Sample records for qualified employee discount

  1. 26 CFR 1.132-3 - Qualified employee discounts.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... being offered to customers at the time of the employee's purchase is controlling. For example, assume... being offered to customers is $25. In this case, the price from which the employee discount is measured... at which the product is being offered to customers is $15 and the price charged the employee is $12...

  2. 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...

  3. 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...

  4. 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...

  5. 26 CFR 1.1396-1 - Qualified zone employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Empowerment Zone Employment Credit § 1.1396-1 Qualified zone employees... calendar year during which the employee is employed by the employer) are performed within the empowerment... periods (if any) in which B is a qualified zone employee. Y may claim the empowerment zone employment...

  6. 26 CFR 1.1396-1 - Qualified zone employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Empowerment Zone Employment Credit § 1.1396-1 Qualified zone employees... calendar year during which the employee is employed by the employer) are performed within the empowerment... periods (if any) in which B is a qualified zone employee. Y may claim the empowerment zone employment...

  7. 26 CFR 1.1396-1 - Qualified zone employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Empowerment Zone Employment Credit § 1.1396-1 Qualified zone employees... calendar year during which the employee is employed by the employer) are performed within the empowerment... periods (if any) in which B is a qualified zone employee. Y may claim the empowerment zone employment...

  8. The Learning Intentions of Low-Qualified Employees: A Multilevel Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kyndt, Eva; Dochy, Filip; Onghena, Patrick; Baert, Herman

    2013-01-01

    In the continuously changing society and knowledge-intensive economy, the demand for the recurrent updating of competencies is coming to the fore for all employees, including low-qualified employees. Employees are considered low qualified when they do not have a starter qualification for higher education. Although many educational studies have…

  9. Predictors of Self-Directed Learning for Low-Qualified Employees: A Multi-Level Analysis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Raemdonck, Isabel; van der Leeden, Rien; Valcke, Martin; Segers, Mien; Thijssen, Jo

    2012-01-01

    Purpose: This study aims to examine which variables at the level of the individual employee and at the company level are predictors of self-directed learning in low-qualified employees. Methodology: Results were obtained from a sample of 408 low-qualified employees from 35 different companies. The companies were selected from the energy sector,…

  10. 26 CFR 1.72-16 - Life insurance contracts purchased under qualified employee plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... includible in the gross income of the employee under this paragraph shall be considered as premiums or other... in Gross Income § 1.72-16 Life insurance contracts purchased under qualified employee plans. (a) Applicability of section. This section provides rules for the tax treatment of premiums paid under qualified...

  11. 26 CFR 1.1396-1 - Qualified zone employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Empowerment Zone Employment Credit § 1.1396-1 Qualified zone employees. (a) In... requirement and the abode requirement with respect to the same empowerment zone and is not otherwise excluded... the empowerment zone in a trade or business of the employer. (2) Abode requirement. The abode...

  12. 26 CFR 1.1396-1 - Qualified zone employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Empowerment Zone Employment Credit § 1.1396-1 Qualified zone employees...-services requirement and the abode requirement with respect to the same empowerment zone and is not... performed in the empowerment zone in a trade or business of the employer. (2) Abode requirement. The abode...

  13. Employee Health Plan Details | Alaska Division of Retirement and Benefits

    Science.gov Websites

    Health Information Life Disability DCAP Forms/Publications Features Empower Retirement Account Info Home Retirement Benefits Employer Services AlaskaCare Easy Navigation Employee Health Gym Discount Health Plan FAQs Overview What Plan am I in? Information Enrollment Information FAQs Premiums Qualified

  14. Low-Income Low-Qualified Employees' Access to Workplace Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McPherson, Rebecca; Wang, Jia

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper was to investigate the embedded process that enables or constrains low-income low-qualified employees' access to workplace learning in small organizations. Design/methodology/approach: Informed by the sociomaterial approach and cultural historical activity theory, this study adopted a qualitative cross-case study…

  15. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-7 - Determination of the employees of an employer's qualified separate lines of business.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... qualified separate lines of business. 1.414(r)-7 Section 1.414(r)-7 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE...-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-7 Determination of the employees of an employer's qualified... residual shared employee as defined in § 1.414(r)-11(b)(2) and (4)) is assigned to a single qualified...

  16. 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…

  17. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-7 - Determination of the employees of an employer's qualified separate lines of business.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... qualified separate lines of business. 1.414(r)-7 Section 1.414(r)-7 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-7 Determination of the employees of an employer's... residual shared employee as defined in § 1.414(r)-11(b)(2) and (4)) is assigned to a single qualified...

  18. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-7 - Determination of the employees of an employer's qualified separate lines of business.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... qualified separate lines of business. 1.414(r)-7 Section 1.414(r)-7 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-7 Determination of the employees of an employer's... residual shared employee as defined in § 1.414(r)-11(b)(2) and (4)) is assigned to a single qualified...

  19. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-7 - Determination of the employees of an employer's qualified separate lines of business.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... qualified separate lines of business. 1.414(r)-7 Section 1.414(r)-7 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-7 Determination of the employees of an employer's... residual shared employee as defined in § 1.414(r)-11(b)(2) and (4)) is assigned to a single qualified...

  20. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-7 - Determination of the employees of an employer's qualified separate lines of business.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... qualified separate lines of business. 1.414(r)-7 Section 1.414(r)-7 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-7 Determination of the employees of an employer's... residual shared employee as defined in § 1.414(r)-11(b)(2) and (4)) is assigned to a single qualified...

  1. What Motivates Low-Qualified Employees to Participate in Training and Development? A Mixed-Method Study on their Learning Intentions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kyndt, Eva; Govaerts, Natalie; Claes, Trees; De La Marche, Jens; Dochy, Filip

    2013-01-01

    The current research starts from the observation that low-qualified employees hold a vulnerable position on the labour market. It has been argued that learning and development can decrease this vulnerability; unfortunately research has shown that low-qualified employees participate considerably less in learning activities in comparison with…

  2. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-4 - Qualified separate line of business-fifty-employee and notice requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ...-employee and notice requirements. 1.414(r)-4 Section 1.414(r)-4 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE...-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-4 Qualified separate line of business—fifty-employee and... line of business (as determined under § 1.414(r)-3) satisfies the 50-employee and notice requirements...

  3. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-4 - Qualified separate line of business-fifty-employee and notice requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ...-employee and notice requirements. 1.414(r)-4 Section 1.414(r)-4 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE...-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-4 Qualified separate line of business—fifty-employee and... line of business (as determined under § 1.414(r)-3) satisfies the 50-employee and notice requirements...

  4. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-4 - Qualified separate line of business-fifty-employee and notice requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ...-employee and notice requirements. 1.414(r)-4 Section 1.414(r)-4 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE...-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-4 Qualified separate line of business—fifty-employee and... line of business (as determined under § 1.414(r)-3) satisfies the 50-employee and notice requirements...

  5. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-4 - Qualified separate line of business-fifty-employee and notice requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ...-employee and notice requirements. 1.414(r)-4 Section 1.414(r)-4 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE...-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-4 Qualified separate line of business—fifty-employee and... line of business (as determined under § 1.414(r)-3) satisfies the 50-employee and notice requirements...

