included as a continuous measure. For each participant, we conducted a linear regression of portion size on IMI to yield a gradient that reflected reduced sensitivity to future meal timings. As expected, participants selected larger portion sizes in response to a long IMI. Consistent with our hypothesis, individuals with a high BMI discounted information about the IMI (β=-3.49, P=0.015; confidence interval (CI) 6.29 to -0.70). Monetary discounting also negatively predicted BMI (β=-8.1, P=0.003; CI=-13.43 to -2.77), but did not correlate with IMI sensitivity (P>0.05). These results are the first to demonstrate that temporal discounting operates in planning from one meal to the next, and is more prevalent in obese and overweight, relative to lean individuals. Participants with a high BMI discounted concerns about potential future fullness and hunger in the IMI. Our observations might begin to explain associations between obesity and irregular meal timings or help to form the basis for a targeted intervention that promotes future thinking in meal planning.International Journal of Obesity accepted article preview online, 16 November 2017. doi:10.1038/ijo.2017.275.

The Sleeper Effect in Persuasion: A Meta-Analytic Review

PubMed Central

Kumkale, G. Tarcan; Albarracín, Dolores

2009-01-01

A meta-analysis of the available judgment and memory data on the sleeper effect in persuasion is presented. According to this effect, when people receive a communication associated with a discounting cue, such as a noncredible source, they are less persuaded immediately after exposure than they are later in time. Findings from this meta-analysis indicate that recipients of discounting cues were more persuaded over time when the message arguments and the cue had a strong initial impact. In addition, the increase in persuasion was stronger when recipients of discounting cues had higher ability or motivation to think about the message and received the discounting cue after the message. These results are discussed in light of classic and contemporary models of attitudes and persuasion. PMID:14717653

Quantity discounts on a virtual good: The results of a massive pricing experiment at King Digital Entertainment

PubMed Central

Levitt, Steven D.; List, John A.; Neckermann, Susanne; Nelson, David

2016-01-01

We report on a natural field experiment on quantity discounts involving more than 14 million consumers. Implementing price reductions ranging from 9–70% for large purchases, we found remarkably little impact on revenue, either positively or negatively. There was virtually no increase in the quantity of customers making a purchase; all the observed changes occurred for customers who already were buyers. We found evidence that infrequent purchasers are more responsive to discounts than frequent purchasers. There was some evidence of habit formation when prices returned to pre-experiment levels. There also was some evidence that consumers contemplating small purchases are discouraged by the presence of extreme quantity discounts for large purchases. PMID:27382146

Longitudinal Associations Among Religiousness, Delay Discounting, and Substance Use Initiation in Early Adolescence.

PubMed

Kim-Spoon, Jungmeen; McCullough, Michael E; Bickel, W K; Farley, Julee P; Longo, Gregory S

2015-03-01

Prior research indicates that religiousness is related negatively to adolescent health risk behaviors, yet how such protective effects operate is not well understood. This study examined the longitudinal associations among organizational and personal religiousness, delay discounting, and substance use initiation (alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use). The sample comprised 106 early adolescents (10-13 years of age, 52% female) who were not using substances at Time 1. Path analyses suggested that high levels of personal religiousness at Time 1 were related to low levels of substance use at Time 2 (2.4 years later), mediated by low levels of delay discounting. Delay discounting appears to be an important contributor to the protective effect of religiousness on the development of substance use among adolescents.

Effects of different discount levels on healthy products coupled with a healthy choice label, special offer label or both: results from a web-based supermarket experiment

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Two strategies commonly recommended to improve population diets include food labels and food taxes/subsidies. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of both strategies separately and in combination. Findings An experiment with a 3x3 factorial design was conducted, including: three levels of price reduction (10%; 25%; and 50%) x three labels (‘special offer’, ‘healthy choice’ and ‘special offer & healthy choice’) on healthy foods defined following the Choices front-of-pack nutrition label. N = 109 participants completed the experiment by conducting a typical weekly shop for their household at a three-dimensional web-based supermarket. Data were analysed using analysis of covariance. Participants receiving a 50% price discount purchased significantly more healthy foods for their household in a typical weekly shop than the 10% discount (+8.7 items; 95%CI = 3.8-13.6) and the 25% discount group (+7.7 items; 95%CI = 2.74 – 12.6). However, the proportion of healthy foods was not significantly higher and the discounts lead to an increased amount of energy purchased. No significant effects of the labels were found. Conclusion This study brings some relevant insights into the effects of price discounts on healthier foods coupled with different labels and shows that price effects over shadowed food labels. However, price discounts seem to have ambiguous effects; they do encourage the purchase of healthy products, but also lead to increased energy purchases. More research is needed to examine how pricing strategies can work in directing consumers towards interchanging unhealthier options for healthier alternatives. PMID:23680347

Focus on the future: Episodic future thinking reduces discount rate and snacking.

PubMed

Dassen, Fania C M; Jansen, Anita; Nederkoorn, Chantal; Houben, Katrijn

2016-01-01

Obesity seems related to a preference for immediate gratification. By changing this focus on short term benefits to a more future-oriented outlook, delay discounting (impulsive decision making) can be changed by a manipulation of episodic future thinking (EFT). EFT comprises a vivid mental simulation of general future experiences. EFT may also affect consumption of unhealthy foods, which can be seen as a choice for immediate gratification. Recent research shows that future orientation should be tailored to the behavior at outcome. We therefore hypothesize that the effectiveness of EFT on food intake could be enhanced by making the content food-related. We conducted a 2 (future vs past thinking) by 2 (food vs non-food related thoughts) between-subject design experiment in female undergraduates (N = 94), to compare the efficacy of EFT versus the recalling of episodic past events in reducing discount rate and caloric intake. Content of imagery was either unrestricted or food-related. Participants engaged in EFT or control episodic imagery while snacks were offered to freely consume, and next the Monetary Choice Questionnaire was completed as a measure of delay discounting, while again being engaged in EFT or control imagery. Both types of EFT reduced delay discounting, however, only food-related EFT lead to more restricted caloric consumption. Thus, we found evidence that EFT reduced discount rate during decision making. However, in order to restrict caloric intake, EFT should entail food-related imagery. As discount rate and caloric intake were not related in the current sample, the underlying mechanism remains to be discovered. Results however suggest that EFT is a promising technique to resist immediate gratification. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social time preferences for health and money elicited with a choice experiment.

PubMed

Meerding, Willem Jan; Bonsel, Gouke J; Brouwer, Werner B F; Stuifbergen, Marja C; Essink-Bot, Marie-Louise

2010-01-01

In economic evaluations future health and monetary outcomes are commonly discounted at equal and constant rates. The theoretical foundation of this practice is being debated and appropriate discount rates for costs and health effects are sought. Here, we have derived social discount rates for health, money, and environmental benefits by means of a choice experiment. All choices were framed from a social perspective. We investigated differences in time preference by domain (health, monetary benefits, environmental benefits), time delay (5, 10, and 40 years), and respondent characteristics. Respondents were 173 health-care professionals and 34 health policymakers. Choice titration was used to determine when the respondent was indifferent between future and present benefits. At least two-thirds of respondents preferred an intervention with immediate benefits to delayed benefits in the different domains. The median (mean) yearly discount rates for health benefits were 2.7% (10.7%), 1.3% (3.5%), and 1.1% (2.3%) assuming a 5, 10, and 40 years delay, respectively. Social time preference for monetary benefits was significantly stronger, with median (mean) yearly discount rates of 6.6% (18.7%) and 4.8% (11.2%) assuming a 5 and 10 years delay, respectively. The social time preference with regard to environmental benefits was similar to the monetary benefits. Social time preference for the different domains was significantly correlated at the individual level. The empirically derived social time preference is in line with current theoretical arguments for a lower discount rate for health benefits than for monetary benefits. Moreover, the implied median discount rates for health were lower than those commonly used or advocated in guidelines.

The role of individual time preferences in health behaviors among hypertensive adults: a pilot study.

PubMed

Axon, R Neal; Bradford, W David; Egan, Brent M

2009-01-01

An economic framework incorporating patients' time-value preferences may help explain individual variation in preventive health behaviors. We conducted a pilot study to examine the relationship between health discount rates and preventive health practices. A group of 422 hypertensive individuals were assessed by written survey regarding their actual or likely preventive health behaviors, and they were posed a series of time preference questions. Regression methods that account for the interval nature of the time preference responses were used to estimate individual respondents' discount rates. Dichotomous regression analyses (using probit models) adjusted for gender, age, race, income, and health status revealed mean health discount rates of 0.438 or (43.8%) per year (standard deviation [SD], 0.07). Analyses adjusted for age, gender, race, income level, insurance status, and health status indicated that a 1% increase in discount rate increased the likelihood respondents would not check their BP by 3.5% (P = .003), not alter diet and exercise habits by 0.6% (P = .004), and not follow doctors' treatment plans by 1.6% (P = .05). Compared to the four lowest quintiles, patients in the highest quintile of discount rates (annualized discount rates between 50% and 57.2%) tended to have lower likelihood of ever checking blood pressure (BP) at home (42.5% vs. 47.6%; P = .36), of not using their physician's office for sick care (16.5% vs. 27.6%; P = .01), and of not altering their diet and exercise habits in response to a diagnosis of hypertension (6.8% vs. 12.4%; P = .07). These preliminary data indicate that the degree to which individuals discount the future has a significant impact on their health behaviors.

Do effects of price discounts and nutrition education on food purchases vary by ethnicity, income and education? Results from a randomised, controlled trial.

PubMed

Blakely, Tony; Ni Mhurchu, Cliona; Jiang, Yannan; Matoe, Leonie; Funaki-Tahifote, Mafi; Eyles, Helen C; Foster, Rachel H; McKenzie, Sarah; Rodgers, Anthony

2011-10-01

Reducing health inequalities requires interventions that work as well, if not better, among disadvantaged populations. The aim of this study was to determine if the effects of price discounts and tailored nutrition education on supermarket food purchases (percentage energy from saturated fat and healthy foods purchased) vary by ethnicity, household income and education. A 2×2 factorial trial of 1104 New Zealand shoppers randomised to receive a 12.5% discount on healthier foods and/or tailored nutrition education (or no intervention) for 6 months. There was no overall association of price discounts or nutrition education with percentage energy from saturated fat, or nutrition education with healthy food purchasing. There was an association of price discounts with healthy food purchasing (0.79 kg/week increase; 95% CI 0.43 to 1.16) that varied by ethnicity (p=0.04): European/other 1.02 kg/week (n=755; 95% CI 0.60 to 1.43); Pacific 1.20 kg/week (n=101; 95% CI 0.06 to 2.34); Māori -0.15 kg/week (n=248; 95% CI -1.10 to 0.80). This association of price discounts with healthy food purchasing did not vary by household income or education. While a statistically significant variation by ethnicity in the effect of price discounts on food purchasing was found, the authors caution against a causal interpretation due to likely biases (eg, attrition) that differentially affected Māori and Pacific people. The study highlights the challenges in generating valid evidence by social groups for public health interventions. The null findings for tailored nutritional education across all social groups suggest that structural interventions (such as price) may be more effective.

Effect of daily morphine administration and its discontinuation on delay discounting of food in rhesus monkeys

PubMed Central

Maguire, David R; Gerak, Lisa R; France, Charles P

2015-01-01

Opioid abusers discount delayed reinforcers more rapidly than non-users; however, it is unclear whether chronic drug administration or its discontinuation impact discounting. This study examined daily morphine administration and its discontinuation on delay discounting of food in rhesus monkeys. Responding on one lever delivered 1 food pellet immediately; responding on another lever delivered 2 food pellets either immediately or after a delay (30–120 sec) that increased within the session. Monkeys (n=3) responded for the large reinforcer when both reinforcers were delivered immediately and more for the smaller, immediately available reinforcer as delay to delivery of the large reinforcer increased. When administered acutely, morphine (0.032–5.6 mg/kg) increased trial omissions and had variable effects on choice, with small doses decreasing and large doses increasing choice of the large delayed reinforcer. Chronic morphine administration (0.1 mg/kg/day to 3.2 mg/kg twice daily) reduced choice of the large delayed reinforcer in two monkeys while increasing choice in a third monkey. Despite the development of tolerance to some effects (i.e., rightward shifts in dose-effect curves for the number of trials omitted) and evidence of mild opioid dependence (e.g., decrease in the number of trials completed as well as body weight), discontinuation of treatment did not appear to systematically impact discounting. Overall, these results suggest that repeated opioid administration causes persistent effects on choice under a delay discounting procedure; however, differences in the direction of effect among individuals suggest factors other than, or in addition to, changes in discounting might play a role. PMID:26397762

A behavioral economic analysis of texting while driving: Delay discounting processes.

PubMed

Hayashi, Yusuke; Miller, Kimberly; Foreman, Anne M; Wirth, Oliver

2016-12-01

The purpose of the present study was to examine an impulsive decision-making process underlying texting while driving from a behavioral economic perspective. A sample of 108 college students completed a novel discounting task that presented participants with a hypothetical scenario in which, after receiving a text message while driving, they rated the likelihood of replying to a text message immediately versus waiting to reply for a specific period of time. Participants also completed a delay discounting task in which they made repeated hypothetical choices between obtaining a larger amount of money available after a delay and an equal or lesser amount of money available immediately. The results show that the duration of the delay is a critical variable that strongly determines whether participants choose to wait to reply to a text message, and that the decrease in the likelihood of waiting as a function of delay is best described by a hyperbolic delay discounting function. The results also show that participants who self-reported higher frequency of texting while driving discounted the opportunity to reply to a text message at greater rates, whereas there was no relation between the rates of discounting of hypothetical monetary rewards and the frequency of texting while driving. The results support the conclusion that texting while driving is fundamentally an impulsive choice. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Gender-Specific Differences in the Relationship between Autobiographical Memory and Intertemporal Choice in Older Adults

PubMed Central

Seinstra, Maayke; Grzymek, Katharina; Kalenscher, Tobias

2015-01-01

As the population of older adults grows, their economic choices will have increasing impact on society. Research on the effects of aging on intertemporal decisions shows inconsistent, often opposing results, indicating that yet unexplored factors might play an essential role in guiding one's choices. Recent studies suggest that episodic future thinking, which is based on the same neural network involved in episodic memory functions, leads to reductions in discounting of future rewards. As episodic memory functioning declines with normal aging, but to greatly variable degrees, individual differences in delay discounting might be due to individual differences in the vitality of this memory system in older adults. We investigated this hypothesis, using a sample of healthy older adults who completed an intertemporal choice task as well as two episodic memory tasks. We found no clear evidence for a relationship between episodic memory performance and delay discounting in older adults. However, when additionally considering gender differences, we found an interaction effect of gender and autobiographical memory on delay discounting: while men with higher memory scores showed less delay discounting, women with higher memory scores tended to discount the future more. We speculate that this gender effect might stem from the gender-specific use of different modal representation formats (i.e. temporal or visual) during assessment of intertemporal choice options. PMID:26335426

Dopaminergic lesions of the dorsolateral striatum in rats increase delay discounting in an impulsive choice task.

PubMed

Tedford, Stephanie E; Persons, Amanda L; Napier, T Celeste

2015-01-01

Dysregulated dopamine transmission in striatal circuitry is associated with impulsivity. The current study evaluated the influence of dopaminergic inputs to the dorsolateral striatum on impulsive choice, one aspect of impulsive behavior. We implemented an operant task that measures impulsive choice in rats via delay discounting wherein intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) was used as the positive reinforcer. To do so, rats were anesthetized to allow implanting of a stimulating electrode within the lateral hypothalamus of one hemisphere and bilateral dorsal striatal injections of the dopaminergic toxin, 6-OHDA (lesioned) or its vehicle (sham). Following recovery, rats were trained in a delay discounting task wherein they selected between a small ICSS current presented immediately after lever pressing, and a large ICSS current presented following a 0 to 15 s delay upon pressing the alternate lever. Task acquisition and reinforcer discrimination were similar for lesioned and sham rats. All rats exhibited an initial preference for the large reinforcer, and as the delay was increased, preference for the large reinforcer was decreased indicating that the subjective value of the large reinforcer was discounted as a function of delay time. However, this discounting effect was significantly enhanced in lesioned rats for the longer delays. These data reveal a contribution of dopaminergic inputs to the dorsolateral striatum on impulsive choice behavior, and provide new insights into neural substrates underlying discounting behaviors.

Economic rate of discount and estimating cost benefit of viral immunisation programmes.

PubMed

West, R R

1999-01-01

Many individual and societal decisions over purchase (or investment) involve consideration of timing, in that either the price may be paid now and the benefit enjoyed some time in the future or the converse the benefit enjoyed now and the price paid later. Since most individuals generally prefer the present to the future, economic theory has conventionally discounted future costs or benefits to estimate 'net present values'. The rationale for this is principally based on future uncertainty. In recent years, economists have turned their attention to valuing health as an economic 'good'. Observations of individual behaviour would imply that individuals discount future health, as other potential benefits, mostly because there is some uncertainty about their futures. Although economic theory is strongly predicated on the 'sovereignty of the individual', it does not necessarily follow that society discounts the future as do individuals, since for society the future is not so uncertain. Society's endorsement of many public health and preventive medicine objectives, which seek health gains in the future (rather than the present), imply that society's rate of discount may be appreciably lower than that of individuals. In immunisation, arguably one of the most effective of preventive measures, there is the additional benefit to others attributable to herd immunity. This paper argues that the future health gains for society arising from immunisation should not be underestimated by application of inappropriate discounting.

Temporal discounting of monetary rewards in children and adolescents with ADHD and autism spectrum disorders.

PubMed

Demurie, Ellen; Roeyers, Herbert; Baeyens, Dieter; Sonuga-Barke, Edmund

2012-11-01

It has been difficult to differentiate attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in terms of some aspects of their cognitive profile. While both show deficits in executive functions, it has been suggested that they may differ in their response to monetary reward. For instance, children with ADHD prefer small immediate over large delayed rewards more than typically developing controls. One explanation for this is that they discount the value of rewards to a higher degree as they are moved into the future. The current study investigated whether children with ADHD can be differentiated from those with ASD in terms of reward discounting. Thirty-nine children (8-16 y) with ADHD, 34 children with ASD and 46 typically developing controls performed a hypothetical monetary temporal discounting task. Participants were instructed to make repeated choices between small variable rewards (0, 5, 10, 20, 30€) delivered immediately and large rewards delivered after a variable delay. Children with ADHD but not ASD discounted future rewards at a higher rate than typically developing controls. These data confirm steeper discounting of future rewards in ADHD and add to a small but growing literature showing that the psychological profile of ADHD can be distinguished from that of ASD in terms of disrupted motivational processes. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Examining weight concern and delay discounting in adolescent females.