  6. 26 CFR 1.414(r)-4 - Qualified separate line of business-fifty-employee and notice requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ...-employee and notice requirements. 1.414(r)-4 Section 1.414(r)-4 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.414(r)-4 Qualified separate line of business—fifty-employee and notice... business (as determined under § 1.414(r)-3) satisfies the 50-employee and notice requirements of § 1.414(r...

  7. 20 CFR 302.3 - Qualifying conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Qualifying conditions. 302.3 Section 302.3 Employees' Benefits RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD REGULATIONS UNDER THE RAILROAD UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE ACT QUALIFIED EMPLOYEE § 302.3 Qualifying conditions. (a) Basic requirements. To qualify for benefits with...

  8. 20 CFR 302.3 - Qualifying conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Qualifying conditions. 302.3 Section 302.3 Employees' Benefits RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD REGULATIONS UNDER THE RAILROAD UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE ACT QUALIFIED EMPLOYEE § 302.3 Qualifying conditions. (a) Basic requirements. To qualify for benefits with...

  9. 20 CFR 302.3 - Qualifying conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2014-04-01 2012-04-01 true Qualifying conditions. 302.3 Section 302.3 Employees' Benefits RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD REGULATIONS UNDER THE RAILROAD UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE ACT QUALIFIED EMPLOYEE § 302.3 Qualifying conditions. (a) Basic requirements. To qualify for benefits with...

  10. 20 CFR 302.3 - Qualifying conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2013-04-01 2012-04-01 true Qualifying conditions. 302.3 Section 302.3 Employees' Benefits RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD REGULATIONS UNDER THE RAILROAD UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE ACT QUALIFIED EMPLOYEE § 302.3 Qualifying conditions. (a) Basic requirements. To qualify for benefits with...

  11. 20 CFR 302.3 - Qualifying conditions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Qualifying conditions. 302.3 Section 302.3 Employees' Benefits RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD REGULATIONS UNDER THE RAILROAD UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE ACT QUALIFIED EMPLOYEE § 302.3 Qualifying conditions. (a) Basic requirements. To qualify for benefits with...

  12. 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.

  13. The Learning Intention of Low-Qualified Employees: A Key for Participation in Lifelong Learning and Continuous Training

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kyndt, Eva; Govaerts, Natalie; Dochy, Filip; Baert, Herman

    2011-01-01

    In our continuously changing society, a need for updating one's skills and knowledge puts pressure on safeguarding the labour market position of low-qualified employees. However, prior research and official statistics show that employees with a lower level of education tend to participate less in training than highly-educated individuals. This…

  14. 29 CFR 2520.104-46 - Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for employee...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... qualified public accountant for employee benefit plans with fewer than 100 participants. 2520.104-46 Section... Requirements § 2520.104-46 Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for... public accountant to conduct an examination of the financial statements of the plan; (2) Include within...

  15. 29 CFR 2520.104-46 - Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for employee...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... qualified public accountant for employee benefit plans with fewer than 100 participants. 2520.104-46 Section... Requirements § 2520.104-46 Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for... public accountant to conduct an examination of the financial statements of the plan; (2) Include within...

  16. 29 CFR 2520.104-46 - Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for employee...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... qualified public accountant for employee benefit plans with fewer than 100 participants. 2520.104-46 Section... Requirements § 2520.104-46 Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for... public accountant to conduct an examination of the financial statements of the plan; (2) Include within...

  17. 29 CFR 2520.104-46 - Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for employee...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... qualified public accountant for employee benefit plans with fewer than 100 participants. 2520.104-46 Section... Requirements § 2520.104-46 Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for... public accountant to conduct an examination of the financial statements of the plan; (2) Include within...

  18. 29 CFR 2520.104-46 - Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for employee...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... qualified public accountant for employee benefit plans with fewer than 100 participants. 2520.104-46 Section... Requirements § 2520.104-46 Waiver of examination and report of an independent qualified public accountant for... public accountant to conduct an examination of the financial statements of the plan; (2) Include within...

  19. 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

  20. 26 CFR 1.401-14 - Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in qualified pension or annuity plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in qualified pension or annuity plans. 1.401-14 Section 1.401-14 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.401-14 Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in...

  1. 26 CFR 1.401-14 - Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in qualified pension or annuity plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2012-04-01 2011-04-01 true Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in qualified pension or annuity plans. 1.401-14 Section 1.401-14 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.401-14 Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in...

  2. 26 CFR 1.401-14 - Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in qualified pension or annuity plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in qualified pension or annuity plans. 1.401-14 Section 1.401-14 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.401-14 Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in...

  3. 26 CFR 1.401-14 - Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in qualified pension or annuity plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in qualified pension or annuity plans. 1.401-14 Section 1.401-14 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE..., Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.401-14 Inclusion of medical benefits for retired employees in...

  4. 26 CFR 25.2701-4 - Accumulated qualified payments.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... compound interest from the due date of the payment at a rate not less than the appropriate discount rate is... retained interest conferring a distribution right that was previously valued as a qualified payment right (a “qualified payment interest”), the taxable estate or taxable gifts of the individual holding the...

  5. 20 CFR 1002.198 - What efforts must the employer make to help the employee become qualified for the reemployment...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false What efforts must the employer make to help... Reemployment Rights and Benefits Reemployment Position § 1002.198 What efforts must the employer make to help... reemployment position. The employer must make reasonable efforts to help the employee become qualified to...

  6. 5 CFR 847.911 - Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... annuity supplement under 5 CFR 842 subpart E? 847.911 Section 847.911 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF....911 Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement under...

  7. 5 CFR 847.911 - Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... annuity supplement under 5 CFR 842 subpart E? 847.911 Section 847.911 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF....911 Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement under...

  8. 5 CFR 847.911 - Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... annuity supplement under 5 CFR 842 subpart E? 847.911 Section 847.911 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF....911 Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement under...

  9. 5 CFR 847.911 - Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... annuity supplement under 5 CFR 842 subpart E? 847.911 Section 847.911 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF....911 Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement under...

  10. 5 CFR 847.911 - Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... annuity supplement under 5 CFR 842 subpart E? 847.911 Section 847.911 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF....911 Is an employee who elects to credit NAFI service to qualify for an immediate FERS retirement under...

  11. 20 CFR 416.413 - Amount of benefits; qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Amount of benefits; qualified individual. 416.413 Section 416.413 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME FOR THE AGED, BLIND, AND DISABLED Amount of Benefits § 416.413 Amount of benefits; qualified...

  12. 20 CFR 416.413 - Amount of benefits; qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Amount of benefits; qualified individual. 416.413 Section 416.413 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME FOR THE AGED, BLIND, AND DISABLED Amount of Benefits § 416.413 Amount of benefits; qualified...

  13. 20 CFR 416.413 - Amount of benefits; qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Amount of benefits; qualified individual. 416.413 Section 416.413 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME FOR THE AGED, BLIND, AND DISABLED Amount of Benefits § 416.413 Amount of benefits; qualified...

  14. 20 CFR 416.413 - Amount of benefits; qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Amount of benefits; qualified individual. 416.413 Section 416.413 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME FOR THE AGED, BLIND, AND DISABLED Amount of Benefits § 416.413 Amount of benefits; qualified...