PubMed

Thamotharan, Sneha; Lange, Krista; Ramos, Ashley; Fields, Sherecce

2016-04-01

Pediatric obesity is a growing public health concern that contributes to high rates of negative long-term physical and mental health outcomes. Research focused on identifying risk for pediatric obesity has linked delay discounting, or an inclination for immediate rewards, as well as weight concern to individuals with greater Body Mass Index (BMI). The current study seeks to fill a void in the literature by examining how these two variables interact to promote higher BMI in female adolescents. Adolescent (n=60) females between the ages of 13-19years (mage=17.45, SD=1.74) of age completed the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) and the Delay Discounting Questionnaire. A mediation model examined whether delay discounting accounted for the relationship between weight concern and BMI. Results indicate that in the current study weight concern was negatively related to delay discounting and delay discounting was negatively related to BMI. The overall model revealed that a partial mediation occurred [b=1.28, t(60)=4.92, p<0.01]. These results suggest that while impulsivity is an important factor to consider, other constructs may also be influential in how weight concerns contribute to greater BMI. Nevertheless, the results indicate that prevention and interventions should identify females with high levels of both weight concern and impulsivity as an increased risk for experiencing pediatric obesity and long-term negative health outcomes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dopaminergic Lesions of the Dorsolateral Striatum in Rats Increase Delay Discounting in an Impulsive Choice Task

PubMed Central

Tedford, Stephanie E.; Persons, Amanda L.; Napier, T. Celeste

2015-01-01

Dysregulated dopamine transmission in striatal circuitry is associated with impulsivity. The current study evaluated the influence of dopaminergic inputs to the dorsolateral striatum on impulsive choice, one aspect of impulsive behavior. We implemented an operant task that measures impulsive choice in rats via delay discounting wherein intracranial self-stimulation (ICSS) was used as the positive reinforcer. To do so, rats were anesthetized to allow implanting of a stimulating electrode within the lateral hypothalamus of one hemisphere and bilateral dorsal striatal injections of the dopaminergic toxin, 6-OHDA (lesioned) or its vehicle (sham). Following recovery, rats were trained in a delay discounting task wherein they selected between a small ICSS current presented immediately after lever pressing, and a large ICSS current presented following a 0 to 15s delay upon pressing the alternate lever. Task acquisition and reinforcer discrimination were similar for lesioned and sham rats. All rats exhibited an initial preference for the large reinforcer, and as the delay was increased, preference for the large reinforcer was decreased indicating that the subjective value of the large reinforcer was discounted as a function of delay time. However, this discounting effect was significantly enhanced in lesioned rats for the longer delays. These data reveal a contribution of dopaminergic inputs to the dorsolateral striatum on impulsive choice behavior, and provide new insights into neural substrates underlying discounting behaviors. PMID:25927685

Longitudinal and reciprocal relations between delay discounting and crime

PubMed Central

Lee, Christine A.; Derefinko, Karen J.; Milich, Richard; Lynam, Donald R.; DeWall, C. Nathan

2017-01-01

Theorists argue that self-control failure is the underlying cause of criminal behavior, with previous research linking poor self-control to delinquency and drug use. The path from self-control to crime is well-established, but less is known about whether criminal behavior contributes to self-control deficits over time. We investigated bi-directional relations between self-control assessed via a delay discounting task and self-reported crime over a three-year period. During their first, second (73.38% retention rate), and third (63.12% retention rate) years of college, 526 undergraduates completed a delay discounting task and reported on their criminal behavior. In order to maximize variability, participants with conduct problems were overrecruited, comprising 23.1% of the final sample. As expected, more discounting of hypothetical monetary rewards significantly predicted future property crime across a one and two-year period, even when controlling for initial levels of both. This study also demonstrated evidence of a bi-directional relationship; violent crime predicted higher rates of delay discounting one year later. These results suggest that bi-directional relations exist between self-control and types of crime. PMID:28970645

Implicit individual discount rate in China: A contingent valuation study.

PubMed

Wang, Hua; He, Jie

2018-03-15

Two contingent valuation (CV) surveys were conducted in Kunming, China, to estimate households' willingness to pay (WTP) for the Panlong River rehabilitation project. The two surveys were conducted using the same procedures and questionnaires except for the payment schedule arrangements, which permitted a calculation of respondents' implicit discount rate. The surveys provided two estimates of WTP, one with a mean of 23 Yuan in monthly payment over 5 years and the other with a mean of 311 Yuan in a lump-sum payment that will cover all the expenses for a period of 5 years. The results produce an estimate of monthly discount rate of 7.6%-12.6% or annual discount rate of 141-315%. The estimates are higher than that reported from those studies conducted in the U.S., but are compatible with that of some other studies. This study also shows that both mean individual WTP and implicit individual discount rates are closely related to household demographic and economic characteristics and environment-related perceptions, as reported in the studies conducted in other countries. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impacts of religious semantic priming on an intertemporal discounting task: Response time effects and neural correlates.

PubMed

Morgan, Jonathan; Clark, Dustin; Tripodis, Yorghos; Halloran, Christopher S; Minsky, April; Wildman, Wesley J; Durso, Raymon; McNamara, Patrick

2016-08-01

The purpose of this study is to test the hypothesis that religious primes would influence intertemporal discounting behaviors in neurotypical older adults, but not in participants with Parkinson's disease (PD). Furthermore, we predicted that this priming effect would be related to functional connectivity within neural networks mediating religious cognition, decision-making, reward valuing, and prospection processes. Contrary to past research with young adults, we found a significant positive relationship between religiosity and discounting rates. Religious semantic primes did not reliably shift individual discounting rates. But religious controls did respond more quickly to intertemporal decisions under the religious priming condition than the neutral condition, compared to response time differences among the participants with PD. Differences in response time were significantly associated with functional connectivity between the nucleus accumbens and various regions, including the left anterior cingulate cortex and Brodmann areas 10 and 46 in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. These results suggest that religious primes influence discounting behavior via dopaminergic meso-limbic and right dorsolateral prefrontal supporting cognitive valuation and prospection processes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

I want it and I want it now: using a temporal discounting paradigm to examine predictors of consumer impulsivity.

PubMed

Dittmar, Helga; Bond, Rod

2010-11-01

This paper proposes a new model of consumer impulsivity, using type of good, a person's endorsement of materialistic values, and identity deficits as predictors. Traditional decision making and psychological accounts see impulsive behaviour as a general overweighing of short-term gratification (I want that dress now) relative to longer-term concerns, irrespective of consumer good. Our proposal is that consumers' impulsivity (a) differs according to type of good and (b) is linked systematically to a combination of materialistic values and high identity deficits. Beginning with Study 1, three experiments, using a temporal discounting paradigm, show consistently that discount rates are higher for goods that are seen as highly expressive of identity (e.g., clothes) than goods not expressive of identity (e.g., basic body care products). For materialistic consumers, identity deficits predict discount rates for identity-expressive goods (Study 2), and discount rates change for materialistic individuals when their identity deficits are made salient (Study 3). These findings support a conceptualization of consumer impulsivity as identity-seeking behaviour.

Discount medical cards: innovation or illusion?

PubMed

Kofman, Mila; Libster, Jennifer; Bangit, Eliza

2005-03-01

Discount medical cards have come under increasing scrutiny by regulators and law enforcement officials as a result of mounting consumer-reported problems. For their study, the authors tested five cards available in the Washington, D.C., metro area; interviewed card company representatives, state attorneys general insurance regulators, and insurance agents; and reviewed court and administrative actions. While some cards provide a measure of value, other cards were found to have serious drawbacks, including: high-pressure sales tactics; misleading or inaccurate promotion; exaggerated claims of savings; difficulty finding participating doctors; and providers who failed to give cardholders promised discounts. Some discount card companies are seeking to reform the market through a trade association and voluntary code of conduct. Still, legislative and regulatory interventions will be needed to protect consumers in an unregulated and growing market.

A solution procedure for mixed-integer nonlinear programming formulation of supply chain planning with quantity discounts under demand uncertainty

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yin, Sisi; Nishi, Tatsushi

2014-11-01

Quantity discount policy is decision-making for trade-off prices between suppliers and manufacturers while production is changeable due to demand fluctuations in a real market. In this paper, quantity discount models which consider selection of contract suppliers, production quantity and inventory simultaneously are addressed. The supply chain planning problem with quantity discounts under demand uncertainty is formulated as a mixed-integer nonlinear programming problem (MINLP) with integral terms. We apply an outer-approximation method to solve MINLP problems. In order to improve the efficiency of the proposed method, the problem is reformulated as a stochastic model replacing the integral terms by using a normalisation technique. We present numerical examples to demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed method.

Buyer-vendor coordination for fixed lifetime product with quantity discount under finite production rate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Qinghong; Luo, Jianwen; Duan, Yongrui

2016-03-01

Buyer-vendor coordination has been widely addressed; however, the fixed lifetime of the product is seldom considered. In this paper, we study the coordination of an integrated production-inventory system with quantity discount for a fixed lifetime product under finite production rate and deterministic demand. We first derive the buyer's ordering policy and the vendor's production batch size in decentralised and centralised systems. We then compare the two systems and show the non-coordination of the ordering policies and the production batch sizes. To improve the supply chain efficiency, we propose quantity discount contract and prove that the contract can coordinate the buyer-vendor supply chain. Finally, we present analytically tractable solutions and give a numerical example to illustrate the benefits of the proposed quantity discount strategy.

Longitudinal Associations Among Religiousness, Delay Discounting, and Substance Use Initiation in Early Adolescence

PubMed Central

Kim-Spoon, Jungmeen; McCullough, Michael E.; Bickel, W. K.; Farley, Julee P.; Longo, Gregory S.

2014-01-01

Prior research indicates that religiousness is related negatively to adolescent health risk behaviors, yet how such protective effects operate is not well understood. This study examined the longitudinal associations among organizational and personal religiousness, delay discounting, and substance use initiation (alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use). The sample comprised 106 early adolescents (10-13 years of age, 52% female) who were not using substances at Time 1. Path analyses suggested that high levels of personal religiousness at Time 1 were related to low levels of substance use at Time 2 (2.4 years later), mediated by low levels of delay discounting. Delay discounting appears to be an important contributor to the protective effect of religiousness on the development of substance use among adolescents. PMID:25750491

Effect of a price discount and consumer education strategy on food and beverage purchases in remote Indigenous Australia: a stepped-wedge randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

Brimblecombe, Julie; Ferguson, Megan; Chatfield, Mark D; Liberato, Selma C; Gunther, Anthony; Ball, Kylie; Moodie, Marj; Miles, Edward; Magnus, Anne; Mhurchu, Cliona Ni; Leach, Amanda Jane; Bailie, Ross

2017-02-01

Evidence is mounting that price discounts can be effective in improving diet. This study examined the effectiveness of a 20% price discount on food and drink purchases with and without consumer education in remote Indigenous Australia. A 20% discount on fruit, vegetables, water, and artificially sweetened soft drinks was applied for 24 weeks in 20 communities in remote Indigenous Australia where the community store was managed by the Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation (ALPA) or Outback Stores (OBS) in a stepped-wedge randomised trial. Communities were randomly allocated to a fixed framework of five sets of four stratified by store association; ten stores (two in each set) were randomly assigned to receive consumer education. A store from each of the ALPA and OBS store groups (contained in separate opaque envelopes) was selected, and stores in turn continued to be consecutively allocated to the fixed store set framework, starting with the first store slot in the first store set, until all stores had been allocated. The effect of the discount on the weight of fruit and vegetables purchased (the primary endpoint) was assessed using weekly store sales data and mixed models per protocol. We did sensitivity analyses by repeating the analyses with the outliers included and repeating the analyses for the primary outcome measure removing each store one at a time. This trial was registered with Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, number ACTRN12613000694718. Weekly store sales data on all food and drink products sold in 20 stores were collected from July 1, 2012, to Dec 28, 2014. Price discount alone was associated with a 12·7% (95% CI 4·1-22·1) increase in purchases in grams of fruit and vegetables combined (primary outcome), and a 19·8% (6·2-35·1) increase post discount (after vs before); an effect of 12 g and 18 g per capita per day. Sensitivity analyses did not modify the results for the primary outcome measure. A 20% discount can only increase fruit and vegetable purchases to help protect against obesity and diet related disease to a certain extent. Large discounts might have a greater impact than small discounts. Creative merchandising approaches to consumer education could also be considered alongside fiscal interventions to achieve marked improvements in diet. Australian National Health and Medical Research Council. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY license. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Silent PPOs: the stealth discounting of provider reimbursement.

PubMed

Marks, James W

2005-01-01

Physicians are losing millions of dollars per year from payers engaging in abusive discounting practices. One of the worst of these practices is the silent PPO. This article explains what a silent PPO is and how it unlawfully reduces a provider's reimbursement. The article discusses how providers can recognize silent PPOs and how to protect their practices from this discounting. The article also reviews statutes that prohibit or regulate silent PPOs and recent court decisions finding in favor of providers and against silent PPOs.

The Application of Quantity Discounts in Army Procurements (Field Test).

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-04-01

Work Directive (PWD). d. The amended PWD is forwarded to the Procurement and Production (PP) control where quantity increments and delivery schedules are...counts on 97 Army Stock Fund small purchases (less than $10,000) and received 10 I be * 0p cebe * )~ Cb 111 cost effective discounts on 46 or 47.4% of...discount but the computed annualized cost for the QD increment was larger than the computed annualized cost for the EOQ, this was not a cost effective

Medicare prescription drug discount cards.

PubMed

Bryant, Natasha

2004-01-01

With the passage of the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003 came the creation of a Part D drug benefit through Medicare. Until that benefit is implemented, Medicare has established a drug discount card program to help your clients save money on their outpatient prescription drug expenses. In this brief, we discuss the Medicare-approved discount cards--who is eligible, how they work, how your clients can best make important decisions about them, and what help is out there for people with low incomes.

Price discounts significantly enhance fruit and vegetable purchases when combined with nutrition education: a randomized controlled supermarket trial.

PubMed

Waterlander, Wilma E; de Boer, Michiel R; Schuit, Albertine J; Seidell, Jacob C; Steenhuis, Ingrid H M

2013-04-01

Reducing fruit and vegetable (F&V) prices is a frequently considered policy to improve dietary habits in the context of health promotion. However, evidence on the effectiveness of this intervention is limited. The objective was to examine the effects of a 50% price discount on F&Vs or nutrition education or a combination of both on supermarket purchases. A 6-mo randomized controlled trial within Dutch supermarkets was conducted. Regular supermarket shoppers were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions: 50% price discounts on F&Vs, nutrition education, 50% price discounts plus nutrition education, or no intervention. A total of 199 participants provided baseline data; 151 (76%) were included in the final analysis. F&V purchases were measured by using supermarket register receipts at baseline, at 1 mo after the start of the intervention, at 3 mo, at 6 mo (end of the intervention period), and 3 mo after the intervention ended (9 mo). Adjusted multilevel models showed significantly higher F&V purchases (per household/2 wk) as a result of the price discount (+3.9 kg; 95% CI: 1.5, 6.3 kg) and the discount plus education intervention (+5.6 kg; 95% CI: 3.2, 7.9 kg) at 6 mo compared with control. Moreover, the percentage of participants who consumed recommended amounts of F&Vs (≥400 g/d) increased from 42.5% at baseline to 61.3% at 6 mo in both discount groups (P = 0.03). Education alone had no significant effect. Discounting F&Vs is a promising intervention strategy because it resulted in substantially higher F&V purchases, and no adverse effects were observed. Therefore, pricing strategies form an important focus for future interventions or policy. However, the long-term effects and the ultimate health outcomes require further investigation. This trial was registered at the ISRCTN Trial Register as number ISRCTN56596945 and at the Dutch Trial Register (http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/index.asp) as number NL22568.029.08.

48 CFR 952.251-70 - Contractor employee travel discounts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Federal Contractor employee travelers by AMTRAK, hotels, motels, or car rental companies, when use of such... employees. (d) Hotels/motels. Many lodging providers extend their discount rates for Federal employees to...

Alternative Fuels Data Center

Science.gov Websites

Charging Rate Incentive - Tucson Electric Power (TEP) TEP offers a discounted residential service time-of-use (TOU) rate during off-peak periods to customers who own and operate a PEV. The discount is

The amount effect and marginal value.

PubMed

Rachlin, Howard; Arfer, Kodi B; Safin, Vasiliy; Yen, Ming

2015-07-01

The amount effect of delay discounting (by which the value of larger reward amounts is discounted by delay at a lower rate than that of smaller amounts) strictly implies that value functions (value as a function of amount) are steeper at greater delays than they are at lesser delays. That is, the amount effect and the difference in value functions at different delays are actually a single empirical finding. Amount effects of delay discounting are typically found with choice experiments. Value functions for immediate rewards have been empirically obtained by direct judgment. (Value functions for delayed rewards have not been previously obtained.) The present experiment obtained value functions for both immediate and delayed rewards by direct judgment and found them to be steeper when the rewards were delayed--hence, finding an amount effect with delay discounting. © Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

A matter of distance-The effect of oxytocin on social discounting is empathy-dependent.

PubMed

Strang, Sabrina; Gerhardt, Holger; Marsh, Nina; Oroz Artigas, Sergio; Hu, Yang; Hurlemann, René; Park, Soyoung Q

2017-04-01

Generosity is an important behavior enriching human society and can be observed across cultures. However, generosity has been shown to be modulated as a function of social distance, also referred to as social discounting. Oxytocin and empathy are other factors that have been shown to play an important role in generous behavior. However, how exactly oxytocin and empathy impact social discounting is yet unknown. Here, we administered oxytocin or placebo in a double-blind design, and measured social discounting behavior. Additionally, individual differences in empathy were assessed. Our results show that the effect of oxytocin on generous behavior is modulated by trait empathy; only for those subjects who received oxytocin there was a positive correlation between individual trait empathy and their generous behavior towards close others. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Money Now, Money Later: Linking Time Discounting and Criminal Convictions in the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development.

PubMed

Piquero, Alex R; Farrington, David P; Jennings, Wesley G

2018-04-01

Two prominent criminological theories offer time discounting, or the preference for an immediate reward over a later one, as a central part of understanding involvement in criminal activity. Yet, there exist only a few studies investigating this issue, and they are limited in a few respects. The current study extends prior work in this area by using multiple measures of time discounting collected at three different periods of the life course to examine the link to criminal offending into late middle adulthood in the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development. Results show that greater time discounting is positively related to a higher number of criminal convictions by late middle adulthood, and this effect remains after controlling for early life-course individual and environmental risk in a multivariate framework. Study limitations and implications are also discussed.

Altered neural reward representations in pathological gamblers revealed by delay and probability discounting.

PubMed

Miedl, Stephan F; Peters, Jan; Büchel, Christian

2012-02-01

The neural basis of excessive delay discounting and reduced risk sensitivity of pathological gamblers with a particular focus on subjective neural reward representations has not been previously examined. To examine how pathological gamblers represent subjective reward value at a neural level and how this is affected by gambling severity. Model-based functional magnetic resonance imaging study with patients and control subjects. Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. Participants were recruited from the local community by advertisement and through self-help groups. A sample of 16 pathological gamblers (according to the DSM-IV definition) was matched by age, sex, smoking status, income, educational level, and handedness to 16 healthy controls. Pathological gamblers showed increased discounting of delayed rewards and a trend toward decreased discounting of probabilistic rewards compared with matched controls. At the neural level, a significant group × condition interaction indicated that reward representations in the gamblers were modulated in a condition-specific manner, such that they exhibited increased (delay discounting) and decreased (probability discounting) neural value correlations in the reward system. In addition, throughout the reward system, neuronal value signals for delayed rewards were negatively correlated with gambling severity. The results extend previous reports of a generally hypoactive reward system in pathological gamblers by showing that, even when subjective reward valuation is accounted for, gamblers still show altered reward representations. Furthermore, results point toward a gradual degradation of mesolimbic reward representations for delayed rewards during the course of pathological gambling.

Temporal Discounting and Inter-Temporal Choice in Rhesus Monkeys

PubMed Central

Hwang, Jaewon; Kim, Soyoun; Lee, Daeyeol

2009-01-01

Humans and animals are more likely to take an action leading to an immediate reward than actions with delayed rewards of similar magnitudes. Although such devaluation of delayed rewards has been almost universally described by hyperbolic discount functions, the rate of this temporal discounting varies substantially among different animal species. This might be in part due to the differences in how the information about reward is presented to decision makers. In previous animal studies, reward delays or magnitudes were gradually adjusted across trials, so the animals learned the properties of future rewards from the rewards they waited for and consumed previously. In contrast, verbal cues have been used commonly in human studies. In the present study, rhesus monkeys were trained in a novel inter-temporal choice task in which the magnitude and delay of reward were indicated symbolically using visual cues and varied randomly across trials. We found that monkeys could extract the information about reward delays from visual symbols regardless of the number of symbols used to indicate the delay. The rate of temporal discounting observed in the present study was comparable to the previous estimates in other mammals, and the animal's choice behavior was largely consistent with hyperbolic discounting. Our results also suggest that the rate of temporal discounting might be influenced by contextual factors, such as the novelty of the task. The flexibility furnished by this new inter-temporal choice task might be useful for future neurobiological investigations on inter-temporal choice in non-human primates. PMID:19562091

Differences in delay discounting between smokers and nonsmokers remain when both rewards are delayed

PubMed Central

Mitchell, Suzanne H.; Wilson, Vanessa B.

2013-01-01

Rationale When offered a choice between a small monetary reward available immediately (SmallNow) versus a larger reward available after a delay (LargeLater), smokers select the SmallNow alternative more than nonsmokers. That is, smokers discount the value of the LargeLater reward more than nonsmokers. Objectives To investigate whether this group difference was due to smokers overweighing the value of rewards available immediately compared with nonsmokers, we examined whether the group difference was also seen when both alternatives were delayed, i.e., when choosing between a SmallSoon reward and a LargeLater reward. Methods In Experiment 1, smokers and nonsmokers completed a task including SmallNow versus LargeLater choices and SmallSoon versus LargeLater choices. In Experiment 2, smokers and nonsmokers completed the same task but with hypothetical choices. Results Analyses using hyperbolic and double exponential (β-δ) models replicate prior findings that smokers discount the LargeLater reward more than nonsmokers when the smaller reward is available immediately. The smoker-nonsmoker difference was also seen when the smaller reward was slightly delayed, though this effect was primarily driven by heightened discounting in male smokers. However, for potentially real rewards only, this smoker-nonsmoker difference was significantly reduced when the smaller reward was delayed. Conclusions The smoker-nonsmoker difference in discounting is not confined to situations involving immediate rewards. Differences associated with potentially real vs. hypothetical rewards and gender underscore the complexity of the smoking-delay discounting relationship. PMID:21983917

Healthy or Unhealthy on Sale? A cross-sectional study on the proportion of healthy and unhealthy foods promoted through flyer advertising by supermarkets in the Netherlands.

PubMed

Ravensbergen, Eva A H; Waterlander, Wilma E; Kroeze, Willemieke; Steenhuis, Ingrid H M

2015-05-06

It is generally assumed that supermarkets promote unhealthy foods more heavily than healthy foods. Promotional flyers could be an effective tool for encouraging healthier food choices; however, there is a lack of good-quality evidence on this topic. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the proportions of healthy and unhealthy foods on promotion in Dutch supermarket flyers. Supermarket food promotions were assessed using the weekly promotional flyers of four major Dutch supermarkets over a period of eight weeks. All promotions were evaluated for healthiness, price discount, minimum purchase amount, product category and promotion type. The level of healthiness consists of a 'healthy' group; products which have a positive effect on preventing chronic diseases and can be eaten every day. The 'unhealthy' group contain products which have adverse effects on the prevention of chronic diseases. Data were analysed using ANOVA, independent t-tests and chi-square tests. A total of 1,495 promotions were included in this study. There were more promotions in the unhealthy category; 70% of promotions were categorised as unhealthy. The price discount was greater for the healthy promotions (mean 29.5%, SD 12.1) than for the two categories of unhealthy promotions (23.7%, SD 10.8; 25.4%, SD 10.5, respectively), a tendency which was mainly due to discounts in the fruit and vegetables category. To obtain the advertised discount, a significantly higher number of products had to be purchased in the unhealthy category than in the healthier categories. Promotions in the category meat, poultry and fish category occurred frequently. Compared to traditional supermarkets, discounter supermarkets had higher percentages of unhealthy food discounts, lower discount levels and lower minimum purchase amounts. This research confirmed that unhealthy foods are more frequently advertised than healthier foods in Dutch supermarket flyers. Moreover, consumers had to buy more products to achieve the discount when the promotion was categorized as unhealthy, providing extra incentive for buying additional unhealthy products. Future research should explore the proportion of healthy and unhealthy food discounts in relation to supermarkets' total product range, to determine if unhealthy products are over-represented in promotions or if there are more unhealthy products stocked in supermarkets overall. The findings of this study provide an important basis for future intervention and policy development aiming to achieve healthier supermarket environments.

The behavioral economics of will in recovery from addiction.

PubMed

Monterosso, John; Ainslie, George

2007-09-01

Behavioral economic studies demonstrate that rewards are discounted proportionally with their delay (hyperbolic discounting). Hyperbolic discounting implies temporary preference for smaller rewards when they are imminent, and this concept has been widely considered by researchers interested in the causes of addictive behavior. Far less consideration has been given to the fact that systematic preference reversal also predicts various self-control phenomena, which may also be analyzed from a behavioral economic perspective. Here we summarize self-control phenomena predicted by hyperbolic discounting, particularly with application to the field of addiction. Of greatest interest is the phenomenon of choice bundling, an increase in motivation to wait for delayed rewards that can be expected to result from making choices in whole categories. Specifically, when a person's expectations about her own future behavior are conditional upon her current behavior, the value of these expectations is added to the contingencies for the current behavior, resulting in reduced impulsivity. Hyperbolic discounting provides a bottom-up basis for the intuitive learning of choice bundling, the properties of which match common descriptions of willpower. We suggest that the bundling effect can also be discerned in the advice of 12-step programs.

Problem and Pathological Gambling in Schizophrenia: Exploring Links with Substance Use and Impulsivity.

PubMed

Fortgang, Rebecca G; Hoff, Rani A; Potenza, Marc N

2018-02-16

High rates of both problem and pathological gambling (PPG) and substance-use disorders (SUDs) have been reported in schizophrenia, and yet PPG frequently goes undetected in clinical practice and unexamined in research. Here, we aimed to examine the relationship between PPG and SUDs in a large sample of patients across several factors related to both gambling and substance use, including poly-substance use. Additionally, delay discounting is a form of impulsivity known to positively associate with both PPG and SUDs and thought to underlie mechanisms of addiction in both contexts. We aimed to investigate the relationship between PPG and delay discounting in schizophrenia. 337 individuals with schizophrenia completed structured face-to-face interviews regarding gambling behaviors, substance use, and delay discounting. PPG in schizophrenia was associated with substance use, in particular with poly-substance use, and with delay discounting among males. Factors related to substance use were strongly linked with gambling in this sample, but not always with PPG more than recreational gambling. Our findings overall support the notions that multiple forms of gambling in schizophrenia are clinically relevant, that gambling may share common substrates with substance use, and that delay discounting represents a potential mechanism of this association in males.

Disorder-specific functional abnormalities during temporal discounting in youth with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism and comorbid ADHD and Autism.

PubMed

Chantiluke, Kaylita; Christakou, Anastasia; Murphy, Clodagh M; Giampietro, Vincent; Daly, Eileen M; Ecker, Christina; Brammer, Michael; Murphy, Declan G; Rubia, Katya

2014-08-30

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are often comorbid and share cognitive abnormalities in temporal foresight. A key question is whether shared cognitive phenotypes are based on common or different underlying pathophysiologies and whether comorbid patients have additive neurofunctional deficits, resemble one of the disorders or have a different pathophysiology. We compared age- and IQ-matched boys with non-comorbid ADHD (18), non-comorbid ASD (15), comorbid ADHD and ASD (13) and healthy controls (18) using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a temporal discounting task. Only the ASD and the comorbid groups discounted delayed rewards more steeply. The fMRI data showed both shared and disorder-specific abnormalities in the three groups relative to controls in their brain-behaviour associations. The comorbid group showed both unique and more severe brain-discounting associations than controls and the non-comorbid patient groups in temporal discounting areas of ventromedial and lateral prefrontal cortex, ventral striatum and anterior cingulate, suggesting that comorbidity is neither an endophenocopy of the two pure disorders nor an additive pathology. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Effects of delay and probability combinations on discounting in humans

PubMed Central

Cox, David J.; Dallery, Jesse

2017-01-01

To determine discount rates, researchers typically adjust the amount of an immediate or certain option relative to a delayed or uncertain option. Because this adjusting amount method can be relatively time consuming, researchers have developed more efficient procedures. One such procedure is a 5-trial adjusting delay procedure, which measures the delay at which an amount of money loses half of its value (e.g., $1000 is valued at $500 with a 10-year delay to its receipt). Experiment 1 (n = 212) used 5-trial adjusting delay or probability tasks to measure delay discounting of losses, probabilistic gains, and probabilistic losses. Experiment 2 (n = 98) assessed combined probabilistic and delayed alternatives. In both experiments, we compared results from 5-trial adjusting delay or probability tasks to traditional adjusting amount procedures. Results suggest both procedures produced similar rates of probability and delay discounting in six out of seven comparisons. A magnitude effect consistent with previous research was observed for probabilistic gains and losses, but not for delayed losses. Results also suggest that delay and probability interact to determine the value of money. Five-trial methods may allow researchers to assess discounting more efficiently as well as study more complex choice scenarios. PMID:27498073

Perception of Generic Prescription Drugs and Utilization of Generic Drug Discount Programs

PubMed Central

Omojasola, Anthony; Hernandez, Mike; Sansgiry, Sujit; Jones, Lovell

2012-01-01

Objective Our study aimed to assess patient’s perceptions of generic drugs and utilization of generic drug discount programs. Design, Setting and Participants A survey was administered to adult participants at community health centers and community-based organizations in Houston, Texas, USA (n=525). Main Outcome Measures Multivariate logistic regression was used to quantify the strength of association between generic drug perception and utilization of generic drug discount programs. Results Respondents who agreed that “Generic prescription drugs are as effective as brand name prescription drugs,” were 3 times as likely to utilize generic drug discount programs (AOR: 3.0, 95% CI: 1.8–4.8, P<.001). Compared to non-Hispanic Whites, African Americans (OR: 10.2; 95% CI: 1.4–76.4) and Hispanics (OR: 10.3; 95% CI: 1.3–79.4) were 10 times as likely to agree that generic drugs have more side effects than brand name drugs. Conclusion Race/ethnicity had no impact in utilization of generic drug discount programs, despite racial disparities in perception toward generic drugs’ side effects and generic drugs being inferior to brand name drugs. PMID:23140080

Victims' time discounting 2.5 years after the Wenchuan earthquake: an ERP study.

PubMed

Li, Jin-Zhen; Gui, Dan-Yang; Feng, Chun-Liang; Wang, Wen-Zhong; Du, Bo-Qi; Gan, Tian; Luo, Yue-Jia

2012-01-01

Time discounting refers to the fact that the subjective value of a reward decreases as the delay until its occurrence increases. The present study investigated how time discounting has been affected in survivors of the magnitude-8.0 Wenchuan earthquake that occurred in China in 2008. Nineteen earthquake survivors and 22 controls, all school teachers, participated in the study. Event-related brain potentials (ERPs) for time discounting tasks involving gains and losses were acquired in both the victims and controls. The behavioral data replicated our previous findings that delayed gains were discounted more steeply after a disaster. ERP results revealed that the P200 and P300 amplitudes were increased in earthquake survivors. There was a significant group (earthquake vs. non-earthquake) × task (gain vs. loss) interaction for the N300 amplitude, with a marginally significantly reduced N300 for gain tasks in the experimental group, which may suggest a deficiency in inhibitory control for gains among victims. The results suggest that post-disaster decisions might involve more emotional (System 1) and less rational thinking (System 2) in terms of a dual-process model of decision making. The implications for post-disaster intervention and management are also discussed.

Age, gender and deterrability: Are younger male drivers more likely to discount the future?

PubMed

Freeman, James; Kaye, Sherrie-Anne; Truelove, Verity; Davey, Jeremy

2017-07-01

Utilizing the Classical Deterrence theory and Stafford and Warr's (1993) reconceptualized model of deterrence, the current study examined whether age, gender, and discounting the future tendencies influence perceptions of being apprehended for speeding offences. Licensed motorists (N=700; 57% female) in Queensland (Australia) were recruited to complete a self-report questionnaire that measured perceptual deterrence, speeding related behaviors and discounting the future tendencies. Data were analyzed utilizing descriptive, bivariate and multivariate regressions. Significant (albeit weak) positive correlations were found between age and perceptions of apprehension certainty. Males were significantly more likely to report higher incidences of speeding (including while avoiding detection) compared to females. In contrast, females were more likely to perceive high levels of apprehension certainty and consider impending penalties to be more severe. At a multivariate level, discounting the future tendencies (in addition to being male, reporting lower levels of perceptual severity and swiftness, and more instances of punishment avoidance) were predictive of lower perceptual certainty levels. This study is one of the first to reveal that being male and having a tendency to discount the consequences of the future may directly influence drivers' perceptual deterrence levels. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Usability testing for the rest of us: the application of discount usability principles in the development of an online communications assessment application.

PubMed

Brock, Douglas; Kim, Sara; Palmer, Odawni; Gallagher, Thomas; Holmboe, Eric

2013-01-01

Usability evaluation provides developers and educators with the means to understand user needs, improve overall product utility, and increase user satisfaction. The application of "discount usability" principles developed to make usability testing more practical and useful may improve user experience at minimal cost and require little existing expertise to conduct. We describe an application of discount usability to a high-fidelity online communications assessment application developed by the University of Washington for the American Board of Internal Medicine. Eight internal medicine physicians completed a discount usability test. Sessions were recorded and the videos analyzed for significant usability concerns. Concerns were identified, summarized, discussed, and prioritized by the authors in collaboration with the software developers before implementing any changes to the interface. Thirty-eight significant usability issues were detected and four technical problems were identified. Each issue was responded to through modification of the software, by providing additional instruction, or delayed for a later version to be developed. Discount usability can be easily implemented in academic developmental activities. Our study resulted in the discovery and remediation of significant user problems, in addition to giving important insight into the novel methods built into the application.

The behavioral economics of will in recovery from addiction

PubMed Central

Monterosso, John; Ainslie, George

2007-01-01

Behavioral economic studies demonstrate that rewards are discounted proportionally with their delay (hyperbolic discounting). Hyperbolic discounting implies temporary preference for smaller rewards when they are imminent, and this concept has been widely considered by researchers interested in the causes of addictive behavior. Far less consideration has been given to the fact that systematic preference reversal also predicts various self-control phenomena, which may also be analyzed from a behavioral economic perspective. Here we summarize self-control phenomena predicted by hyperbolic discounting, particularly with application to the field of addiction. Of greatest interest is the phenomenon of choice bundling, an increase in motivation to wait for delayed rewards that can be expected to result from making choices in whole categories. Specifically, when a person’s expectations about her own future behavior are conditional upon her current behavior, the value of these expectations is added to the contingencies for the current behavior, resulting in reduced impulsivity. Hyperbolic discounting provides a bottom-up basis for the intuitive learning of choice bundling, the properties of which match common descriptions of willpower. We suggest that the bundling effect can also be discerned in the advice of 12-step programs. PMID:17034958

Estimating the Impact of Raising Prices and Eliminating Discounts on Cigarette Smoking Prevalence in the United States.

PubMed

Marynak, Kristy L; Xu, Xin; Wang, Xu; Holmes, Carissa Baker; Tynan, Michael A; Pechacek, Terry

2016-01-01

The average retail price per pack of cigarettes is less than $6, which is substantially lower than the $10 per-pack target established in 2014 by the Surgeon General to reduce the smoking rate. We estimated the impact of three cigarette pricing scenarios on smoking prevalence among teens aged 12-17 years, young adults aged 18-25 years, and adults aged ≥26 years, by state: (1) $0.94 federal tax increase on cigarettes, as proposed in the fiscal year 2017 President's budget; (2) $10 per-pack retail price, allowing discounts; and (3) $10 per-pack retail price, eliminating discounts. We conducted Monte Carlo simulations to generate point estimates of reductions in cigarette smoking prevalence by state. We found that each price scenario would substantially reduce cigarette smoking prevalence. A $10 per-pack retail price eliminating discounts could result in 637,270 fewer smokers aged 12-17 years; 4,186,954 fewer smokers aged 18-25 years; and 7,722,460 fewer smokers aged ≥26 years. Raising cigarette prices and eliminating discounts could substantially reduce cigarette smoking prevalence as well as smoking-related death and disease.

7 CFR 1786.57 - Prepayment agreement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

...) The RUS Notes to be prepaid and when the Discounted Present Value will be calculated. (b) The place... outstanding on the RUS Note and the Discounted Present Value of the RUS Note upon prepayment with interest...