  15. 20 CFR 404.1018b - Medicare qualified government employment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Medicare qualified government employment. 404... Excluded from Employment § 404.1018b Medicare qualified government employment. (a) General. The work of a Federal, State, or local government employee not otherwise subject to Social Security coverage may...

  16. 26 CFR 54.4980B-3 - Qualified beneficiaries.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... qualified beneficiary is— (i) Any individual who, on the day before a qualifying event, is covered under a... qualifying event that is the bankruptcy of the employer, a covered employee who had retired on or before the... bankruptcy qualifying event, the spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent child is a beneficiary under the plan...

  17. 26 CFR 54.4980B-3 - Qualified beneficiaries.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... qualified beneficiary is— (i) Any individual who, on the day before a qualifying event, is covered under a... qualifying event that is the bankruptcy of the employer, a covered employee who had retired on or before the... bankruptcy qualifying event, the spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent child is a beneficiary under the plan...

  18. 5 CFR 537.104 - Employee eligibility.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 5 Administrative Personnel 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Employee eligibility. 537.104 Section 537... STUDENT LOANS § 537.104 Employee eligibility. (a) Subject to the conditions in 5 U.S.C. 5379 and this part... qualified job candidate or retain a highly qualified employee who, during the service period established...

  19. 29 CFR 2550.407a-2 - Limitation with respect to the acquisition of qualifying employer securities and qualifying...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITY UNDER THE EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY ACT OF 1974 RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITY § 2550.407a-2 Limitation with respect to the acquisition of qualifying employer... employer securities and qualifying employer real property. 2550.407a-2 Section 2550.407a-2 Labor...

  20. 26 CFR 1.221-1 - Deduction for interest paid on qualified education loans after December 31, 2001.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... § 1.163-7, original issue discount on a qualified education loan is not deductible until paid. See... education loans after December 31, 2001. 1.221-1 Section 1.221-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Deductions for Individuals § 1.221-1 Deduction for interest paid on qualified education loans after December...

  1. 26 CFR 1.221-1 - Deduction for interest paid on qualified education loans after December 31, 2001.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... § 1.163-7, original issue discount on a qualified education loan is not deductible until paid. See... education loans after December 31, 2001. 1.221-1 Section 1.221-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Deductions for Individuals § 1.221-1 Deduction for interest paid on qualified education loans after December...

  2. 26 CFR 1.221-1 - Deduction for interest paid on qualified education loans after December 31, 2001.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... § 1.163-7, original issue discount on a qualified education loan is not deductible until paid. See... education loans after December 31, 2001. 1.221-1 Section 1.221-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Deductions for Individuals § 1.221-1 Deduction for interest paid on qualified education loans after December...

  3. 20 CFR 404.1910 - Person qualifies under more than one totalization agreement.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... combining periods of coverage under more than two social security systems. (b) If a person qualifies under... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Person qualifies under more than one totalization agreement. 404.1910 Section 404.1910 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION FEDERAL...

  4. 26 CFR 1.405-1 - Qualified bond purchase plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ...) and Treasury Department Circular, Public Debt Series—No. 1-63. (b) Qualified bond purchase plans. (1...) Under a qualified bond purchase plan, the bonds may be distributed to the employees at any time, and the.... Accordingly, even though a qualified bond purchase plan is designed as a pension plan, it need not provide...

  5. 26 CFR 1.405-1 - Qualified bond purchase plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ..., see section 405(b) and Treasury Department Circular, Public Debt Series—No. 1-63. (b) Qualified bond...) Under a qualified bond purchase plan, the bonds may be distributed to the employees at any time, and the.... Accordingly, even though a qualified bond purchase plan is designed as a pension plan, it need not provide...

  6. 26 CFR 54.4980B-3 - Qualified beneficiaries.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... employee, or a dependent child of the covered employee; or (ii) Any child who is born to or placed for... any spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent child of such a covered employee if, on the day before the bankruptcy qualifying event, the spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent child is a beneficiary under the plan...

  7. 26 CFR 54.4980B-3 - Qualified beneficiaries.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... employee, or a dependent child of the covered employee; or (ii) Any child who is born to or placed for... any spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent child of such a covered employee if, on the day before the bankruptcy qualifying event, the spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent child is a beneficiary under the plan...

  8. Notes on Discounting

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rachlin, Howard

    2006-01-01

    In general, if a variable can be expressed as a function of its own maximum value, that function may be called a discount function. Delay discounting and probability discounting are commonly studied in psychology, but memory, matching, and economic utility also may be viewed as discounting processes. When they are so viewed, the discount function…

  9. 26 CFR 1.221-2 - Deduction for interest due and paid on qualified education loans before January 1, 2002.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... under section 163(e) and § 1.163-7, original issue discount on a qualified education loan is not... education loans before January 1, 2002. 1.221-2 Section 1.221-2 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Deductions for Individuals § 1.221-2 Deduction for interest due and paid on qualified education loans before...

  10. 26 CFR 1.221-2 - Deduction for interest due and paid on qualified education loans before January 1, 2002.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... under section 163(e) and § 1.163-7, original issue discount on a qualified education loan is not... education loans before January 1, 2002. 1.221-2 Section 1.221-2 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Deductions for Individuals § 1.221-2 Deduction for interest due and paid on qualified education loans before...

  11. 26 CFR 1.221-2 - Deduction for interest due and paid on qualified education loans before January 1, 2002.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... under section 163(e) and § 1.163-7, original issue discount on a qualified education loan is not... education loans before January 1, 2002. 1.221-2 Section 1.221-2 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Deductions for Individuals § 1.221-2 Deduction for interest due and paid on qualified education loans before...

  12. 75 FR 70845 - Absence and Leave; Qualifying Exigency Leave

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-11-19

    ... L, to cover qualifying exigencies when the spouse, son, daughter, or parent of the employee is on... employee who (1) is the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin (defined as the nearest blood... of the fact that the spouse or a son, daughter, or parent of the employee is on covered active duty...

  13. 26 CFR 1.221-2 - Deduction for interest due and paid on qualified education loans before January 1, 2002.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... under section 163(e) and § 1.163-7, original issue discount on a qualified education loan is not... education loans before January 1, 2002. 1.221-2 Section 1.221-2 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Individuals § 1.221-2 Deduction for interest due and paid on qualified education loans before January 1, 2002...

  14. 20 CFR 404.1018b - Medicare qualified government employment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Employment, Wages, Self-Employment, and Self-Employment Income Work Excluded from Employment § 404.1018b Medicare qualified government employment. (a) General. The work of a... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Medicare qualified government employment. 404...

  15. 20 CFR 404.1018b - Medicare qualified government employment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Employment, Wages, Self-Employment, and Self-Employment Income Work Excluded from Employment § 404.1018b Medicare qualified government employment. (a) General. The work of a... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Medicare qualified government employment. 404...

  16. 20 CFR 404.1018b - Medicare qualified government employment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Employment, Wages, Self-Employment, and Self-Employment Income Work Excluded from Employment § 404.1018b Medicare qualified government employment. (a) General. The work of a... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Medicare qualified government employment. 404...

  17. 5 CFR 537.104 - Employee eligibility.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... qualified job candidate or retain a highly qualified employee who, during the service period established... period established under a service agreement; or (ii) The time-limited appointment authority leads to...

  18. Discounting in Economic Evaluations.

    PubMed

    Attema, Arthur E; Brouwer, Werner B F; Claxton, Karl

    2018-05-19

    Appropriate discounting rules in economic evaluations have received considerable attention in the literature and in national guidelines for economic evaluations. Rightfully so, as discounting can be quite influential on the outcomes of economic evaluations. The most prominent controversies regarding discounting involve the basis for and height of the discount rate, whether costs and effects should be discounted at the same rate, and whether discount rates should decline or stay constant over time. Moreover, the choice for discount rules depends on the decision context one adopts as the most relevant. In this article, we review these issues and debates, and describe and discuss the current discounting recommendations of the countries publishing their national guidelines. We finish the article by proposing a research agenda.

  19. 47 CFR 54.505 - Discounts.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... SERVICE Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries § 54.505 Discounts. (a) Discount mechanism. Discounts for eligible schools and libraries shall be set as a percentage discount from the pre-discount price. (b) Discount percentages. The discounts available to eligible schools and libraries shall range...

  20. 47 CFR 54.505 - Discounts.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... SERVICE Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries § 54.505 Discounts. (a) Discount mechanism. Discounts for eligible schools and libraries shall be set as a percentage discount from the pre-discount price. (b) Discount percentages. The discounts available to eligible schools and libraries shall range...

  1. 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.

  2. 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

  3. A 5-trial adjusting delay discounting task: Accurate discount rates in less than 60 seconds

    PubMed Central

    Koffarnus, Mikhail N.; Bickel, Warren K.

    2014-01-01

    Individuals who discount delayed rewards at a high rate are more likely to engage in substance abuse, overeating, or problem gambling. Findings such as these suggest the value of methods to obtain an accurate and fast measurement of discount rate that can be easily deployed in variety of settings. In the present study, we developed and evaluated the 5-trial adjusting delay task, a novel method of obtaining discount rate in less than one minute. We hypothesized that discount rates from the 5-trial adjusting delay task would be similar and correlated with discount rates from a lengthier task we have used previously, and that four known effects relating to delay discounting would be replicable with this novel task. To test these hypotheses, the 5-trial adjusting delay task was administered to 111 college students six times to obtain discount rates for six different commodities, along with a lengthier adjusting amount discounting task. We found that discount rates were similar and correlated between the 5-trial adjusting delay task and the adjusting amount task. Each of the four known effects relating to delay discounting was replicated with the 5-trial adjusting delay task to varying degrees. First, discount rates were inversely correlated with amount. Second, discount rates between past and future outcomes were correlated. Third, discount rates were greater for consumable rewards than with money, although we did not control for amount in this comparison. Fourth, discount rates were lower when zero amounts opposing the chosen time point were explicitly described. Results indicate that the 5-trial adjusting delay task is a viable, rapid method to assess discount rate. PMID:24708144

  4. A 5-trial adjusting delay discounting task: accurate discount rates in less than one minute.

    PubMed

    Koffarnus, Mikhail N; Bickel, Warren K

    2014-06-01

    Individuals who discount delayed rewards at a high rate are more likely to engage in substance abuse, overeating, or problem gambling. Such findings suggest the value of methods to obtain an accurate and fast measurement of discount rate that can be easily deployed in variety of settings. In the present study, we developed and evaluated the 5-trial adjusting delay task, a novel method of obtaining a discount rate in less than 1 min. We hypothesized that discount rates from the 5-trial adjusting delay task would be similar and would correlate with discount rates from a lengthier task we have used previously, and that 4 known effects relating to delay discounting would be replicable with this novel task. To test these hypotheses, the 5-trial adjusting delay task was administered to 111 college students 6 times to obtain discount rates for 6 different commodities, along with a lengthier adjusting amount discounting task. We found that discount rates were similar and correlated between the 5-trial adjusting delay task and the adjusting amount task. Each of the 4 known effects relating to delay discounting was replicated with the 5-trial adjusting delay task to varying degrees. First, discount rates were inversely correlated with amount. Second, discount rates between past and future outcomes were correlated. Third, discount rates were greater for consumable rewards than with money, although we did not control for amount in this comparison. Fourth, discount rates were lower when $0 amounts opposing the chosen time point were explicitly described. Results indicate that the 5-trial adjusting delay task is a viable, rapid method to assess discount rate. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

  5. 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

    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.

  6. 20 CFR 404.1053 - “Qualified benefits” under a cafeteria plan.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false âQualified benefitsâ under a cafeteria plan. 404.1053 Section 404.1053 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION FEDERAL OLD-AGE, SURVIVORS AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Employment, Wages, Self-Employment, and Self-Employment Income...

  7. 20 CFR 404.1053 - “Qualified benefits” under a cafeteria plan.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false âQualified benefitsâ under a cafeteria plan. 404.1053 Section 404.1053 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION FEDERAL OLD-AGE, SURVIVORS AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Employment, Wages, Self-Employment, and Self-Employment Income...

  8. 20 CFR 404.1053 - “Qualified benefits” under a cafeteria plan.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false âQualified benefitsâ under a cafeteria plan. 404.1053 Section 404.1053 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION FEDERAL OLD-AGE, SURVIVORS AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Employment, Wages, Self-Employment, and Self-Employment Income...

  9. 20 CFR 404.1053 - “Qualified benefits” under a cafeteria plan.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false âQualified benefitsâ under a cafeteria plan. 404.1053 Section 404.1053 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION FEDERAL OLD-AGE, SURVIVORS AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Employment, Wages, Self-Employment, and Self-Employment Income...

  10. 20 CFR 404.1053 - “Qualified benefits” under a cafeteria plan.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false âQualified benefitsâ under a cafeteria plan. 404.1053 Section 404.1053 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION FEDERAL OLD-AGE, SURVIVORS AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Employment, Wages, Self-Employment, and Self-Employment Income...

  11. 21 CFR 516.141 - Qualified expert panels.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... its consideration. Such information should be submitted directly to the Director, OMUMS, when notified... an officer, director, trustee, general partner or employee: (i) Is currently receiving or seeking... potential qualified expert panel member must submit to the Director, OMUMS, the following information...

  12. 26 CFR 11.401(a)-11 - Qualified joint and survivor annuities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... Corporation stock, (3) five equal annual cash payments, (4) a life annuity, or (5) a combination of options (1...— (1) Qualified joint and survivor annuity. The term “qualified joint and survivor annuity” means an... determination does not result in discrimination in favor of employees who are officers, shareholders, or highly...

  13. 26 CFR 11.401(a)-11 - Qualified joint and survivor annuities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... Corporation stock, (3) five equal annual cash payments, (4) a life annuity, or (5) a combination of options (1...— (1) Qualified joint and survivor annuity. The term “qualified joint and survivor annuity” means an... determination does not result in discrimination in favor of employees who are officers, shareholders, or highly...