7 CFR 1786.102 - Prepayment agreement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... shall set forth and provide: (a) The RUS Notes to be prepaid and when the Discounted Present Value will... the RUS Notes between the amount outstanding on the RUS Note and the Discounted Present Value of the...

Hospitals as health educators

MedlinePlus

... offer discounts to healthy activities in the area: Biking, hiking, or walking tours Museums Fitness clubs Farms Festivals Your hospital may offer discounts for: Retail stores such as sporting goods, health food, and art stores Acupuncture Skin care Eye ...

Impact of Lead Time and Safety Factor in Mixed Inventory Models with Backorder Discounts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lo, Ming-Cheng; Chao-Hsien Pan, Jason; Lin, Kai-Cing; Hsu, Jia-Wei

This study investigates the impact of safety factor on the continuous review inventory model involving controllable lead time with mixture of backorder discount and partial lost sales. The objective is to minimize the expected total annual cost with respect to order quantity, backorder price discount, safety factor and lead time. A model with normal demand is also discussed. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate the procedures of the algorithms and the effects of parameters on the result of the proposed models are analyzed.

The value-based medicine comparative effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of penetrating keratoplasty for keratoconus.

PubMed

Roe, Richard H; Lass, Jonathan H; Brown, Gary C; Brown, Melissa M

2008-10-01

To perform a base case, comparative effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness (cost-utility) analysis of penetrating keratoplasty for patients with severe keratoconus. Visual acuity data were obtained from a large, retrospective multicenter study in which patients with keratoconus with less than 20/40 best corrected visual acuity and/or the inability to wear contact lenses underwent penetrating keratoplasty, with an average follow-up of 2.1 years. The results were combined with other retrospective studies investigating complication rates of penetrating keratoplasty. The data were then incorporated into a cost-utility model using patient preference-based, time trade-off utilities, computer-based decision analysis, and a net present value model to account for the time value of outcomes and money. The comparative effectiveness of the intervention is expressed in quality-of-life gain and QALYs (quality-adjusted life-years), and the cost-effectiveness results are expressed in the outcome of $/QALY (dollars spent per QALY). Penetrating keratoplasty in 1 eye for patients with severe keratoconus results in a comparative effectiveness (value gain) of 16.5% improvement in quality of life every day over the 44-year life expectancy of the average patient with severe keratoconus. Discounting the total value gain of 5.36 QALYs at a 3% annual discount rate yields 3.05 QALYs gained. The incremental cost for penetrating keratoplasty, including all complications, is $5934 ($5913 discounted at 3% per year). Thus, the incremental cost-utility (discounted at 3% annually) for this intervention is $5913/3.05 QALYs = $1942/QALY. If both eyes undergo corneal transplant, the total discounted value gain is 30% and the overall cost-utility is $2003. Surgery on the second eye confers a total discounted value gain of 2.5 QALYs, yielding a quality-of-life gain of 11.6% and a discounted cost-utility of $2238/QALY. Penetrating keratoplasty for patients with severe keratoconus seems to be a comparatively effective and cost-effective procedure when compared with other interventions across different medical specialties.

[The imperfect equalizing device: Physician care discount cards and physician care out-of-pocket costs in Iceland.].

PubMed

Vilhjálmsson, Rúnar; Sigurðardóttir, Guðrún V

2003-05-01

Research shows that out-of-pocket health care costs in Iceland and other Western European countries have increased in recent years, and unequal access to health services has been documented. In an attempt to contain out-of-pocket-costs and avoid service inequities, Icelandic health authorities have for a number of years issued health care discount cards. The purpose ot the study was to investigate the distribution of out-of-pocket physician costs and discount cards, and the extent to which the cards reach those who are entitled to them. The study is based on a national panel survey titled Health and Living Conditions in Iceland. A random sample of 18-75 year olds was drawn from the National Register. 1924 respondents participated in the first wave (69% response rate) and 1592 of them (83%) in the second wave. Cross-tabular analysis was used to investigate variations in out-of-pocket physician costs and discount card status across sociodemographic groups. 19.9% of the respondents had accumulated out-of-pocket costs that made them eligible for a discount card. Furthermore, there was considerable variation in the percentage of eligible individuals across population groups. The discount card was poorly distributed, as only 45.7% of eligible individuals had actually obtained a card. This lack of coverage was greatest among younger individuals, parents of young children, individuals in larger households, the full-time employed, and those who had more education and income. The purpose of the discount card is to even out and contain out-of-pocket physician care costs, and sustain equal access to physician services. The purpose is no more than partially reached, as only a minority of eligible individuals are actual cardholders. This can be largely explained by the fact that health authorities have done little to promote the card, and make it cumbersome for patients to obtain it.

Telomere length in alcohol dependence: A role for impulsive choice and childhood maltreatment.

PubMed

Kang, Jee In; Hwang, Syung Shick; Choi, Jong Rak; Lee, Seung-Tae; Kim, Jieun; Hwang, In Sik; Kim, Hae Won; Kim, Chan-Hyung; Kim, Se Joo

2017-09-01

Telomere shortening, a marker of cellular aging, has been considered to be linked with psychosocial stress as well as with chronic alcohol consumption, possibly mediated by oxidative stress and inflammatory response. Recent findings suggested that early life adversity on telomere dynamics may be related to impulsive choice. To further our understanding of the association of impulsive choice and childhood trauma on telomere length, we examined whether delayed discounting and childhood trauma or their interaction is related to leukocyte telomere length, while controlling for multiple potential confounding variables, in patients with alcohol dependence who are considered to have higher impulsive choice and shorter telomere length. We recruited 253 male patients with chronic alcohol dependence. All participants performed the delay discounting task, and the area under curve was used as a measure of delay discounting. Steeper delay discounting represents more impulsive choices. The modified Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scale was used to measure childhood maltreatment. In addition, confounding factors, including socio-demographic characteristics, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire, the Resilience Quotient, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Beck Anxiety Inventory, were also assessed. Hierarchical regression analyses showed a significant main effect of delay discounting (β=0.161, t=2.640, p=0.009), and an interaction effect between delay discounting and childhood maltreatment on leukocyte telomere length (β=0.173, t=2.138, p=0.034). In subsequent analyses stratified by childhood maltreatment, patients with alcohol dependence and high childhood trauma showed a significant relationship between delay discounting and leukocyte telomere length (β=0.279, t=3.183, p=0.002), while those with low trauma showed no association between them. Our findings suggest that higher impulsive choice is associated with shorter telomere length, and childhood trauma may exert a moderating effect in the relationship between impulsive choice and telomere length. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

26 CFR 1.148-5A - Yield and valuation of investments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

.... For this purpose, present value is computed using the taxable discount rate used by the parties to compute the commission or, if not readily ascertainable, a reasonable taxable discount rate. [T.D. 8538...

78 FR 6140 - Discount Rates for Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Federal Programs

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-29

... OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET Discount Rates for Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Federal Programs AGENCY: Office of Management and Budget. ACTION: Revisions to Appendix C of OMB Circular A-94. [[Page 6141

The psychological disengagement model among women in science, engineering, and technology.

PubMed

Beaton, Ann M; Tougas, Francine; Rinfret, Natalie; Monger, Tanya

2015-09-01

Psychological responses to personal relative deprivation based on self/outgroup comparisons (named self/outgroup PRD) were explored among women in science, engineering, and technology according to the Psychological Disengagement Model. Three studies revealed that the experience of self/outgroup PRD increased women's likelihood of discounting the feedback they received at work. In turn, discounting led them to devalue their profession. Each study further documented the damaging effect of both psychological disengagement mechanisms. Study 1 (N = 93) revealed that discounting and devaluing were associated with decreased self-esteem. These results were replicated in Studies 2 and 3. Study 2 (N = 163) demonstrated that discounting and devaluing were also associated with reduced self-esteem stability. Study 3 (N = 187) further showed that psychological disengagement was also associated with women's occupational commitment. Theoretical and practical implications of these results are considered. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

Delay Discounting Mediates Parent-Adolescent Relationship Quality and Risky Sexual Behavior for Low Self-Control Adolescents

PubMed Central

Kahn, Rachel E.; Holmes, Christopher; Farley, Julee P.; Kim-Spoon, Jungmeen

2015-01-01

Parent-adolescent relationship quality and delay discounting may play important roles in adolescents’ sexual decision making processes, and levels of self-control during adolescence could act as a buffer within these factors. This longitudinal study included 219 adolescent (55% male; mean age = 12.66 years at Wave 1; mean age = 15.10 years at Wave 2) and primary caregiver dyads. Structural equation modeling was utilized to determine whether delay discounting mediated the association between parent-adolescent relationship quality and adolescents’ risky sexual behavior and how this mediated association may differ between those with high versus low self-control. The results revealed parent-adolescent relationship quality plays a role in the development of risky sexual behavior indirectly through levels of delay discounting, but only for adolescents with low self-control. These findings could inform sex education policies and health prevention programs that address adolescent risky sexual behavior. PMID:26202153

Handling time in economic evaluation studies.

PubMed

Permsuwan, Unchalee; Guntawongwan, Kansinee; Buddhawongsa, Piyaluk

2014-05-01

The discount rates and time horizons used in a health technology assessment (HTA) can have a significant impact on the results, and thus the prioritization of technologies. Therefore, it is important that clear guidance be provided on the appropriate discount rates for cost and health effect and appropriate time horizons. In this paper we conduct a review of relevant case studies and guidelines and provide guidance for all researchers conducting economic evaluations of health technologies in the Thai context. A uniform discount rate of 3% is recommended for both costs and health effects in base case analyses. A sensitivity analysis should also be conducted, with a discount range of 0-6%. For technologies where the effects are likely to sustain for at least 30y ears, a rate of 4% for costs and 2% for health effects is recommended. The time horizon should be long enough to capture the full costs and effects of the programs.

Time preference and its relationship with age, health, and survival probability

PubMed Central

Chao, Li-Wei; Szrek, Helena; Pereira, Nuno Sousa; Pauly, Mark V.

2009-01-01

Although theories from economics and evolutionary biology predict that one's age, health, and survival probability should be associated with one's subjective discount rate (SDR), few studies have empirically tested for these links. Our study analyzes in detail how the SDR is related to age, health, and survival probability, by surveying a sample of individuals in townships around Durban, South Africa. In contrast to previous studies, we find that age is not significantly related to the SDR, but both physical health and survival expectations have a U-shaped relationship with the SDR. Individuals in very poor health have high discount rates, and those in very good health also have high discount rates. Similarly, those with expected survival probability on the extremes have high discount rates. Therefore, health and survival probability, and not age, seem to be predictors of one's SDR in an area of the world with high morbidity and mortality. PMID:20376300

Cost-effectiveness of a potential future Helicobacter pylori vaccine in the Netherlands: the impact of varying the discount rate for health.

PubMed

de Vries, Robin; Klok, Rogier M; Brouwers, Jacobus R B J; Postma, Maarten J

2009-02-05

To estimate the cost-effectiveness of a potential Helicobacter pylori (HP) vaccine for the Dutch situation, we developed a Markov model. Several HP prevalence scenarios were assessed. Additionally, we assessed the impact of the discount rate for health on the outcomes, as this influence can be profound for vaccines. When applying the current discount rate of 1.5% for health, the expected cost-effectiveness of HP vaccination is estimated below the informal Dutch threshold of euro 20,000/LYG when the HP prevalence is assumed > or =20% in the Dutch population. In conclusion, we showed that HP vaccination could possibly be a cost-effective intervention. However, this depends to a large extend on the prevalence of HP in the population. Furthermore, we showed the large impact of the discount rate for health on the cost-effectiveness of a HP vaccination program, illustrative for other vaccination programs.

Incentivizing Decentralized Sanitation: The Role of Discount Rates.

PubMed

Wood, Alison; Blackhurst, Michael; Garland, Jay L; Lawler, Desmond F

2016-06-21

In adoption decisions for decentralized sanitation technologies, two decision makers are involved: the public utility and the individual homeowner. Standard life cycle cost is calculated from the perspective of the utility, which uses a market-based discount rate in these calculations. However, both decision-makers must be considered, including their differing perceptions of the time trade-offs inherent in a stream of costs and benefits. This study uses the discount rate as a proxy for these perceptions and decision-maker preferences. The results in two case studies emphasize the dependence on location of such analyses. Falmouth, Massachusetts, appears to be a good candidate for incentivizing decentralized sanitation while the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority service area in Pennsylvania appears to have no need for similar incentives. This method can be applied to any two-party decision in which the parties are expected to have different discount rates.

Priority for the worse-off and the social cost of carbon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adler, Matthew; Anthoff, David; Bosetti, Valentina; Garner, Greg; Keller, Klaus; Treich, Nicolas

2017-06-01

The social cost of carbon (SCC) is a key tool in climate policy. The SCC expresses in monetary terms the social impact of the emission of a ton of CO2 in a given year. The SCC is calculated using a `social welfare function’ (SWF): a method for assessing social welfare. The dominant SWF in climate policy is the discounted-utilitarian SWF. Individuals’ well-being numbers (utilities) are summed, and the values for later generations are reduced (`discounted’). This SWF has been criticized for ignoring the distribution of well-being and including an arbitrary time preference. Here, we use a `prioritarian’ SWF, with no time discount, to calculate the SCC. This SWF gives extra weight (`priority’) to worse-off individuals. Prioritarianism is a well-developed concept in ethics and welfare economics, but has been rarely used in climate scholarship. We find substantial differences between the discounted-utilitarian and non-discounted prioritarian SCCs.

The Power of the Virtual Ideal Self in Weight Control: Weight-Reduced Avatars Can Enhance the Tendency to Delay Gratification and Regulate Dietary Practices.

PubMed

Kuo, Hsu-Chan; Lee, Chun-Chia; Chiou, Wen-Bin

2016-02-01

The tendency to discount larger future benefits in favor of smaller immediate gains (i.e., temporal discounting) is relevant to the issue of obesity. Successful weight loss requires individuals to sacrifice immediate culinary pleasures in favor of future health gains. Based on the notion that increasing the vividness of one's future self may mitigate temporal discounting and promote the ability to delay gratification, we examined whether viewing one's weight-reduced self (i.e., the ideal self) in a virtual environment can decrease temporal discounting and lead to better regulation of dietary practices. Seventy-six undergraduates who had reported an intention to lose weight were recruited to participate in a laboratory experiment and were randomly assigned to interact with either the weight-reduced self (experimental condition) or the present self (control condition) by looking into a dressing mirror in a virtual fitting room. A temporal-discounting task and a taste test were subsequently administered. Results showed that, compared with control participants, participants who viewed their weight-reduced avatars ate less ice cream in a taste test and were more likely to choose a sugar-free drink as a reward. The discounting rate mediated the association between the avatar manipulation and the amount of ice cream eaten in the subsequent taste test. Overall, our findings suggest that a computer-generated image of one's weight-reduced self may assist in resisting impulses that promote immediate gratification over delayed benefits. This research provides a new approach for controlling impulsive behavior such as dietary regulation and weight control.

A dual-process approach to exploring the role of delay discounting in obesity.

PubMed

Price, Menna; Higgs, Suzanne; Maw, James; Lee, Michelle

2016-08-01

Delay discounting of financial rewards has been related to overeating and obesity. Neuropsychological evidence supports a dual-system account of both discounting and overeating behaviour where the degree of impulsive decision making is determined by the relative strength of reward desire and executive control. A dual-parameter model of discounting behaviour is consistent with this theory. In this study, the fit of the commonly used one-parameter model was compared to a new dual-parameter model for the first time in a sample of adults with wide ranging BMI. Delay discounting data from 79 males and females (males=26) across a wide age (M=28.44years (SD=8.81)) and BMI range (M=25.42 (SD=5.16)) was analysed. A dual-parameter model (saturating-hyperbolic; Doya, [Doya (2008) ]) was applied to the data and compared on model fit indices to the single-parameter model. Discounting was significantly greater in the overweight/obese participants using both models, however, the two parameter model showed a superior fit to data (p<0.0001). The two parameters were shown to be related yet distinct measures consistent with a dual-system account of inter-temporal choice behaviour. The dual-parameter model showed superior fit to data and the two parameters were shown to be related yet distinct indices sensitive to differences between weight groups. Findings are discussed in terms of the impulsive reward and executive control systems that contribute to unhealthy food choice and within the context of obesity related research. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Clarifying the Relationship between Impulsive Delay Discounting and Nicotine Dependence

PubMed Central

Amlung, Michael; MacKillop, James

2014-01-01

Impulsive delayed reward discounting (DRD) has been linked to nicotine dependence, but with some inconsistency. This may be related to the considerable variability in the literature with regard to the DRD assessments used, particularly in the case of reward magnitudes assessed. In addition, previous studies have often not considered concurrent substance use when examining the relationship between DRD and nicotine dependence. The current study sought to further clarify the relationship between DRD and nicotine dependence by characterizing DRD across diverse reward magnitudes and incorporating other substance use. Daily smokers (N = 933) were assessed for DRD preferences across nine reward magnitudes (delayed reward range: $2.50–$850), comorbid substance use, and relevant demographic variables (age, education, income). A significant large effect size magnitude effect was found for DRD, reflecting steeper discounting for smaller delayed rewards, but significant correlations across magnitudes also suggested similar relative levels of discounting. Principal components analysis (PCA) was used to generate a single latent index of discounting across all magnitudes that accounted for 67% of the total variance. In both correlation and regression analyses, steeper composite DRD was significantly associated with nicotine dependence severity. This relationship remained statistically significant after incorporating demographic variables and alcohol and illicit drug use. These findings provide evidence of a specific link between impulsive DRD and nicotine dependence, and reveal that this association is robust across a broad range of monetary rewards. The study also demonstrates the utility of using PCA to generate latent indices of delay discounting across multiple magnitudes of delayed reward. PMID:24841186

In-gap discounts in Medicare Part D and specialty drug use.

PubMed

Jung, Jeah; Xu, Wendy Yi; Cheong, Chelim

2017-09-01

Specialty drugs can bring significant benefits to patients, but they can be expensive. Medicare Part D plans charge relatively high cost-sharing costs for specialty drugs. A provision in the Affordable Care Act reduced cost sharing in the Part D coverage gap phase in an attempt to mitigate the financial burden of beneficiaries with high drug spending. We examined the early impact of the Part D in-gap discount on specialty cancer drug use and patients' out-of-pocket (OOP) spending. Natural experimental design. We compared changes in outcomes before and after the in-gap discount among beneficiaries with and without low-income subsidies (LIS). Beneficiaries with LIS, who were not affected by the in-gap discount, made up the control group. We studied a random sample of elderly standalone prescription drug plan enrollees with relatively uncommon cancers (eg, leukemia, skin, pancreas, kidney, sarcomas, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma) between 2009 and 2013. We constructed 4 outcome variables annually: 1) use of any specialty cancer drug, 2) the number of specialty cancer drug fills, 3) total specialty drug spending, and 4) OOP spending for specialty cancer drugs. The in-gap discount did not influence specialty cancer drug use, but reduced annual OOP spending for specialty cancer drugs among users without LIS by $1108. In-gap discounts in Part D decreased patients' financial burden to some extent, but resulted in no change in specialty drug use. As demand for specialty drugs increases, it will be important to ensure patients' access to needed drugs, while simultaneously reducing their financial burden.

Taxi Scrip Program in Seattle, Washington

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1982-09-01

The Municipality of Metropolitan Seattle (Metro) took over a taxi user-side subsidy program from the City of Seattle in December 1978, which was based on the sale of discounted taxicab scrip. Metro expanded the program, raised the discount, and condu...

Alternative Fuels Data Center

Science.gov Websites

Plug-In Electric Vehicle (PEV) Discounts - People's Power & Light (PP&L) PP&L's Drive Green with PP&L program provides discounts on qualified PEVs purchased or leased from participating , see the Drive Green with PP&L website.

42 CFR 413.98 - Purchase discounts and allowances, and refunds of expenses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... financial management income. However, modern accounting theory holds that income is not derived from a purchase but rather from a sale or an exchange and that purchase discounts are reductions in the cost of...

42 CFR 413.98 - Purchase discounts and allowances, and refunds of expenses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... financial management income. However, modern accounting theory holds that income is not derived from a purchase but rather from a sale or an exchange and that purchase discounts are reductions in the cost of...

42 CFR 413.98 - Purchase discounts and allowances, and refunds of expenses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... financial management income. However, modern accounting theory holds that income is not derived from a purchase but rather from a sale or an exchange and that purchase discounts are reductions in the cost of...

42 CFR 413.98 - Purchase discounts and allowances, and refunds of expenses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... financial management income. However, modern accounting theory holds that income is not derived from a purchase but rather from a sale or an exchange and that purchase discounts are reductions in the cost of...

26 CFR 1.818-3 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... required under section 818(b) on account of accruable discounts. (f) Denial of double inclusion. Any amount... section shall not be includible in gross income under section 1232(a) (relating to the taxation of bonds...

16 CFR 240.5 - Definition of competing customers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... grocery store and a discount department store. If these stores compete with each other, any allowance, service or facility that B makes available to the grocery store should also be made available on proportionally equal terms to the discount department store. ...

16 CFR 240.5 - Definition of competing customers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... grocery store and a discount department store. If these stores compete with each other, any allowance, service or facility that B makes available to the grocery store should also be made available on proportionally equal terms to the discount department store. ...

16 CFR 240.5 - Definition of competing customers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... grocery store and a discount department store. If these stores compete with each other, any allowance, service or facility that B makes available to the grocery store should also be made available on proportionally equal terms to the discount department store. ...

16 CFR 240.5 - Definition of competing customers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... grocery store and a discount department store. If these stores compete with each other, any allowance, service or facility that B makes available to the grocery store should also be made available on proportionally equal terms to the discount department store. ...

Book Discounts and Cost-Plus Pricing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andresen, David C.

1974-01-01

The adoption of cost-plus pricing by a major book jobber may have profound effects on the discounts that libraries receive. The article explains the pricing system and presents a set of graphs for libraries to use to determine its effects. (Author)

47 CFR 54.519 - State telecommunications networks.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false State telecommunications networks. 54.519... telecommunications networks. (a) Telecommunications services. State telecommunications networks may secure discounts... include an eligible school or library. Such state telecommunications networks shall pass on such discounts...

47 CFR 54.519 - State telecommunications networks.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false State telecommunications networks. 54.519... telecommunications networks. (a) Telecommunications services. State telecommunications networks may secure discounts... include an eligible school or library. Such state telecommunications networks shall pass on such discounts...

Medicare's Drug Discount Card Program: Beneficiaries' Experience with Choice

PubMed Central

Hassol, Andrea; Wrobel, Marian V.; Doksum, Teresa

2007-01-01

This article describes Medicare beneficiaries' experience with the choice among Medicare drug discount cards and is based primarily on surveys and focus groups with beneficiaries as well as interviews with other stakeholders. Although competition and choice have the potential to reduce cost and enhance quality in the Medicare Program, our findings highlight some of the challenges involved in making choice work in practice. Despite the unique and temporary nature of the drug discount card program, these findings have considerable relevance to the Part D drug benefit and to other Medicare initiatives that rely on choice. PMID:17722747

Discounting and decision making in the economic evaluation of health-care technologies.

PubMed

Claxton, Karl; Paulden, Mike; Gravelle, Hugh; Brouwer, Werner; Culyer, Anthony J

2011-01-01

Discounting costs and health benefits in cost-effectiveness analysis has been the subject of recent debate - some authors suggesting a common rate for both and others suggesting a lower rate for health. We show how these views turn on key judgments of fact and value: on whether the social objective is to maximise discounted health outcomes or the present consumption value of health; on whether the budget for health care is fixed; on the expected growth in the cost-effectiveness threshold; and on the expected growth in the consumption value of health. We demonstrate that if the budget for health care is fixed and decisions are based on incremental cost effectiveness ratios (ICERs), discounting costs and health gains at the same rate is correct only if the threshold remains constant. Expecting growth in the consumption value of health does not itself justify differential rates but implies a lower rate for both. However, whether one believes that the objective should be the maximisation of the present value of health or the present consumption value of health, adopting the social time preference rate for consumption as the discount rate for costs and health gains is valid only under strong and implausible assumptions about values and facts. 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Delay discounting mediates the association between posterior insular cortex volume and social media addiction symptoms.

PubMed

Turel, Ofir; He, Qinghua; Brevers, Damien; Bechara, Antoine

2018-04-25

Addiction-like symptoms in relation to excessive and compulsive social media use are common in the general population. Because they can lead to various adverse effects, there is a growing need to understand the brain systems and processes that are involved in potential social media addiction. We focus on the morphology of the posterior subdivision of the insular cortex (i.e., the insula), because it has been shown to be instrumental to supporting the maintenance of substance addictions and problematic behaviors. Assuming that social media addiction shares neural similarities with more established ones and consistent with evidence from the neuroeconomics domain, we further examine one possible reason for this association-namely that insular morphology influences one's delay discounting and that this delay discounting contributes to exaggerated preference for immediate social media rewards and consequent addiction-like symptoms. Based on voxel-based morphometry techniques applied to MRI scans of 32 social media users, we show that the gray matter volumes of the bilateral posterior insula are negatively associated with social media addiction symptoms. We further show that this association is mediated by delay discounting. This provides initial evidence that insular morphology can be associated with potential social media addiction, in part, through its contribution to poor foresight and impulsivity as captured by delay discounting.

Effects of delay and probability combinations on discounting in humans.

PubMed

Cox, David J; Dallery, Jesse

2016-10-01

To determine discount rates, researchers typically adjust the amount of an immediate or certain option relative to a delayed or uncertain option. Because this adjusting amount method can be relatively time consuming, researchers have developed more efficient procedures. One such procedure is a 5-trial adjusting delay procedure, which measures the delay at which an amount of money loses half of its value (e.g., $1000 is valued at $500 with a 10-year delay to its receipt). Experiment 1 (n=212) used 5-trial adjusting delay or probability tasks to measure delay discounting of losses, probabilistic gains, and probabilistic losses. Experiment 2 (n=98) assessed combined probabilistic and delayed alternatives. In both experiments, we compared results from 5-trial adjusting delay or probability tasks to traditional adjusting amount procedures. Results suggest both procedures produced similar rates of probability and delay discounting in six out of seven comparisons. A magnitude effect consistent with previous research was observed for probabilistic gains and losses, but not for delayed losses. Results also suggest that delay and probability interact to determine the value of money. Five-trial methods may allow researchers to assess discounting more efficiently as well as study more complex choice scenarios. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Temporal horizon: modulation by smoking status and gender

PubMed Central

Jones, Bryan A.; Landes, Reid D.; Yi, Richard; Bickel, Warren K.

2009-01-01

Recently, delay discounting has been argued to be conceptually consistent with the notion of temporal horizon (Bickel et al., 2008). Temporal horizon refers to the temporal distance over which behavioral events or objects can influence behavior. Here we examine the results on two putative measures of temporal horizon, future time perspective (FTP) and delay discounting, collected over three separate studies (n = 227), to determine the influence of smoking and gender on temporal horizon. By comparing the results on these temporal horizon measures we address our population of interest: women who smoke. One of the measures of FTP indicates that smoking women have a shorter temporal horizon than their nonsmoking counterparts. Additionally, the story completion measures of FTP are positively correlated with delay discounting. In contrast, results of delay discounting measures showed no difference between smoking women and nonsmoking women, while results of delay discounting measures indicated smoking men have a shorter temporal horizon than non-smoking men. Additionally, the results of the FTP story completion measure indicated that lower third income earners had a shortened temporal horizon compared to upper third income earners. A possible explanation for these results is explored, and the implications of the modulation of temporal horizon by gender and smoking are discussed. PMID:19446407

The economic feasibility of price discounts to improve diet in Australian Aboriginal remote communities.

PubMed

Magnus, Anne; Moodie, Marj L; Ferguson, Megan; Cobiac, Linda J; Liberato, Selma C; Brimblecombe, Julie

2016-04-01

To estimate the cost-effectiveness of fiscal measures applied in remote community food stores for Aboriginal Australians. Six price discount strategies on fruit, vegetables, diet drinks and water were modelled. Baseline diet was measured as 12 months' actual food sales data in three remote Aboriginal communities. Discount-induced changes in food purchases were based on published price elasticity data while the weight of the daily diet was assumed constant. Dietary change was converted to change in sodium and energy intake, and body mass index (BMI) over a 12-month period. Improved lifetime health outcomes, modelled for the remote population of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, were converted to disability adjusted life years (DALYs) saved using a proportional multistate lifetable model populated with diet-related disease risks and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rates of disease. While dietary change was small, five of the six price discount strategies were estimated as cost-effective, below a $50,000/DALY threshold. Stakeholders are committed to finding ways to reduce important inequalities in health status between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and non-Indigenous Australians. Price discounts offer potential to improve Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health. Verification of these results by trial-based research coupled with consideration of factors important to all stakeholders is needed. © 2015 The Authors.

Individual Differences in Discount Rate Are Associated With Demand for Self-Administered Cocaine, But Not Sucrose

PubMed Central

Koffarnus, Mikhail N.; Woods, James H.

2011-01-01

Substance abusers, including cocaine abusers, discount delayed rewards to a greater extent than do matched controls. In the current experiment, individual differences in discounting of delayed rewards in rats (choice of one immediate over three delayed sucrose pellets) were assessed for associations with demand for either sucrose pellets or an i.v. dose of 0.1 mg/kg/infusion cocaine. Twenty-four male Sprague Dawley rats were split into three groups based on sensitivity to delay to reinforcement. Then, demand for sucrose pellets and cocaine was determined across a range of fixed-ratio (FR) values. Delay discounting was then reassessed to determine the stability of this measure over the course of the experiment. Individual differences in impulsive choice were positively associated with elasticity of demand for cocaine, a measure of reinforcer value, indicating that rats having higher discount rates also valued cocaine more. Impulsive choice was not associated with level of cocaine consumption as price approached 0, or any parameter associated with demand for sucrose. Individual sensitivity to delay was correlated with the initial assessment when reassessed at the end of the experiment, although impulsive choice increased for this cohort of rats as a whole. These findings suggest that impulsive choice in rats is positively associated with valuation of cocaine, but not sucrose. PMID:21812874

Alternative Fuels Data Center

Science.gov Websites

Plug-In Electric Vehicle (PEV) Discounts - Mass Energy Mass Energy's Drive Green with Mass Energy discount program is available to all consumers, including those that are not in Mass Energy's service Drive Green with Mass Energy

47 CFR 54.514 - Payment for discounted service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Payment for discounted service. 54.514 Section 54.514 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED) UNIVERSAL SERVICE Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries § 54.514 Payment for...

47 CFR 54.514 - Payment for discounted service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Payment for discounted service. 54.514 Section 54.514 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED) UNIVERSAL SERVICE Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries § 54.514 Payment for...

Making Time for Nature: Visual Exposure to Natural Environments Lengthens Subjective Time Perception and Reduces Impulsivity

PubMed Central

Berry, Meredith S.; Repke, Meredith A.; Nickerson, Norma P.; Conway, Lucian G.; Odum, Amy L.; Jordan, Kerry E.

2015-01-01

Impulsivity in delay discounting is associated with maladaptive behaviors such as overeating and drug and alcohol abuse. Researchers have recently noted that delay discounting, even when measured by a brief laboratory task, may be the best predictor of human health related behaviors (e.g., exercise) currently available. Identifying techniques to decrease impulsivity in delay discounting, therefore, could help improve decision-making on a global scale. Visual exposure to natural environments is one recent approach shown to decrease impulsive decision-making in a delay discounting task, although the mechanism driving this result is currently unknown. The present experiment was thus designed to evaluate not only whether visual exposure to natural (mountains, lakes) relative to built (buildings, cities) environments resulted in less impulsivity, but also whether this exposure influenced time perception. Participants were randomly assigned to either a natural environment condition or a built environment condition. Participants viewed photographs of either natural scenes or built scenes before and during a delay discounting task in which they made choices about receiving immediate or delayed hypothetical monetary outcomes. Participants also completed an interval bisection task in which natural or built stimuli were judged as relatively longer or shorter presentation durations. Following the delay discounting and interval bisection tasks, additional measures of time perception were administered, including how many minutes participants thought had passed during the session and a scale measurement of whether time "flew" or "dragged" during the session. Participants exposed to natural as opposed to built scenes were less impulsive and also reported longer subjective session times, although no differences across groups were revealed with the interval bisection task. These results are the first to suggest that decreased impulsivity from exposure to natural as opposed to built environments may be related to lengthened time perception. PMID:26558610

Utilization of basic health units of FHS according to private health insurance

PubMed Central

Fontenelle, Leonardo Ferreira; de Camargo, Maria Beatriz Junqueira; Bertoldi, Andréa Dâmaso; Gonçalves, Helen; Maciel, Ethel Leonor Noia; Barros, Aluísio J D

2018-01-01

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To describe the utilization of basic health units according to coverage by discount card or private health insurance. METHODS Household survey in the area covered by Family Health Strategy in Pelotas, state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, from December 2007 to February 2008, with persons of all age groups. The frequency of (medical or non-medical) healthcare seeking at the basic health units in the last six months and the prevalence of basic health unit utilization for the last medical consultation (in case it had been performed up to six months before, for a non-routine reason) were analyzed by Poisson regression adjusted for the sampling design. RESULTS Of the 1,423 persons, 75.6% had no discount card or private health insurance. The average frequency of (medical or non-medical) healthcare seeking was 1.6 times in six months (95%CI 1.3-2.0); this frequency was 55.8% lower (p < 0.001) among privately insured persons compared to those with no discount card or private health insurance. Among the last medical consultations, 35.8% (95%CI 25.4-47.7) had been performed at the basic health units; this prevalence was 36.4% lower (p = 0.003) among persons covered by discount card and 87.7% lower (p = 0.007) among privately insured persons compared to those without both coverages. CONCLUSIONS Private health insurance and, to a lesser degree, discount card coverage, are related to lower utilization of basic health units. This can be used to size the population under the accountability of each Family Health Strategy team, to the extent that community health workers are able to differentiate discount card from PHI during family registration. PMID:29791678

Trends in the Use of Premium and Discount Cigarette Brands: Findings from the ITC US Surveys (2002–2011)

PubMed Central

Cornelius, Monica E.; Driezen, Pete; Fong, Geoffrey T.; Chaloupka, Frank J.; Hyland, Andrew; Bansal-Travers, Maansi; Carpenter, Matthew J.; Cummings, K. Michael

2014-01-01

Objective The purpose of this paper was to examine trends in the use of premium and discount cigarette brands and determine correlates of type of brand used and brand switching. Methods Data from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) US adult smoker cohort survey were analyzed. The total study sample included 6669 adult cigarette smokers recruited and followed from 2002 to 2011 over eight different survey waves. Each survey wave included an average of 1700 smokers per survey with replenishment of those lost to follow-up. Results Over the eight survey waves, a total of 260 different cigarette brands were reported by smokers, of which 17% were classified as premium and 83% as discount brands. Marlboro, Newport, and Camel were the most popular premium brands reported by smokers in our sample over all eight survey waves. The percentage of smokers using discount brands increased between 2002 and 2011, with a marked increase in brand switching from premium to discount cigarettes observed after 2009 corresponding to the $0.61 increase in the federal excise tax on cigarettes. Cigarette brand preferences varied by age group and income levels with younger, higher income smokers more likely to report smoking premium brand cigarettes, while older, middle and lower income, heavier smokers were more likely to report using discount brands. Conclusions Our data suggest that demographic and smoking trends favor the continued growth of low priced cigarette brands. From a tobacco control perspective, the findings from this study suggest that governments should consider enacting stronger minimum pricing laws in order to keep the base price of cigarettes high, since aggressive price marketing will likely continue to be used by manufacturers to compete for the shrinking pool of remaining smokers in the population. PMID:24092600

[Coverage by health insurance or discount cards: a household survey in the coverage area of the Family Health Strategy].

PubMed

Fontenelle, Leonardo Ferreira; Camargo, Maria Beatriz Junqueira de; Bertoldi, Andréa Dâmaso; Gonçalves, Helen; Maciel, Ethel Leonor Noia; Barros, Aluísio J D

2017-10-26

This study was designed to assess the reasons for health insurance coverage in a population covered by the Family Health Strategy in Brazil. We describe overall health insurance coverage and according to types, and analyze its association with health-related and socio-demographic characteristics. Among the 31.3% of persons (95%CI: 23.8-39.9) who reported "health insurance" coverage, 57.0% (95%CI: 45.2-68.0) were covered only by discount cards, which do not offer any kind of coverage for medical care, but only discounts in pharmacies, clinics, and hospitals. Both for health insurance and discount cards, the most frequently cited reasons for such coverage were "to be on the safe side" and "to receive better care". Both types of coverage were associated statistically with age (+65 vs. 15-24 years: adjusted odds ratios, aOR = 2.98, 95%CI: 1.28-6.90; and aOR = 3.67; 95%CI: 2.22-6.07, respectively) and socioeconomic status (additional standard deviation: aOR = 2.25, 95%CI: 1.62-3.14; and aOR = 1.96, 95%CI: 1.34-2.97). In addition, health insurance coverage was associated with schooling (aOR = 7.59, 95%CI: 4.44-13.00) for complete University Education and aOR = 3.74 (95%CI: 1.61-8.68) for complete Secondary Education, compared to less than complete Primary Education. Meanwhile, neither health insurance nor discount card was associated with health status or number of diagnosed diseases. In conclusion, studies that aim to assess private health insurance should be planned to distinguish between discount cards and formal health insurance.