  14. Weight Loss Associated With Employee Income in an Incentivized Employee Wellness Program.

    PubMed

    Fink, Jennifer T; Rich, Jennifer; Smith, David R; Singh, Maharaj; Sutton, Kelly; Mueller, George; Ihrke, Doug M; Skalla, Jessica L; Cisler, Ron A

    2016-12-01

    We examined the relationship between the type of incentivized wellness program and employee weight loss and the effects of participant income. We retrospectively examined employees who participated in one of six weight loss wellness programs, which were categorized for the present analysis: reweigh/body mass index, Coaching, and Weight Watchers/Meal Replacement. Those who participated were eligible for a $350/year insurance premium discount. Employees in the low-income category of $45K or less participated at a higher rate, however, did not lose as much weight as those participants in the higher income categories of $70K or more. We found a positive association with weight loss in two of the categories, reweigh/body mass index, and Weight Watchers/Meal Replacement programs. Wellness programs have a significant impact on employee weight loss, but this relationship may vary across the income level of participants.

  15. 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…

  16. 20 CFR 408.202 - How do you qualify for SVB?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false How do you qualify for SVB? 408.202 Section 408.202 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II... date on which Pub. L. 106-169 was enacted into law). (b) World War II veteran. You are a World War II...

  17. 20 CFR 408.202 - How do you qualify for SVB?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false How do you qualify for SVB? 408.202 Section 408.202 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II... date on which Pub. L. 106-169 was enacted into law). (b) World War II veteran. You are a World War II...

  18. 20 CFR 408.202 - How do you qualify for SVB?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false How do you qualify for SVB? 408.202 Section 408.202 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II... date on which Pub. L. 106-169 was enacted into law). (b) World War II veteran. You are a World War II...

  19. 20 CFR 408.202 - How do you qualify for SVB?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false How do you qualify for SVB? 408.202 Section 408.202 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II... date on which Pub. L. 106-169 was enacted into law). (b) World War II veteran. You are a World War II...

  20. 20 CFR 408.202 - How do you qualify for SVB?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false How do you qualify for SVB? 408.202 Section 408.202 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II... date on which Pub. L. 106-169 was enacted into law). (b) World War II veteran. You are a World War II...

  1. 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…

  2. 78 FR 77366 - Federal Employee Dental and Vision Insurance Program; Qualifying Life Event Amendments

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-12-23

    ... Insurance Program; Qualifying Life Event Amendments AGENCY: U.S. Office of Personnel Management. ACTION... enrollment opportunities so FEDVIP enrollees can make enrollment changes under the same qualifying life... amended by removing the definition of QLE and adding in its place a definition of QLE qualifying life...

  3. 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.

  4. Discounting of food, sex, and money.

    PubMed

    Holt, Daniel D; Newquist, Matthew H; Smits, Rochelle R; Tiry, Andrew M

    2014-06-01

    Discounting is a useful framework for understanding choice involving a range of delayed and probabilistic outcomes (e.g., money, food, drugs), but relatively few studies have examined how people discount other commodities (e.g., entertainment, sex). Using a novel discounting task, where the length of a line represented the value of an outcome and was adjusted using a staircase procedure, we replicated previous findings showing that individuals discount delayed and probabilistic outcomes in a manner well described by a hyperbola-like function. In addition, we found strong positive correlations between discounting rates of delayed, but not probabilistic, outcomes. This suggests that discounting of delayed outcomes may be relatively predictable across outcome types but that discounting of probabilistic outcomes may depend more on specific contexts. The generality of delay discounting and potential context dependence of probability discounting may provide important information regarding factors contributing to choice behavior.

  5. 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.

  6. 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...

  7. 26 CFR 1.127-1 - Amounts received under a qualified educational assistance program.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... employee under a qualified educational assistance program described in § 1.127-2, or (2) The value of... assistance program. 1.127-1 Section 1.127-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE... Income § 1.127-1 Amounts received under a qualified educational assistance program. (a) Exclusion from...

  8. 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...

  9. 29 CFR 825.309 - Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying exigency.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Employee and Employer Rights and Obligations Under the Act § 825.309 Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying exigency. (a) Active... 29 Labor 3 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying...

  10. 29 CFR 825.309 - Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying exigency.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Employee and Employer Rights and Obligations Under the Act § 825.309 Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying exigency. (a) Active... 29 Labor 3 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying...

  11. 29 CFR 825.309 - Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying exigency.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Employee and Employer Rights and Obligations Under the Act § 825.309 Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying exigency. (a) Active... 29 Labor 3 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Certification for leave taken because of a qualifying...

  12. 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)…

  13. 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.

  14. 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

  15. 5 CFR 847.211 - Death of employee during election opportunity period.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 5 Administrative Personnel 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Death of employee during election... Qualifying Move § 847.211 Death of employee during election opportunity period. (a) When an employee eligible... employee is deemed to have made the election and to be covered, at time of death, by the retirement system...

  16. 5 CFR 847.211 - Death of employee during election opportunity period.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 5 Administrative Personnel 2 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Death of employee during election... Qualifying Move § 847.211 Death of employee during election opportunity period. (a) When an employee eligible... employee is deemed to have made the election and to be covered, at time of death, by the retirement system...

  17. 5 CFR 847.211 - Death of employee during election opportunity period.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 5 Administrative Personnel 2 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Death of employee during election... Qualifying Move § 847.211 Death of employee during election opportunity period. (a) When an employee eligible... employee is deemed to have made the election and to be covered, at time of death, by the retirement system...

  18. 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.

  19. 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...

  20. Employee Health and Optional Benefits | Alaska Division of Retirement and

    Science.gov Websites

    Categories Health Information Life Disability DCAP Forms/Publications Features Empower Retirement Account RIN DRB Home Retirement Benefits Employer Services AlaskaCare Easy Navigation Employee Health Gym Discount Health Plan FAQs Overview What Plan am I in? Information Enrollment Information FAQs Premiums

  1. 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.

  2. 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…

  3. 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

  4. Delay Discounting: Pigeon, Rat, Human – Does it Matter?

    PubMed Central

    Vanderveldt, Ariana; Oliveira, Luís; Green, Leonard

    2016-01-01

    Delay discounting refers to the decrease in subjective value of an outcome as the time to its receipt increases. Across species and situations, animals discount delayed rewards, and their discounting is well-described by a hyperboloid function. The current review begins with a comparison of discounting models and the procedures used to assess delay discounting in nonhuman animals. We next discuss the generality of discounting, reviewing the effects of different variables on the degree of discounting delayed reinforcers by nonhuman animals. Despite the many similarities in discounting observed between human and nonhuman animals, several differences have been proposed (e.g., the magnitude effect; nonhuman animals discount over a matter of seconds whereas humans report willing to wait months, if not years before receiving a reward), raising the possibility of fundamental species differences in intertemporal choice. After evaluating these differences, we discuss delay discounting from an adaptationist perspective. The pervasiveness of discounting across species and situations suggests it is a fundamental process underlying decision making. PMID:26881899

  5. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; establishment of exchanges and qualified health plans; Small Business Health Options Program. Final rule.

    PubMed

    2013-06-04

    This final rule implements provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (collectively referred to as the Affordable Care Act) related to the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP). Specifically, this final rule amends existing regulations regarding triggering events and special enrollment periods for qualified employees and their dependents and implements a transitional policy regarding employees' choice of qualified health plans (QHPs) in the SHOP.

  6. 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…

  7. 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

  8. 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.

  9. 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

  10. 76 FR 45204 - Noncompetitive Appointment of Certain Former Overseas Employees

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-07-28

    ... Management (OPM) is issuing proposed regulations to clarify that an employee's same-sex domestic partner...-sex domestic partners with the same employment opportunities that opposite-sex spouses of Federal... that an employee's same-sex domestic partner qualifies, and should be treated as, a family member for...

  11. 20 CFR 216.65 - Who is an employee's widow(er).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... months before the employee died but, at the time of marriage, the employee was reasonably expected to... the month before the month of marriage to either: (1) A benefit under section 202 of the Social... to qualify therefor in the month before the month of marriage. ...

  12. 29 CFR 825.219 - Rights of a key employee.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Employee Leave Entitlements Under the Family and Medical Leave Act § 825... FMLA leave (or when FMLA leave commences, if earlier) that he or she qualifies as a key employee. At...

  13. 29 CFR 825.219 - Rights of a key employee.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Employee Leave Entitlements Under the Family and Medical Leave Act § 825... FMLA leave (or when FMLA leave commences, if earlier) that he or she qualifies as a key employee. At...

  14. 29 CFR 825.219 - Rights of a key employee.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Employee Leave Entitlements Under the Family and Medical Leave Act § 825... FMLA leave (or when FMLA leave commences, if earlier) that he or she qualifies as a key employee. At...

  15. 29 CFR 825.219 - Rights of a key employee.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Employee Leave Entitlements Under the Family and Medical Leave Act § 825... FMLA leave (or when FMLA leave commences, if earlier) that he or she qualifies as a key employee. At...

  16. 26 CFR 1.1397E-1 - Qualified zone academy bonds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Empowerment Zone Employment Credit § 1.1397E-1 Qualified zone... section 1397E(d)(2)(B)(i), (ii), (iii), (iv) or (v). Services of employees of the eligible local education... empowerment zone or enterprise community (as defined in section 1393), or there is a reasonable expectation...

  17. 26 CFR 1.1397E-1 - Qualified zone academy bonds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Empowerment Zone Employment Credit § 1.1397E-1 Qualified zone... section 1397E(d)(2)(B)(i), (ii), (iii), (iv) or (v). Services of employees of the eligible local education... empowerment zone or enterprise community (as defined in section 1393), or there is a reasonable expectation...

  18. 26 CFR 1.1397E-1 - Qualified zone academy bonds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Empowerment Zone Employment Credit § 1.1397E-1 Qualified zone... section 1397E(d)(2)(B)(i), (ii), (iii), (iv) or (v). Services of employees of the eligible local education... empowerment zone or enterprise community (as defined in section 1393), or there is a reasonable expectation...

  19. 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.

  20. 26 CFR 1.466-1 - Method of accounting for the redemption cost of qualified discount coupons.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... the next nine taxable years by $10. (3) Suspense account—(i) In general. In the case of a transitional... costs during the redemption period for the 1980 taxable year are $10. Since the qualifying redemption costs during the redemption period for the taxable year ($10) exceed the opening balance of the suspense...

  1. 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

  2. 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.

  3. 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)

  4. 26 CFR 1.466-1 - Method of accounting for the redemption cost of qualified discount coupons.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... for 1980 and each of the next nine taxable years by $10. (3) Suspense account—(i) In general. In the... taxable year are $10. Since the qualifying redemption costs during the redemption period for the taxable year ($10) exceed the opening balance of the suspense account at the beginning of the taxable year ($7...

  5. 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...

  6. 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.

  7. 20 CFR 408.212 - What happens if you are a qualified individual already residing outside the United States?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false What happens if you are a qualified individual already residing outside the United States? 408.212 Section 408.212 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II VETERANS SVB Qualification and...

  8. 20 CFR 408.212 - What happens if you are a qualified individual already residing outside the United States?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false What happens if you are a qualified individual already residing outside the United States? 408.212 Section 408.212 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II VETERANS SVB Qualification and...

  9. 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.

  10. 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.

  11. 29 CFR 825.112 - Qualifying reasons for leave, general rule.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Coverage Under the Family and Medical Leave Act... employees. A father, as well as a mother, can take family leave for the birth, placement for adoption, or... 29 Labor 3 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Qualifying reasons for leave, general rule. 825.112 Section...

  12. 29 CFR 825.112 - Qualifying reasons for leave, general rule.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... OTHER LAWS THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993 Coverage Under the Family and Medical Leave Act... employees. A father, as well as a mother, can take family leave for the birth, placement for adoption, or... 29 Labor 3 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Qualifying reasons for leave, general rule. 825.112 Section...

  13. Delay, probability, and social discounting in a public goods game.

    PubMed

    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 social, delay, and probability discount functions for a hypothetical $75 reward; participants also indicated how much of an initial $100 endowment they would contribute to a common investment in a public good. Steepness of discounting correlated, across participants, among all three discount dimensions. However, only social and probability discounting were correlated with the public-good contribution; high public-good contributors were more altruistic and also less risk averse than low contributors. Experiment 2 obtained social discount functions with hypothetical $75 rewards and delay discount functions with hypothetical $1,000 rewards, as well as public-good contributions. The results replicated those of Experiment 1; steepness of the two forms of discounting correlated with each other across participants but only social discounting correlated with the public-good contribution. Most participants in Experiment 2 predicted that the average contribution would be lower than their own contribution.

  14. 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.

  15. 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

  16. Personal Costs and Benefits of Employee Intrapreneurship: Disentangling the Employee Intrapreneurship, Well-Being, and Job Performance Relationship.

    PubMed

    Gawke, Jason C; Gorgievski, Marjan J; Bakker, Arnold B

    2017-12-28

    Ample studies have confirmed the benefits of intrapreneurship (i.e., employee behaviors that contribute to new venture creation and strategic renewal activities) for firm performance, but research on the personal costs and benefits of engaging in intrapreneurial activities for employees is lacking. Building on job demands-resources and reinforcement sensitivity theories, we examined how employees' reinforcement sensitivity qualified the relationship among their intrapreneurial behavior, subjective well-being, and other-rated job performance. Using a sample of 241 employee dyads, the results of moderated mediation analyses confirmed that employee intrapreneurship related positively to work engagement for employees high (vs. low) in sensitivity to rewards (behavioral approach system), which subsequently related positively to innovativeness and in-role performance and negatively to work avoidance. In contrast, employee intrapreneurship related positively to exhaustion for employees high (vs. low) in sensitivity to punishments (behavioral inhibition system), which subsequently related positively to work avoidance and negatively to in-role performance (but not to innovativeness). Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  17. 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.

  18. 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...

  19. 77 FR 43127 - Federal Employees Health Benefits Program: Medically Underserved Areas for 2013

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-07-23

    ... OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT Federal Employees Health Benefits Program: Medically Underserved Areas for 2013 AGENCY: U.S. Office of Personnel Management. ACTION: Notice of Medically Underserved... determination of the States that qualify as Medically Underserved Areas under the Federal Employees Health...

  20. 20 CFR 10.902 - Does every employee's death due to injuries incurred in connection with his or her service with...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Does every employee's death due to injuries incurred in connection with his or her service with an Armed Force in a contingency operation qualify for... connection with his or her service with an Armed Force in a contingency operation qualify for the death...