Effects of NMDA receptor antagonists on probability discounting depend on the order of probability presentation.

PubMed

Yates, Justin R; Breitenstein, Kerry A; Gunkel, Benjamin T; Hughes, Mallory N; Johnson, Anthony B; Rogers, Katherine K; Shape, Sara M

Risky decision making can be measured using a probability-discounting procedure, in which animals choose between a small, certain reinforcer and a large, uncertain reinforcer. Recent evidence has identified glutamate as a mediator of risky decision making, as blocking the N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor with MK-801 increases preference for a large, uncertain reinforcer. Because the order in which probabilities associated with the large reinforcer can modulate the effects of drugs on choice, the current study determined if NMDA receptor ligands alter probability discounting using ascending and descending schedules. Sixteen rats were trained in a probability-discounting procedure in which the odds against obtaining the large reinforcer increased (n=8) or decreased (n=8) across blocks of trials. Following behavioral training, rats received treatments of the NMDA receptor ligands MK-801 (uncompetitive antagonist; 0, 0.003, 0.01, or 0.03mg/kg), ketamine (uncompetitive antagonist; 0, 1.0, 5.0, or 10.0mg/kg), and ifenprodil (NR2B-selective non-competitive antagonist; 0, 1.0, 3.0, or 10.0mg/kg). Results showed discounting was steeper (indicating increased risk aversion) for rats on an ascending schedule relative to rats on the descending schedule. Furthermore, the effects of MK-801, ketamine, and ifenprodil on discounting were dependent on the schedule used. Specifically, the highest dose of each drug decreased risk taking in rats in the descending schedule, but only MK-801 (0.03mg/kg) increased risk taking in rats on an ascending schedule. These results show that probability presentation order modulates the effects of NMDA receptor ligands on risky decision making. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effects of premium discount on workers' compensation claims in agriculture in Finland.

PubMed

Rautiainen, Risto H; Ledolter, Johannes; Sprince, Nancy L; Donham, Kelley J; Burmeister, Leon F; Ohsfeldt, Robert; Reynolds, Stephen J; Phillips, Kirk; Zwerling, Craig

2005-08-01

The objective of this study was to measure changes in injury claim rates after a premium discount program was implemented in the Finnish farmers' workers' compensation insurance. We focused on measures that could indicate whether the changes occurred in the true underlying injury rate, or only in claims reporting. Monthly injury claim rates were constructed at seven disability duration levels from January 1990 to December 2003. We conducted interrupted time series analyses to measure changes in the injury claim rates after the premium discount was implemented on July 1, 1997. Three additional policy change indicators were included in the analyses. The overall injury claim rate decreased 10.2%. Decreases occurred at four severity levels (measured by compensated disability days): 0 days (16.3%), 1-6 days (14.1%), 7-13 days (19.5%), and 14-29 days (8.4%). No changes were observed at higher severity levels. Minor injuries had a seasonal pattern with higher rates in summer months while severe injuries did not have a seasonal pattern. The premium discount decreased the overall claim rate. Decreases were observed in all categories up to 29 disability days. This pattern suggests that under-reporting contributes to the decrease but may not be the only factor. The value of the premium discount is lower than the value of a lost-time claim, so there was no financial reason to under-report lost-time injuries. Under-reporting would be expected to be greatest in the 0 day category, but that was not the case. These observations suggest that in addition to under-reporting, the premium discount may also have some preventive effect. Copyright (c) 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Trends in the use of premium and discount cigarette brands: findings from the ITC US Surveys (2002-2011).

PubMed

Cornelius, Monica E; Driezen, Pete; Fong, Geoffrey T; Chaloupka, Frank J; Hyland, Andrew; Bansal-Travers, Maansi; Carpenter, Matthew J; Cummings, K Michael

2014-03-01

The purpose of this paper was to examine trends in the use of premium and discount cigarette brands and determine correlates of type of brand used and brand switching. Data from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) US adult smoker cohort survey were analysed. The total study sample included 6669 adult cigarette smokers recruited and followed from 2002 to 2011 over eight different survey waves. Each survey wave included an average of 1700 smokers per survey with replenishment of those lost to follow-up. Over the eight survey waves, a total of 260 different cigarette brands were reported by smokers, of which 17% were classified as premium and 83% as discount brands. Marlboro, Newport, and Camel were the most popular premium brands reported by smokers in our sample over all eight survey waves. The percentage of smokers using discount brands increased between 2002 and 2011, with a marked increase in brand switching from premium to discount cigarettes observed after 2009 corresponding to the $0.61 increase in the federal excise tax on cigarettes. Cigarette brand preferences varied by age group and income levels with younger, higher income smokers more likely to report smoking premium brand cigarettes, while older, middle and lower income, heavier smokers were more likely to report using discount brands. Our data suggest that demographic and smoking trends favour the continued growth of low priced cigarette brands. From a tobacco control perspective, the findings from this study suggest that governments should consider enacting stronger minimum pricing laws in order to keep the base price of cigarettes high, since aggressive price marketing will likely continue to be used by manufacturers to compete for the shrinking pool of remaining smokers in the population.

Leveraging delay discounting for health: Can time delays influence food choice?

PubMed

Appelhans, Bradley M; French, Simone A; Olinger, Tamara; Bogucki, Michael; Janssen, Imke; Avery-Mamer, Elizabeth F; Powell, Lisa M

2018-07-01

Delay discounting, the tendency to choose smaller immediate rewards over larger delayed rewards, is theorized to promote consumption of immediately rewarding but unhealthy foods at the expense of long-term weight maintenance and nutritional health. An untested implication of delay discounting models of decision-making is that selectively delaying access to less healthy foods may promote selection of healthier (immediately available) alternatives, even if they may be less desirable. The current study tested this hypothesis by measuring healthy versus regular vending machine snack purchasing before and during the implementation of a 25-s time delay on the delivery of regular snacks. Purchasing was also examined under a $0.25 discount on healthy snacks, a $0.25 tax on regular snacks, and the combination of both pricing interventions with the 25-s time delay. Across 32,019 vending sales from three separate vending locations, the 25-s time delay increased healthy snack purchasing from 40.1% to 42.5%, which was comparable to the impact of a $0.25 discount (43.0%). Combining the delay and the discount had a roughly additive effect (46.0%). However, the strongest effects were seen under the $0.25 tax on regular snacks (53.7%) and the combination of the delay and the tax (50.2%). Intervention effects varied substantially between vending locations. Importantly, time delays did not harm overall vending sales or revenue, which is relevant to the real-world feasibility of this intervention. More investigation is needed to better understand how the impact of time delays on food choice varies across populations, evaluate the effects of time delays on beverage vending choices, and extend this approach to food choices in contexts other than vending machines. ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02359916. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Time value of emission and technology discounting rate for off-grid electricity generation in India using intermediate pyrolysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Patel, Amit, E-mail: amitrp@iitrpr.ac.in; Faculty of Technology and Engineering, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara 390001, Gujarat; Sarkar, Prabir

The environmental impact assessment of a process over its entire operational lifespan is an important issue. Estimation of life cycle emission helps in predicting the contribution of a given process to abate (or to pollute) the environmental emission scenario. Considering diminishing and time-dependent effect of emission, assessment of the overall effect of emissions is very complex. The paper presents a generalized methodology for arriving at a single emission discounting number for a process option, using the concept of time value of carbon emission flow. This number incorporates the effect of the emission resulting from the process over the entire operationalmore » lifespan. The advantage of this method is its quantitative aspect as well as its flexible nature. It can be applied to any process. The method is demonstrated with the help of an Intermediate Pyrolysis process when used to generate off-grid electricity and opting biochar route for disposing straw residue. The scenarios of very high net emission to very high net carbon sequestration is generated using process by careful selection of process parameters for different scenarios. For these different scenarios, the process discounting rate was determined and its outcome is discussed. The paper also proposes a process specific eco-label that mentions the discounting rates. - Highlight: • Methodology to obtain emission discounting rate for a process is proposed. • The method includes all components of life cycle emission converts into a time dependent discounting number. • A case study of Intermediate Pyrolysis is used to obtain such number for a range of processes. • The method is useful to determine if the effect from the operation of a process will lead to a net absorption of emission or net accumulation of emission in the environment.« less

Weekly Energy Drink Use Is Positively Associated with Delay Discounting and Risk Behavior in a Nationwide Sample of Young Adults

PubMed Central

Sweeney, Mary M.; Johnson, Patrick S.; Johnson, Matthew W.; Griffiths, Roland R.

2016-01-01

Background: Energy drink use is associated with increased risk behavior among adolescents and college students. This study examined this relationship in a nationwide sample of young adults and also examined relations between energy drink use and delay discounting. Methods: Participants were 874 U.S. adults 18–28 years of age with past 30-day consumption of caffeine and alcohol. Participants completed an online survey of energy drink use, drug use, sexual activity, alcohol misuse (alcohol use disorders identification test [AUDIT]), sensation seeking (four-item Brief Sensation Seeking Scale [BSSS-4]), and delay discounting of monetary rewards and condom use. Results: Over one-third of participants (n = 303) reported consuming energy drinks at least once per week. Weekly energy drink users were more likely than less-than-weekly energy drink users to report a recent history of risk behaviors, including cigarette smoking (56% vs. 28%, p < 0.0001), illicit stimulant use (22% vs. 6%, p < 0.0001), and unprotected sex (63% vs. 45%, p < 0.0001). Covariate-adjusted analyses found that weekly energy drink users did not have significantly higher BSSS-4 scores (3.5 vs. 3.1, p = 0.098), but they had higher mean AUDIT scores (8.0 vs. 4.8, p < 0.0001), and they more steeply discounted delayed monetary rewards. Although weekly energy drink users did not show steeper discounting of delayed condom use, they showed a lower likelihood of using a condom when one was immediately available. Conclusions: This study extends findings that energy drink use is associated with risk behavior, and it is the first study to show that energy drink use is associated with monetary delay discounting. PMID:26989563

Weekly Energy Drink Use Is Positively Associated with Delay Discounting and Risk Behavior in a Nationwide Sample of Young Adults.

PubMed

Meredith, Steven E; Sweeney, Mary M; Johnson, Patrick S; Johnson, Matthew W; Griffiths, Roland R

2016-03-01

Background: Energy drink use is associated with increased risk behavior among adolescents and college students. This study examined this relationship in a nationwide sample of young adults and also examined relations between energy drink use and delay discounting. Methods: Participants were 874 U.S. adults 18-28 years of age with past 30-day consumption of caffeine and alcohol. Participants completed an online survey of energy drink use, drug use, sexual activity, alcohol misuse (alcohol use disorders identification test [AUDIT]), sensation seeking (four-item Brief Sensation Seeking Scale [BSSS-4]), and delay discounting of monetary rewards and condom use. Results: Over one-third of participants ( n  = 303) reported consuming energy drinks at least once per week. Weekly energy drink users were more likely than less-than-weekly energy drink users to report a recent history of risk behaviors, including cigarette smoking (56% vs. 28%, p  < 0.0001), illicit stimulant use (22% vs. 6%, p  < 0.0001), and unprotected sex (63% vs. 45%, p  < 0.0001). Covariate-adjusted analyses found that weekly energy drink users did not have significantly higher BSSS-4 scores (3.5 vs. 3.1, p  = 0.098), but they had higher mean AUDIT scores (8.0 vs. 4.8, p  < 0.0001), and they more steeply discounted delayed monetary rewards. Although weekly energy drink users did not show steeper discounting of delayed condom use, they showed a lower likelihood of using a condom when one was immediately available. Conclusions: This study extends findings that energy drink use is associated with risk behavior, and it is the first study to show that energy drink use is associated with monetary delay discounting.

Effects of the NMDA receptor antagonists dizocilpine and Ro 63-1908 on delay-discounting and risky decision-making in a gambling task.

PubMed

Higgins, Guy A; Silenieks, Leo B; MacMillan, Cam; Zeeb, Fiona D; Thevarkunnel, Sandy

2018-04-22

Previous studies demonstrated that NMDA receptor antagonists such as dizocilpine (MK801) and the GluN2B NMDA antagonist Ro 63-1908 promote impulsive action (motor impulsivity). The effects of these treatments on impulsive choice and decision-making is less well characterized. Two experiments were undertaken. In the first experiment, given evidence for delay order as a factor in choice selection, the effect of dizocilpine was examined in a delay discounting task with separate groups of male Long-Evans rats trained to a schedule of either ascending (i.e. 0-40 s), or descending delays (i.e. 40-0 s). Under the ascending-delay schedule, dizocilpine (0.03-0.06 mg/kg SC) reduced discounting, yet on the descending-delay schedule discounting was increased. Subgrouping rats according to discounting rate under vehicle pretreatment were consistent with a treatment-induced choice perseveration. In a second experiment, male Long-Evans rats were trained to a gambling task (rGT). Neither dizocilpine (0.01-0.06 mg/kg SC) nor Ro 63-1908 (0.1-1 mg/kg SC) shifted choice from the advantageous to the disadvantageous options. However dizocilpine, and marginally Ro 63-1908, increased choice of the least risky, but suboptimal option. This effect was most evident in rats that initially preferred the disadvantageous options. Consistent with previous studies, both treatments increased measures of motor impulsivity. These results demonstrate that dizocilpine has effects on discounting dependent on delay order and likely reflective of perseveration. On the rGT task, neither dizocilpine nor Ro 63-1908 promoted risky choice, yet both NMDA receptor antagonists increased impulsive action. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Shallow discounting of delayed cocaine by male rhesus monkeys when immediate food is the choice alternative.

PubMed

Huskinson, Sally L; Myerson, Joel; Green, Leonard; Rowlett, James K; Woolverton, William L; Freeman, Kevin B

2016-12-01

Huskinson et al. (2015) recently examined delay discounting in monkeys choosing between an immediate drug (cocaine) reinforcer and a delayed nondrug (food) reinforcer. The present experiment examined the reverse situation: choice between immediate nondrug (food) and delayed drug (cocaine) reinforcers. Whereas the former choice situation exemplifies drug abuse from a delay-discounting perspective, our interest in the latter choice situation is derived from the observation that drug abusers, who characteristically are associated with impulsive choice, typically must devote considerable time to procuring drugs, often at the expense of immediate nondrug alternatives. Accordingly, we analyzed 3 male rhesus monkeys' choices between immediate food and delayed cocaine (0.1 and 0.2 mg/kg/injection) using a hyperbolic model that allowed us to compare discounting rates between qualitatively different reinforcers. Choice of immediate food increased with food amount, and choice functions generally shifted leftward as delay to cocaine increased, indicating a decrease in the subjective value of cocaine. Compared with our previous delay-discounting experiment with immediate cocaine versus delayed food, both doses of delayed cocaine were discounted at a shallow rate. The present results demonstrate that rhesus monkeys will tolerate relatively long delays in an immediate-food versus delayed-drug situation, suggesting that in intertemporal choices between cocaine and food, the subjective value of cocaine is less affected by the delay until reinforcement than is the subjective value of delayed food. More generally, the present findings suggest that although drug abusers may choose impulsively when immediate drug reinforcement is available, they exercise self-control in the acquisition of a highly preferred, delayed drug reinforcer. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Heroin delay discounting: Modulation by pharmacological state, drug-use impulsivity, and intelligence.

PubMed

Stoltman, Jonathan J K; Woodcock, Eric A; Lister, Jamey J; Lundahl, Leslie H; Greenwald, Mark K

2015-12-01

Delay discounting (DD) refers to how rapidly an individual devalues goods based on delays to receipt. DD usually is considered a trait variable but can be state dependent, yet few studies have assessed commodity valuation at short, naturalistically relevant time intervals that might enable state-dependent analysis. This study aimed to determine whether drug-use impulsivity and intelligence influence heroin DD at short (ecologically relevant) delays during two pharmacological states (heroin satiation and withdrawal). Out-of-treatment, intensive heroin users (n = 170; 53.5% African American; 66.7% male) provided complete DD data during imagined heroin satiation and withdrawal. Delays were 3, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72, and 96 hours; maximum delayed heroin amount was thirty $10 bags. Indifference points were used to calculate area under the curve (AUC). We also assessed drug-use impulsivity (subscales from the Impulsive Relapse Questionnaire [IRQ]) and estimated intelligence (Shipley IQ) as predictors of DD. Heroin discounting was greater (smaller AUC) during withdrawal than satiation. In regression analyses, lower intelligence and IRQ Capacity for Delay as well as higher IRQ Speed (to return to drug use) predicted greater heroin discounting in the satiation condition. Lower intelligence and higher IRQ Speed predicted greater discounting in the withdrawal condition. Sex, race, substance use variables, and other IRQ subscales were not significantly related to the withdrawal or satiation DD behavior. In summary, heroin discounting was temporally rapid, pharmacologically state dependent, and predicted by drug-use impulsivity and estimated intelligence. These findings highlight a novel and sensitive measure of acute DD that is easy to administer. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Error Discounting in Probabilistic Category Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Craig, Stewart; Lewandowsky, Stephan; Little, Daniel R.

2011-01-01

The assumption in some current theories of probabilistic categorization is that people gradually attenuate their learning in response to unavoidable error. However, existing evidence for this error discounting is sparse and open to alternative interpretations. We report 2 probabilistic-categorization experiments in which we investigated error…

75 FR 58449 - Postal Rates

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-09-24

... discount design. The proceeding will allow certain issues raised in an earlier proceeding to be fully... important threshold legal and policy issues underlying the design of workshare discounts. The Commission... Mail that is CASS-certified and bears an Intelligent Mail barcode. All of these issues are eligible for...

The Scientific Art of Contract Negotiations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kuo, Kent; Wilson, Nancy

2001-01-01

Discusses negotiating with vendors when purchasing campus information technology. Describes the mechanics of a negotiation (deep discounts, maintenance and support costs, future discounts, warranties and remedies, training and consulting), vendor approaches to negotiating, composition of the negotiating team, and what to do after negotiations end.…

78 FR 65430 - Notice of Rate To Be Used for Federal Debt Collection, and Discount and Rebate Evaluation

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-10-31

... evaluating the cost-effectiveness of a cash discount. In addition, this rate is to be used in determining... for use in connection with Federal Cash Management systems and is based on investment rates set for...