  1. 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.

  2. 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...

  3. 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.

  4. 76 FR 53719 - Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-08-29

    ...In this final rule, the Department of Labor (Department or DOL) issues final regulations to implement Executive Order 13495, Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts. The Executive Order establishes a general policy of the Federal Government concerning service contracts and solicitations for service contracts for performance of the same or similar services at the same location. This policy mandates the inclusion of a contract clause requiring the successor contractor and its subcontractors to offer those employees employed under the predecessor contract, whose employment will be otherwise terminated as a result of the award of the successor contract, a right of first refusal of employment under the successor contract in positions for which they are qualified.

  5. 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).

  6. 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.

  7. A novel multi-item joint replenishment problem considering multiple type discounts.

    PubMed

    Cui, Ligang; Zhang, Yajun; Deng, Jie; Xu, Maozeng

    2018-01-01

    In business replenishment, discount offers of multi-item may either provide different discount schedules with a single discount type, or provide schedules with multiple discount types. The paper investigates the joint effects of multiple discount schemes on the decisions of multi-item joint replenishment. In this paper, a joint replenishment problem (JRP) model, considering three discount (all-unit discount, incremental discount, total volume discount) offers simultaneously, is constructed to determine the basic cycle time and joint replenishment frequencies of multi-item. To solve the proposed problem, a heuristic algorithm is proposed to find the optimal solutions and the corresponding total cost of the JRP model. Numerical experiment is performed to test the algorithm and the computational results of JRPs under different discount combinations show different significance in the replenishment cost reduction.

  8. 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…

  9. 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

  10. 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.

  11. 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.

  12. 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.

  13. 26 CFR 1.401-1 - Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock bonus plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... employees or their beneficiaries to participate in the profits of the employer's trade or business, or in... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2012-04-01 2011-04-01 true Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock... TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Pension, Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus...

  14. 26 CFR 1.401-1 - Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock bonus plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... employees or their beneficiaries to participate in the profits of the employer's trade or business, or in... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock... TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Pension, Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus...

  15. 26 CFR 1.401-1 - Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock bonus plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... employees or their beneficiaries to participate in the profits of the employer's trade or business, or in... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock... TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Pension, Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus...

  16. 26 CFR 1.401-1 - Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock bonus plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... employees or their beneficiaries to participate in the profits of the employer's trade or business, or in... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock... TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Pension, Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus...

  17. 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.

  18. 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.

  19. 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…

  20. 20 CFR 408.204 - What conditions will prevent you from qualifying for SVB or being entitled to receive SVB payments?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false What conditions will prevent you from qualifying for SVB or being entitled to receive SVB payments? 408.204 Section 408.204 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II VETERANS SVB Qualification and...

  1. 20 CFR 408.204 - What conditions will prevent you from qualifying for SVB or being entitled to receive SVB payments?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false What conditions will prevent you from qualifying for SVB or being entitled to receive SVB payments? 408.204 Section 408.204 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II VETERANS SVB Qualification and...

  2. 20 CFR 10.904 - Does a death as a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? 10.904 Section 10.904 Employees' Benefits OFFICE OF... a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? Yes—throughout this subpart, the word “injury” is defined as it is in 5 U.S.C. 8101(5), which includes a disease proximately...

  3. 20 CFR 10.904 - Does a death as a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? 10.904 Section 10.904 Employees' Benefits OFFICE OF... a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? Yes—throughout this subpart, the word “injury” is defined as it is in 5 U.S.C. 8101(5), which includes a disease proximately...

  4. 20 CFR 10.904 - Does a death as a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? 10.904 Section 10.904 Employees' Benefits OFFICE OF... a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? Yes—throughout this subpart, the word “injury” is defined as it is in 5 U.S.C. 8101(5), which includes a disease proximately...

  5. 20 CFR 10.904 - Does a death as a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? 10.904 Section 10.904 Employees' Benefits OFFICE OF... a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? Yes—throughout this subpart, the word “injury” is defined as it is in 5 U.S.C. 8101(5), which includes a disease proximately...

  6. 20 CFR 10.904 - Does a death as a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? 10.904 Section 10.904 Employees' Benefits OFFICE OF... a result of occupational disease qualify for payment of the death gratuity? Yes—throughout this subpart, the word “injury” is defined as it is in 5 U.S.C. 8101(5), which includes a disease proximately...

  7. 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.

  8. 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

  9. 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.

  10. 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.

  11. 26 CFR 1.144-1 - Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds. 1.144-1 Section 1.144-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL...) Tax Exemption Requirements for State and Local Bonds § 1.144-1 Qualified small issue bonds, qualified...

  12. 26 CFR 1.144-1 - Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds. 1.144-1 Section 1.144-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL...) Tax Exemption Requirements for State and Local Bonds § 1.144-1 Qualified small issue bonds, qualified...

  13. 26 CFR 1.144-1 - Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds. 1.144-1 Section 1.144-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL...) Tax Exemption Requirements for State and Local Bonds § 1.144-1 Qualified small issue bonds, qualified...

  14. 26 CFR 1.144-1 - Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds. 1.144-1 Section 1.144-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL...) Tax Exemption Requirements for State and Local Bonds § 1.144-1 Qualified small issue bonds, qualified...

  15. 26 CFR 1.144-1 - Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Qualified small issue bonds, qualified student loan bonds, and qualified redevelopment bonds. 1.144-1 Section 1.144-1 Internal Revenue INTERNAL...) Tax Exemption Requirements for State and Local Bonds § 1.144-1 Qualified small issue bonds, qualified...

  16. 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

  17. 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.

  18. 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...

  19. 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.

  20. 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…

  1. 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.

  2. 29 CFR Appendix B to Part 9 - Notice to Service Contract Employees

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Notice to Service Contract Employees B Appendix B to Part 9 Labor Office of the Secretary of Labor NONDISPLACEMENT OF QUALIFIED WORKERS UNDER SERVICE CONTRACTS (effective date pending) Pt. 9, App. B Appendix B to Part 9—Notice to Service Contract Employees The contract...

  3. 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

  4. 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.

  5. 20 CFR 404.1617 - Reasonable efforts to obtain review by a qualified psychiatrist or psychologist.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... qualified psychiatrist or psychologist. 404.1617 Section 404.1617 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY... Responsibilities for Performing the Disability Determination Function § 404.1617 Reasonable efforts to obtain... perform these reviews, which are a basic State agency responsibility, and where appropriate, the State...

  6. 20 CFR 416.1017 - Reasonable efforts to obtain review by a qualified psychiatrist or psychologist.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... qualified psychiatrist or psychologist. 416.1017 Section 416.1017 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY... Responsibilities for Performing the Disability Determination Function § 416.1017 Reasonable efforts to obtain... perform these reviews, which are a basic State agency responsibility, and where appropriate, the State...

  7. 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.

  8. 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

  9. 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...

  10. 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…

  11. 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

  12. 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.

  13. 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.

  14. 33 CFR 154.1026 - Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... BULK Response Plans for Oil Facilities § 154.1026 Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual. (a) The response plan must identify a qualified individual and at least one alternate who meet... implementation of the facility response plan; and (4) Be trained in the responsibilities of the qualified...