Hoarders Only Discount Consumables and Are More Patient for Money

PubMed Central

Vickers, Brian D.; Preston, Stephanie D.; Gonzalez, Richard; Angott, Andrea M.

2016-01-01

Individuals with hoarding disorder (HD) excessively acquire and retain goods while also exhibiting characteristics of impulsivity and addiction. However, HD individuals do not always perform impulsively in experiments, they do not appear interested in money, and they exhibit many features of risk-aversion and future-planning. To examine impulsivity in HD, we compared validated community participants high and low in hoarding tendencies on questionnaire measures of hoarding and impulsivity as well as a standard experimental measure of impulsivity (intertemporal discounting) that was modified to compare decisions about money, pens, and snacks. Common discounting effects were replicated. Compared to the low hoarding group, the high hoarding group was more impatient for consumables (pens and snacks) but they were more patient for money. This increased patience for money in high hoarding individuals is in contrast to all other studies on discounting in disordered populations, but consistent with the phenomenology of HD. HD does not appear to be driven by a fundamental inability to wait, but rather a specific, potent desire for consumable rewards. PMID:26973479

Delay Discounting Mediates Parent-Adolescent Relationship Quality and Risky Sexual Behavior for Low Self-Control Adolescents.

PubMed

Kahn, Rachel E; Holmes, Christopher; Farley, Julee P; Kim-Spoon, Jungmeen

2015-09-01

Parent-adolescent relationship quality and delay discounting may play important roles in adolescents' sexual decision making processes, and levels of self-control during adolescence could act as a buffer within these factors. This longitudinal study included 219 adolescent (55 % male; mean age = 12.66 years at Wave 1; mean age = 15.10 years at Wave 2) and primary caregiver dyads. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was utilized to determine whether delay discounting mediated the association between parent-adolescent relationship quality and adolescents' risky sexual behavior and how this mediated association may differ between those with high versus low self-control. The results revealed parent-adolescent relationship quality plays a role in the development of risky sexual behavior indirectly through levels of delay discounting, but only for adolescents with low self-control. These findings could inform sex education policies and health prevention programs that address adolescent risky sexual behavior.

The grateful are patient: Heightened daily gratitude is associated with attenuated temporal discounting.

PubMed

Dickens, Leah; DeSteno, David

2016-06-01

Past research has regularly linked the experience of affect to increased impatience and, thereby, decreased self-control. Given emerging work identifying the emotion gratitude as a fairly unique affective state capable of enhancing, rather than inhibiting, patience, the present study examined the association between chronically elevated gratitude and individual differences in temporal discounting. Participants' levels of gratitude were assessed in response to a standardized lab induction and then over a 3-week period prior to measurement of their financial patience in the form of an incentivized delay discounting task. Analyses revealed a strong relation between lab-based and naturally occurring gratitude levels, thereby confirming the validity of the daily online measures. Of import, mean levels of daily gratitude were significantly associated with increased patience in the form of decreased temporal discounting. As expected, no similar relation emerged for daily levels of happiness, thereby confirming the relative specificity of the positive state of gratitude. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

The discount rate in the economic evaluation of prevention: a thought experiment.

PubMed

Bonneux, L; Birnie, E

2001-02-01

In the standard economic model of evaluation, constant discount rates devalue the long term health benefits of prevention strongly. This study shows that it is unlikely that this reflects societal preference. A thought experiment in a cause elimination life table calculates savings of eliminating cardiovascular disease from the Dutch population. A cost effectiveness analysis calculates the acceptable costs of such an intervention at a threshold of 18 000 Euro per saved life year. Cause specific mortality (all cardiovascular causes of death and all other causes) and health care costs (all costs of cardiovascular disease and all other causes of costs) by age and male sex of 1994. At a 0% discount rate, an intervention eliminating cardiovascular disease may cost 71 100 Euro. At the same threshold but at discount rates of 3% or 6%, the same intervention may cost 8100 Euro (8.8 times less) or 1100 Euro (65 times less). The standard economic model needs more realistic duration dependent models of time preference, which reflect societal preference.

Introducing Upfront Money Can Decrease Discounting in Intertemporal Choices with Losses

PubMed Central

Jiang, Cheng-Ming; Sun, Hong-Yue; Zheng, Sheng-Hua; Wang, Liang-Jun; Qin, Yu

2016-01-01

People generally tend to advance gains and postpone losses in intertemporal choice. Jiang et al. (2014) recently showed that adding upfront losses or gains to both smaller and sooner (SS) and larger and later (LL) rewards can decrease people’s discounting. To account for this decrease, they proposed the salience hypothesis, which states that introducing upfront losses or gains makes the money dimension more salient than not, thus increasing people’s preference for LL rewards. Considering that decreasing the discounting of delayed losses is imperative and that most previous studies have focused on intertemporal choices with gains, in the current paper we conducted two experiments and used hypothetical money outcomes to examine whether the effect of upfront money could be extended to intertemporal choices with losses. The results showed that when both SS and LL intertemporal losses were combined with an upfront loss or gain, people’s discounting rate decreased and the preference for the SS option increased. This finding further supports the salience account. PMID:27597839

Delay discounting as emotional processing: an electrophysiological study.

PubMed

Blackburn, Marianna; Mason, Liam; Hoeksma, Marco; Zandstra, Elizabeth H; El-Deredy, Wael

2012-01-01

Both theoretical models and functional imaging studies implicate the involvement of emotions within the delay discounting process. However, defining this role has been difficult to establish with neuroimaging techniques given the automaticity of emotional responses. To address this, the current study examined electrophysiological correlates involved in the detection and evaluation of immediate and delayed monetary outcomes. Our results showed that modulation of both early and later ERP components previously associated with affective stimuli processing are sensitive to the signalling of delayed rewards. Together with behavioural reaction times that favoured immediacy, we demonstrated, for the first time, that time delays modify the incentive value of monetary rewards via mechanisms of emotional bias and selective visual attention. Furthermore, our data are consistent with the hypothesis that delayed and thus intangible rewards are perceived less saliently, and rely on emotion as a common currency within decision making. This study provides a new approach to delay discounting and highlights a potential novel route through which delay discounting may be investigated.

Models of Temporal Discounting 1937-2000: An Interdisciplinary Exchange between Economics and Psychology.

PubMed

Grüne-Yanoff, Till

2015-12-01

Today's models of temporal discounting are the result of multiple interdisciplinary exchanges between psychology and economics. Although these exchanges did not result in an integrated discipline, they had important effects on all disciplines involved. The paper describes these exchanges from the 1930s onwards, focusing on two episodes in particular: an attempted synthesis by psychiatrist George Ainslie and others in the 1970s; and the attempted application of this new discounting model by a generation of economists and psychologists in the 1980s, which ultimately ended in the diversity of measurements disappointment. I draw four main conclusions. First, multiple notions of temporal discounting must be conceptually distinguished. Second, behavioral economics is not an integration or unification of psychology and economics. Third, the analysis identifies some central disciplinary markers that distinguish modeling strategies in economics and psychology. Finally, it offers a case of interdisciplinary success that does not fit the currently dominant account of interdisciplinarity as integration.

Introducing Upfront Money Can Decrease Discounting in Intertemporal Choices with Losses.

PubMed

Jiang, Cheng-Ming; Sun, Hong-Yue; Zheng, Sheng-Hua; Wang, Liang-Jun; Qin, Yu

2016-01-01

People generally tend to advance gains and postpone losses in intertemporal choice. Jiang et al. (2014) recently showed that adding upfront losses or gains to both smaller and sooner (SS) and larger and later (LL) rewards can decrease people's discounting. To account for this decrease, they proposed the salience hypothesis, which states that introducing upfront losses or gains makes the money dimension more salient than not, thus increasing people's preference for LL rewards. Considering that decreasing the discounting of delayed losses is imperative and that most previous studies have focused on intertemporal choices with gains, in the current paper we conducted two experiments and used hypothetical money outcomes to examine whether the effect of upfront money could be extended to intertemporal choices with losses. The results showed that when both SS and LL intertemporal losses were combined with an upfront loss or gain, people's discounting rate decreased and the preference for the SS option increased. This finding further supports the salience account.

Hoarders Only Discount Consumables and Are More Patient for Money.

PubMed

Vickers, Brian D; Preston, Stephanie D; Gonzalez, Richard; Angott, Andrea M

2016-01-01

Individuals with hoarding disorder (HD) excessively acquire and retain goods while also exhibiting characteristics of impulsivity and addiction. However, HD individuals do not always perform impulsively in experiments, they do not appear interested in money, and they exhibit many features of risk-aversion and future-planning. To examine impulsivity in HD, we compared validated community participants high and low in hoarding tendencies on questionnaire measures of hoarding and impulsivity as well as a standard experimental measure of impulsivity (intertemporal discounting) that was modified to compare decisions about money, pens, and snacks. Common discounting effects were replicated. Compared to the low hoarding group, the high hoarding group was more impatient for consumables (pens and snacks) but they were more patient for money. This increased patience for money in high hoarding individuals is in contrast to all other studies on discounting in disordered populations, but consistent with the phenomenology of HD. HD does not appear to be driven by a fundamental inability to wait, but rather a specific, potent desire for consumable rewards.

Can you change my preferences? Effect of social influence on intertemporal choice behavior.

PubMed

Calluso, Cinzia; Tosoni, Annalisa; Fortunato, Gianfranco; Committeri, Giorgia

2017-07-14

The present study presents a novel social observation paradigm to examine whether temporal discounting (TD) can be modulated in a specific direction. In particular, after estimating a baseline discount rate, we exposed subjects to a pattern of choice that was opposite to their baseline preferences, i.e., subjects preferring immediate over delayed rewards were exposed to a farsighted pattern of behavior and vice-versa. The results showed a significant decrease of the discount rate in the discounter group and an increase in the farsighted group. The effect was mainly guided by a modification of the subjective values at short time delays and was stronger in subjects with extreme, compared to mild, baseline preferences. Importantly, the magnitude and direction of the effect predicted the baseline preferences. These findings have potentially very relevant implications for the prevention and treatment of clinical conditions, such as addition-related disorders, characterized by severe impairments of decision-making mechanisms. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Episodic future thinking reduces delay discounting and cigarette demand: an investigation of the good-subject effect.

PubMed

Stein, Jeffrey S; Tegge, Allison N; Turner, Jamie K; Bickel, Warren K

2018-04-01

Episodic future thinking (EFT), an intervention involving mental simulation of future events, has been shown to reduce both delay discounting and cigarette self-administration. In the present study, we extended these findings by showing that EFT in a web-based sample of smokers reduces delay discounting and intensity of demand for cigarettes (ad libitum consumption) in a hypothetical purchase task. No effect was observed on elasticity of demand (sensitivity to price) or cigarette craving. We also explored whether demand characteristics (specifically, the "good-subject" effect) might be responsible for observed effects. EFT participants were significantly better able than control participants to discern the experimental hypothesis. However, EFT participants were not better than controls at identifying whether they had been assigned to the experimental group and, likewise, showed no differences in attitudes about the experiment and experimenter. Importantly, effects of EFT on delay discounting and demand remained significant even when controlling for measures of demand characteristics, indicating that EFT's effects are independent of participants' perceptions about the experiment.

The impact of a retirement savings account cap.

PubMed

VanDerhei, Jack

2013-08-01

This Issue Brief provides an initial analysis of the potential financial impact on private-sector retirement benefits of the retirement savings account cap included in the Obama administration's FY 2014 budget proposal. It finds that although a very small percentage of current 401(k) participants with IRA accounts have combined balances sufficient to be immediately affected by the proposed limit, over time (and depending on the applicable discount rates, whether a defined benefit pension is involved, and the size of the 401(k) plan) the impact could be much greater. Simulation results for 401(k) participants assuming no defined benefit accruals and no job turnover show that more than 1 in 10 current 401(k) participants are likely to hit the proposed limit sometime prior to age 65, even at the current historically low discount rate of 4 percent. When the simulation is rerun with discount rate assumptions closer to historical averages, the percentage of 401(k) participants likely to be affected by these proposed limits increases substantially: For example, with an 8 percent discount rate, more than 20 percent of the 401(k) participants are simulated to reach the limit prior to retirement. When the impact of stylized, defined benefit account assumptions are added to the analysis, the percentage of 401(k) participants simulated to reach the proposed limits increases even more: In fact, for 401(k) participants assumed to be covered by a 2 percent, three-year, final-average plan with a subsidized early retirement at 62, nearly a third are assumed to be affected by the proposed limit at an 8 percent discount rate. Additional analysis is performed for small plans (those with less than 100 participants) to assess the potential impact of eventual plan terminations if an when the owners and/or key decision makers of the firms reach the cap threshold. Depending on plan size, this may involve as few as 18 percent of the firms (at a 4 percent discount rate) to as many as 75 percent of the firms (at an 8 percent discount rates).

Modeling lifetime costs and health outcomes attributable to secondhand smoke exposure at home among Korean adult women.

PubMed

Lee, Jiyae; Han, Ah Ram; Choi, Dalwoong; Lim, Kyung-Min; Bae, SeungJin

2017-05-17

The aim of this research is to estimate lifetime costs and health consequences for Korean adult women who were exposed to secondhand smoke (SHS) at home. A Markov model was developed to project the lifetime healthcare costs and health outcomes of a hypothetical cohort of Korean women who are 40 years old and were married to current smokers. The Korean epidemiological data were used to reflect the natural history of SHS-exposed and non-exposed women. The direct healthcare costs (in 2014 US dollars) and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were annually discounted at 5% to reflect time preference. The time horizon of the analysis was lifetime and the cycle length was 1 year. Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were conducted. In the absence of SHS exposure, Korean women will live 41.32 years or 34.56 QALYs before discount, which corresponded to 17.29 years or 15.35 QALYs after discount. The SHS-exposed women were predicted to live 37.91 years and 31.08 QALYs before discount and 16.76 years and 14.62 QALYs after discount. The estimated lifetime healthcare cost per woman in the SHS non-exposed group was US$11 214 before the discount and US$2465 after discount. The negative impact of SHS exposure on health outcomes and healthcare costs escalated as the time horizon increased, suggesting that the adverse impact of SHS exposure may have higher impact on the later part of the lifetime. The result was consistent across a wide range of assumptions. Life expectancy might underestimate the impact of SHS exposure on health outcomes, especially if the time horizon of the analysis is not long enough. Early intervention on smoking behaviour could substantially reduce direct healthcare costs and improve quality of life attributable to SHS exposure. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Benefit assessment in Germany: implications for price discounts.

PubMed

Theidel, Ulrike; von der Schulenburg, J-Matthias Graf

2016-12-01

The AMNOG regulation, introduced in 2011 in Germany, changed the game for new drugs. Now, the industry is required to submit a dossier to the GBA (the central decision body in the German sickness fund system) to show additional benefit. After granting the magnitude of the additional benefit by the GBA, the manufacturer is entitled to negotiate the reimbursement price with the GKV-SV (National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds). The reimbursement price is defined as a discount on the drug price at launch. As the price or discount negotiations between the manufacturers and the GKV-SV takes place behind closed doors, the factors influencing the results of the negotiation are not known. The aim of this evaluation is to identify factors influencing the results of the AMNOG price negotiation process. The analysis was based on a dataset containing detailed information on all assessments until the end of 2015. A descriptive analysis was followed by an econometric analysis of various potential factors (benefit rating, size of target population, deviating from appropriate comparative therapy and incorporation of HRQoL-data). Until December 2015, manufacturers and the GKV-SV finalized 96 negotiations in 193 therapeutic areas, based on assessment conducted by the GBA. The GBA has granted an additional benefit to 100/193 drug innovations. Negotiated discount was significantly higher for those drugs without additional benefit (p = 0.030) and non-orphan drugs (p = 0.015). Smaller population size, no deviation from recommended appropriate comparative therapy and the incorporation of HRQoL-data were associated with a lower discount on the price at launch. However, neither a uni- nor the multivariate linear regression showed enough power to predict the final discount. Although the AMNOG regulation implemented binding and strict rules for the benefit assessment itself, the outcome of the discount negotiations are still unpredictable. Obviously, negotiation tactics, the current political situation and soft factors seem to play a more influential role for the outcome of the negotiations than the five hard and known factors analyzed in this study. Further research is needed to evaluate additional factors.

47 CFR 54.500 - Terms and definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... and state agencies that provides free or reduced price lunches to economically disadvantaged children... Management and Budget is eligible for a free lunch. (j) Pre-discount price. The “pre-discount price” means... service such as cellular, interconnected voice over Internet protocol (VoIP), and the circuit capacity...

A Delay Discounting Model of Psychotherapy Termination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swift, Joshua K.; Callahan, Jennifer L.

2009-01-01

Delay discounting (DD) procedures are emerging as an important new method for psychotherapy researchers. In this paper a framework for conceptualizing existing, seemingly discrepant, research findings on termination is introduced and new directions for research are described. To illustrate the value of a DD framework, the common psychotherapy…

Discounting of Delayed Rewards Is Not Hyperbolic

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luhmann, Christian C.

2013-01-01

Delay discounting refers to decision-makers' tendency to value immediately available goods more than identical goods available only after some delay. In violation of standard economic theory, decision-makers frequently exhibit dynamic inconsistency; their preferences change simply due to the passage of time. The standard explanation for this…

A Comparison of Three Commercial Online Vendors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoover, Ryan E.

1979-01-01

Compares database update currency, number of hits, elapsed time, number of offline prints or online types, offline print turnaround time, vendor rates, total search cost, and discounted search cost based on vendor discount rates for five simple searches run on three major commercial vendors' online systems. (CWM)

77 FR 27227 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-09

... Authority, P.O. Box 2562; Houston, TX 77252. Synopsis: The agreement sets forth certain discounted rates and... Houston Authority, P.O. Box 2562; Houston, TX 77252. Synopsis: The agreement sets forth certain discounted rates and charges applicable to Bayport Container Lines Americas, Inc.'s container vessels calling at...

42 CFR 124.514 - Compliance alternative for facilities with small annual obligations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... annual obligations. 124.514 Section 124.514 Public Health PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES HEALTH RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT MEDICAL FACILITY CONSTRUCTION AND MODERNIZATION Reasonable... qualify threrefor under a program of discounted health services. A “program of discounted health services...

42 CFR 124.514 - Compliance alternative for facilities with small annual obligations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... annual obligations. 124.514 Section 124.514 Public Health PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES HEALTH RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT MEDICAL FACILITY CONSTRUCTION AND MODERNIZATION Reasonable... qualify threrefor under a program of discounted health services. A “program of discounted health services...

42 CFR 124.514 - Compliance alternative for facilities with small annual obligations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... annual obligations. 124.514 Section 124.514 Public Health PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES HEALTH RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT MEDICAL FACILITY CONSTRUCTION AND MODERNIZATION Reasonable... qualify threrefor under a program of discounted health services. A “program of discounted health services...

Sharing, Discounting, and Selfishness: A Japanese-American Comparison

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ito, Masato; Saeki, Daisuke; Green, Leonard

2011-01-01

Social discounting rates were compared between Japanese and American college students. In a series of psychophysical questionnaire tasks, participants chose between a hypothetical unshared monetary reward and a hypothetical monetary reward to be shared with other people (relatives or strangers), to determine amounts of the unshared reward…

22 CFR 201.65 - Commissions, discounts and other payments, credits, benefits and allowances.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., credits, benefits and allowances. 201.65 Section 201.65 Foreign Relations AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL....65 Commissions, discounts and other payments, credits, benefits and allowances. (a) General. This... payments, credits, benefits and allowances for USAID-financing. (b) Commissions to sales agents. Unless...

Brain Regions Related to Impulsivity Mediate the Effects of Early Adversity on Antisocial Behavior.

PubMed

Mackey, Scott; Chaarani, Bader; Kan, Kees-Jan; Spechler, Philip A; Orr, Catherine; Banaschewski, Tobias; Barker, Gareth; Bokde, Arun L W; Bromberg, Uli; Büchel, Christian; Cattrell, Anna; Conrod, Patricia J; Desrivières, Sylvane; Flor, Herta; Frouin, Vincent; Gallinat, Jürgen; Gowland, Penny; Heinz, Andreas; Ittermann, Bernd; Paillère Martinot, Marie-Laure; Artiges, Eric; Nees, Frauke; Papadopoulos-Orfanos, Dimitri; Poustka, Luise; Smolka, Michael N; Jurk, Sarah; Walter, Henrik; Whelan, Robert; Schumann, Gunter; Althoff, Robert R; Garavan, Hugh

2017-08-15

Individual differences in impulsivity and early adversity are known to be strong predictors of adolescent antisocial behavior. However, the neurobiological bases of impulsivity and their relation to antisocial behavior and adversity are poorly understood. Impulsivity was estimated with a temporal discounting task. Voxel-based morphometry was used to determine the brain structural correlates of temporal discounting in a large cohort (n = 1830) of 14- to 15-year-old children. Mediation analysis was then used to determine whether the volumes of brain regions associated with temporal discounting mediate the relation between adverse life events (e.g., family conflict, serious accidents) and antisocial behaviors (e.g., precocious sexual activity, bullying, illicit substance use). Greater temporal discounting (more impulsivity) was associated with 1) lower volume in frontomedial cortex and bilateral insula and 2) greater volume in a subcortical region encompassing the ventral striatum, hypothalamus and anterior thalamus. The volume ratio between these cortical and subcortical regions was found to partially mediate the relation between adverse life events and antisocial behavior. Temporal discounting is related to regions of the brain involved in reward processing and interoception. The results support a developmental imbalance model of impulsivity and are consistent with the idea that negative environmental factors can alter the developing brain in ways that promote antisocial behavior. Copyright © 2016 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

State cigarette minimum price laws - United States, 2009.

PubMed

2010-04-09

Cigarette price increases reduce the demand for cigarettes and thereby reduce smoking prevalence, cigarette consumption, and youth initiation of smoking. Excise tax increases are the most effective government intervention to increase the price of cigarettes, but cigarette manufacturers use trade discounts, coupons, and other promotions to counteract the effects of these tax increases and appeal to price-sensitive smokers. State cigarette minimum price laws, initiated by states in the 1940s and 1950s to protect tobacco retailers from predatory business practices, typically require a minimum percentage markup to be added to the wholesale and/or retail price. If a statute prohibits trade discounts from the minimum price calculation, these laws have the potential to counteract discounting by cigarette manufacturers. To assess the status of cigarette minimum price laws in the United States, CDC surveyed state statutes and identified those states with minimum price laws in effect as of December 31, 2009. This report summarizes the results of that survey, which determined that 25 states had minimum price laws for cigarettes (median wholesale markup: 4.00%; median retail markup: 8.00%), and seven of those states also expressly prohibited the use of trade discounts in the minimum retail price calculation. Minimum price laws can help prevent trade discounting from eroding the positive effects of state excise tax increases and higher cigarette prices on public health.

Food bundling as a health nudge: Investigating consumer fruit and vegetable selection using behavioral economics.

PubMed

Carroll, Kathryn A; Samek, Anya; Zepeda, Lydia

2018-02-01

Displaying bundles of healthy foods at the grocery store is a health nudge that simplifies shopping and may have the potential for increasing fruit and vegetable (F&V) purchasing. To evaluate the impact of food bundling, we conduct an artefactual field experiment with community participants in a laboratory set up as a grocery store. Dual-self theory suggests that food choices may differ depending on whether shoppers are under cognitive load - in our experiment, we exogenously vary whether bundles are displayed (with and without a price discount) and whether shoppers are under cognitive load. Our findings align with prior studies that suggest unhealthy options are more likely to be selected when cognitive resources are constrained. When bundles are displayed, we observe increased F&V purchasing. We also observe a significant interaction between cognitive load and price discounting. We find discounted bundles are more effective in the absence of cognitive load, but non-discounted bundles are more effective when shoppers are under cognitive load. Although more research is warranted, our findings suggest that when shopping under cognitive load, it is possible that discounts impose additional cognitive strain on the shopping experience. For retailers and policymakers, our results point to the potential power of bundling as a strategy for increasing healthy food purchasing. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Societal cost-benefit analysis for soil remediation in The Netherlands.

PubMed

van Wezel, Annemarie P; Franken, Ron O G; Drissen, Eric; Versluijs, Kees C W; van den Berg, Reinier

2008-01-01

There is a political demand on the efficiency of environmental policy. Cost-benefit analyses (CBAs) can play a role in answering that demand. This societal CBA for nationwide soil remediation operations in The Netherlands distinguishes 4 alternatives for future investments. In the zero alternative government funding will be terminated. Besides this, 3 policy alternatives are distinguished that are government financed. Soil remediation benefits human health, the drinking water supply, housing, perceptions, and the ecosystem. Soil remediation also answers the concerns of the Dutch population. The benefits to health (exposure to cadmium, lead, and carcinogens), drinking water supply, and housing are expressed in monetary terms. The extent that benefits equal the money spent depends partly on the value-loaded choice for the discount rate. Use of the current discount rate of 4% will mean a slightly negative balance whichever policy alternative is chosen. Focusing on nonmoneterized benefits, such as ecology, can cause the scales to tip in another direction. Using a lower discount rate will make future benefits, such as health and drinking water supply, more important. If the discount rate drops to 2% or less, all policy alternatives lead to a positive balance. Predominantly, the health benefits that are veiled in uncertainty can become a reason for applying a surcharge and, in turn, a higher discount rate. In that case, each of the alternatives will result in a net negative balance.

Gender-Specific Effects of Cognitive Load on Social Discounting.

PubMed

Strombach, Tina; Margittai, Zsofia; Gorczyca, Barbara; Kalenscher, Tobias

2016-01-01

We live busy, social lives, and meeting the challenges of our complex environments puts strain on our cognitive systems. However, cognitive resources are limited. It is unclear how cognitive load affects social decision making. Previous findings on the effects of cognitive load on other-regarding preferences have been ambiguous, allowing no coherent opinion whether cognitive load increases, decreases or does not affect prosocial considerations. Here, we suggest that social distance between individuals modulates whether generosity towards a recipient increases or decreases under cognitive load conditions. Participants played a financial social discounting task with several recipients at variable social distance levels. In this task, they could choose between generous alternatives, yielding medium financial rewards for the participant and recipient at variable social distances, or between a selfish alternative, yielding larger rewards for the participant alone. We show that the social discount function of male participants was significantly flattened under high cognitive load conditions, suggesting they distinguished less between socially close and socially distant recipients. Unexpectedly, the cognitive-load effect on social discounting was gender-specific: while social discounting was strongly dependent on cognitive load in men, women were nearly unaffected by cognitive load manipulations. We suggest that cognitive load leads men, but not women to simplify the decision problem by neglecting the social distance information. We consider our study a good starting point for further experiments exploring the role of gender in prosocial choice.

Gender-Specific Effects of Cognitive Load on Social Discounting

PubMed Central

Strombach, Tina; Margittai, Zsofia; Gorczyca, Barbara; Kalenscher, Tobias

2016-01-01

We live busy, social lives, and meeting the challenges of our complex environments puts strain on our cognitive systems. However, cognitive resources are limited. It is unclear how cognitive load affects social decision making. Previous findings on the effects of cognitive load on other-regarding preferences have been ambiguous, allowing no coherent opinion whether cognitive load increases, decreases or does not affect prosocial considerations. Here, we suggest that social distance between individuals modulates whether generosity towards a recipient increases or decreases under cognitive load conditions. Participants played a financial social discounting task with several recipients at variable social distance levels. In this task, they could choose between generous alternatives, yielding medium financial rewards for the participant and recipient at variable social distances, or between a selfish alternative, yielding larger rewards for the participant alone. We show that the social discount function of male participants was significantly flattened under high cognitive load conditions, suggesting they distinguished less between socially close and socially distant recipients. Unexpectedly, the cognitive-load effect on social discounting was gender-specific: while social discounting was strongly dependent on cognitive load in men, women were nearly unaffected by cognitive load manipulations. We suggest that cognitive load leads men, but not women to simplify the decision problem by neglecting the social distance information. We consider our study a good starting point for further experiments exploring the role of gender in prosocial choice. PMID:27788192

What weight should be assigned to future environmental impacts? A probabilistic cost benefit analysis using recent advances on discounting.

PubMed

Almansa, Carmen; Martínez-Paz, José M

2011-03-01

Cost-benefit analysis is a standard methodological platform for public investment evaluation. In high environmental impact projects, with a long-term effect on future generations, the choice of discount rate and time horizon is of particular relevance, because it can lead to very different profitability assessments. This paper describes some recent approaches to environmental discounting and applies them, together with a number of classical procedures, to the economic evaluation of a plant for the desalination of irrigation return water from intensive farming, aimed at halting the degradation of an area of great ecological value, the Mar Menor, in South Eastern Spain. A Monte Carlo procedure is used in four CBA approaches and three time horizons to carry out a probabilistic sensitivity analysis designed to integrate the views of an international panel of experts in environmental discounting with the uncertainty affecting the market price of the project's main output, i.e., irrigation water for a water-deprived area. The results show which discounting scenarios most accurately estimate the socio-environmental profitability of the project while also considering the risk associated with these two key parameters. The analysis also provides some methodological findings regarding ways of assessing financial and environmental profitability in decisions concerning public investment in the environment. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Delay discounting, risk-taking, and rejection sensitivity among individuals with Internet and Video Gaming Disorders.

PubMed

Weinstein, Aviv; Abu, Hodaya Ben; Timor, Ayelet; Mama, Yaniv

2016-12-01

Background and aims There is a previous evidence for impulsivity in individuals with Internet and Video Gaming Disorders. The aim of this study was to examine whether Internet and video game addictions are associated with experiential delay discounting, risk-taking, and sensitivity to social rejection using computerized tasks and questionnaires. Methods Twenty participants (mean age 24, SD = 1.55) with high score on the Problematic Online Gaming Questionnaire (POGQ) were compared with 20 participants (mean age 24.8, SD = 1.34) with low score on the POGQ. They performed on computerized Balloon Analog Risk Task and Experiential Delay discounting Task (EDT), and filled in the sensitivity to social rejection questionnaire. Results Participants with high POGQ scores had lower measures of delay discounting, higher measures of risk-taking, and higher measures of sensitivity to social rejection compared with participants with low POGQ scores. Discussion The results of this study support the previous evidence of risk-taking and provide new evidence for difficulties in delay discounting and sensitivity to social rejection among those who score high on Internet and video games. Conclusions The results suggest that Internet- and video game-addicted individuals seek immediate gratification and cannot wait for later reward. Furthermore, these individuals spend time in the virtual world, where they feel safe, and avoid social interactions presumably due to fears of social rejection.

Evolution of cooperation on complex networks with synergistic and discounted group interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Lei; Li, Aming; Wang, Long

2015-06-01

In the real world individuals often engage in group interactions and their payoffs are determined by many factors, including the typical nonlinear interactions, i.e., synergy and discounting. Previous literatures assume that individual payoffs are either synergistically enhanced or discounted with the additional cooperators. Such settings ignore the interplay of these two factors, which is in sharp contrast with the fact that they ubiquitously coexist. Here we investigate how the coexistence and periodical switching of synergistic and discounted group interactions affect the evolution of cooperation on various complex networks. We show that scale-free networks facilitate the emergence of cooperation in terms of fixation probability for group interactions. With nonlinear interactions the heterogeneity of the degree acts as a double-edged sword: below the neutral drift it is the best for cooperation while above the neutral drift it instead provides the least opportunity for cooperators to be fixed. The advantages of the heterogeneity fade as interactive attributes switch between synergy and discounting, which suggests that the heterogeneity of population structures cannot favor cooperators in group interactions even with simple nonlinear interactions. Nonetheless, scale-free networks always guarantee cooperators the fastest rate of fixation. Our work implies that even very simple nonlinear group interactions could greatly shape the fixation probability and fixation time of cooperators in structured populations indicated by complex networks.

Individual differences in discount rate are associated with demand for self-administered cocaine, but not sucrose.

PubMed

Koffarnus, Mikhail N; Woods, James H

2013-01-01

Substance abusers, including cocaine abusers, discount delayed rewards to a greater extent than do matched controls. In the current experiment, individual differences in discounting of delayed rewards in rats (choice of one immediate over three delayed sucrose pellets) were assessed for associations with demand for either sucrose pellets or an intravenous dose of 0.1 mg/kg/infusion cocaine. Twenty-four male Sprague Dawley rats were split into three groups based on sensitivity to delay to reinforcement. Then, demand for sucrose pellets and cocaine was determined across a range of fixed-ratio values. Delay discounting was then reassessed to determine the stability of this measure over the course of the experiment. Individual differences in impulsive choice were positively associated with elasticity of demand for cocaine, a measure of reinforcer value, indicating that rats having higher discount rates also valued cocaine more. Impulsive choice was not associated with the level of cocaine consumption as price approached 0 or with any parameter associated with demand for sucrose. Individual sensitivity to delay was correlated with the initial assessment when reassessed at the end of the experiment, although impulsive choice increased for this cohort of rats as a whole. These findings suggest that impulsive choice in rats is positively associated with valuation of cocaine, but not sucrose. © 2011 The Authors, Addiction Biology © 2011 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Delay Discounting and Frontostriatal Fiber Tracts: A Combined DTI and MTR Study on Impulsive Choices in Healthy Young Adults

PubMed Central

Peper, Jiska S.; Mandl, René C.W.; Braams, Barbara R.; de Water, Erik; Heijboer, Annemieke C.; Koolschijn, P. Cédric M.P.; Crone, Eveline A.

2013-01-01

Delay discounting, a measure of impulsive choice, has been associated with decreased control of the prefrontal cortex over striatum responses. The anatomical connectivity between both brain regions in delaying gratification remains unknown. Here, we investigate whether the quality of frontostriatal (FS) white matter tracts can predict individual differences in delay-discounting behavior. We use tract-based diffusion tensor imaging and magnetization transfer imaging to measure the microstructural properties of FS fiber tracts in 40 healthy young adults (from 18 to 25 years). We additionally explored whether internal sex hormone levels affect the integrity of FS tracts, based on the hypothesis that sex hormones modulate axonal density within prefrontal dopaminergic circuits. We calculated fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), longitudinal diffusivity, radial diffusivity (RD), and magnetization transfer ratio (MTR), a putative measure of myelination, for the FS tract. Results showed that lower integrity within the FS tract (higher MD and RD and lower FA), predicts faster discounting in both sexes. MTR was unrelated to delay-discounting performance. In addition, testosterone levels in males were associated with a lower integrity (higher RD) within the FS tract. Our study provides support for the hypothesis that enhanced structural integrity of white matter fiber bundles between prefrontal and striatal brain areas is associated with better impulse control. PMID:22693341

Time and decision making: differential contribution of the posterior insular cortex and the striatum during a delay discounting task.

PubMed

Wittmann, Marc; Leland, David S; Paulus, Martin P

2007-06-01

Delay discounting refers to the fact that an immediate reward is valued more than the same reward if it occurs some time in the future. To examine the neural substrates underlying this process, we studied 13 healthy volunteers who repeatedly had to decide between an immediate and parametrically varied delayed hypothetical reward using a delay discounting task during event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging. Subject's preference judgments resulted in different discounting slopes for shorter (<1 year) and for longer (> or =1 year) delays. Neural activation associated with the shorter delays relative to the longer delays was associated with increased activation in the head of the left caudate nucleus and putamen. When individuals selected the delayed relative to the immediate reward, a strong activation was found in bilateral posterior insular cortex. Several brain areas including the left caudate nucleus showed a correlation between the behaviorally determined discounting and brain activation for the contrast of intervals with delays <1 and > or =1 year. These results suggest that (1) the posterior insula, which is a critical component of the decision-making neural network, is involved in delaying gratification and (2) the degree of neural activation in the striatum, which plays a fundamental role in reward prediction and in time estimation, may code for the time delay.

Tuition Discounting for Revenue Management

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hillman, Nicholas W.

2012-01-01

Over the past decade, institutionally-funded financial aid (or "tuition discounts") have been the fastest-growing item within most public four-year college and university operating budgets. One explanation for this trend is due to the changing structure of public colleges' revenue streams, as tuition and fees have replaced state appropriations as…

78 FR 48607 - Guidance Regarding Deferred Discharge of Indebtedness Income of Corporations and Deferred...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-09

... Guidance Regarding Deferred Discharge of Indebtedness Income of Corporations and Deferred Original Issue... (deferred COD income) and the accelerated deduction of deferred original issue discount (OID) (deferred OID... 20, the language ``and the deduction of deferred original issue discount that is otherwise'' is...

26 CFR 1.803-6 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Life Insurance Companies § 1.803-6 Amortization... held by a life insurance company. Such adjustments are limited to the amount of appropriate... company. A life insurance company which adjusts amortization of premium or accrual of discount with...

26 CFR 1.803-6 - Amortization of premium and accrual of discount.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Life Insurance Companies § 1.803-6 Amortization... held by a life insurance company. Such adjustments are limited to the amount of appropriate... company. A life insurance company which adjusts amortization of premium or accrual of discount with...