  15. 33 CFR 154.1026 - Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... BULK Response Plans for Oil Facilities § 154.1026 Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual. (a) The response plan must identify a qualified individual and at least one alternate who meet... implementation of the facility response plan; and (4) Be trained in the responsibilities of the qualified...

  16. 33 CFR 154.1026 - Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... BULK Response Plans for Oil Facilities § 154.1026 Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual. (a) The response plan must identify a qualified individual and at least one alternate who meet... implementation of the facility response plan; and (4) Be trained in the responsibilities of the qualified...

  17. 33 CFR 154.1026 - Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... BULK Response Plans for Oil Facilities § 154.1026 Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual. (a) The response plan must identify a qualified individual and at least one alternate who meet... implementation of the facility response plan; and (4) Be trained in the responsibilities of the qualified...

  18. 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

  19. 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…

  20. 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

  1. 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.

  2. 48 CFR 752.231-71 - Salary supplements for HG employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... allowances for which the HG employee would qualify under HG rules or practice for the performance of his/hers..., honoraria and payment for work carried out outside of normal working hours are not considered to be salary...

  3. 12 CFR 563b.380 - May my employee stock ownership plan purchase conversion shares?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 12 Banks and Banking 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false May my employee stock ownership plan purchase... THE TREASURY CONVERSIONS FROM MUTUAL TO STOCK FORM Standard Conversions Offers and Sales of Stock § 563b.380 May my employee stock ownership plan purchase conversion shares? (a) Your tax-qualified...

  4. 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

  5. 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...

  6. 20 CFR 663.630 - How does a displaced homemaker qualify for services under title I?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... services under title I? 663.630 Section 663.630 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION..., including: (a) Core services provided by the One-Stop partners through the One-Stop delivery system; (b) Intensive or training services for which an individual qualifies as a dislocated worker/displaced homemaker...

  7. 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.

  8. 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

  9. 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.

  10. 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.

  11. 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.

  12. The Vivid Present: Visualization Abilities Are Associated with Steep Discounting of Future Rewards

    PubMed Central

    Parthasarathi, Trishala; McConnell, Mairead H.; Luery, Jeffrey; Kable, Joseph W.

    2017-01-01

    Humans and other animals discount the value of future rewards, a phenomenon known as delay discounting. Individuals vary widely in the extent to which they discount future rewards, and these tendencies have been associated with important life outcomes. Recent studies have demonstrated that imagining the future reduces subsequent discounting behavior, but no research to date has examined whether a similar principle applies at the trait level, and whether training visualization changes discounting. The current study examined if individual differences in visualization abilities are linked to individual differences in discounting and whether practicing visualization can change discounting behaviors in a lasting way. Participants (n = 48) completed the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (VVIQ) and delay discounting task and then underwent a 4-week intervention consisting of visualization training (intervention) or relaxation training (control). Contrary to our hypotheses, participants who reported greater visualization abilities (lower scores) on the VVIQ were higher discounters. To further examine this relationship, an additional 106 participants completed the VVIQ and delay discounting task. In the total sample (n = 154), there was a significant negative correlation between VVIQ scores and discount rates, showing that individuals who are better visualizers are also higher discounters. Consistent with this relationship but again to our surprise, visualization training tended, albeit weakly, to increase discount rates, and those whose VVIQ decreased the most were those whose discount rates increased the most. These results suggest a novel association between visualization abilities and delay discounting. PMID:28321198

  13. The Vivid Present: Visualization Abilities Are Associated with Steep Discounting of Future Rewards.

    PubMed

    Parthasarathi, Trishala; McConnell, Mairead H; Luery, Jeffrey; Kable, Joseph W

    2017-01-01

    Humans and other animals discount the value of future rewards, a phenomenon known as delay discounting. Individuals vary widely in the extent to which they discount future rewards, and these tendencies have been associated with important life outcomes. Recent studies have demonstrated that imagining the future reduces subsequent discounting behavior, but no research to date has examined whether a similar principle applies at the trait level, and whether training visualization changes discounting. The current study examined if individual differences in visualization abilities are linked to individual differences in discounting and whether practicing visualization can change discounting behaviors in a lasting way. Participants ( n = 48) completed the Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (VVIQ) and delay discounting task and then underwent a 4-week intervention consisting of visualization training (intervention) or relaxation training (control). Contrary to our hypotheses, participants who reported greater visualization abilities (lower scores) on the VVIQ were higher discounters. To further examine this relationship, an additional 106 participants completed the VVIQ and delay discounting task. In the total sample ( n = 154), there was a significant negative correlation between VVIQ scores and discount rates, showing that individuals who are better visualizers are also higher discounters. Consistent with this relationship but again to our surprise, visualization training tended, albeit weakly, to increase discount rates, and those whose VVIQ decreased the most were those whose discount rates increased the most. These results suggest a novel association between visualization abilities and delay discounting.

  14. 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…

  15. 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…

  16. 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.

  17. 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

  18. 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

  19. 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…

  20. 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).

  1. 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.

  2. 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

  3. 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

  4. 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…

  5. 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…

  6. The role of human-at-work systems in business sustainability: perspectives based on expert and qualified production workers in a manufacturing enterprise.

    PubMed

    Genaidy, Ash M; Rinder, Maria M; Sequeira, Reynold; A-Rehim, Amal

    2010-04-01

    A community of highly qualified employees is desirable for the workforce to become a competitive business advantage, improving and sustaining corporate health. Currently, the scientific literature is limited on information comparing the assessment of expert and qualified workers for the employee-work environment interface. Such information would be valuable for industrial managers to obtain and act on the different perspectives of its workers for business improvement and survivability. A primary objective of this study is to explore the perspectives of expert and qualified workers on the quality of the employee-work environment interface in a manufacturing enterprise. This investigation was performed in a production department in a small manufacturing enterprise. Two expert workers participated in the study, with each being in the company for 30 years and having performed all jobs in the production department as well as supervisory and line management responsibilities. A total of 13 qualified workers from day and night shifts were used in the study, with the great majority of workers possessing 10 or more years of on-the-job experience but not acquiring the same specialised knowledge required for operating the technological resources in the department. The work compatibility methodology was used to assess the quality of employee-work environment interface for both expert and qualified workers. Both expert and qualified workers provided similar trends in terms of their compatibility assessment of experienced and acting work domains. In general, the compatibility levels for the day shift were poorer than those obtained for the night shift for acting work domains. The similarities in assessment between the expert and qualified workers were much closer for factors impacting job performance at the task and immediate surrounding levels (i.e. physical and mental task content, physical environment). There were greater differences at the macro level, that is, at the process

  7. 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…

  8. 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…

  9. 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.

  10. Concordance between monetary and sexual delay discounting in men who have sex with men.

    PubMed

    Jones, Jeb; Guest, Jodie L; Sullivan, Patrick S; Kramer, Michael R; Jenness, Samuel M; Sales, Jessica M

    2017-12-07

    Background: Delay discounting has been found to be associated with numerous health-related outcomes, including risky sexual behaviour. To date, it is unclear whether delay discounting measured in different domains is associated within individuals. The goal of this study was to assess the concordance of monetary and sexual delay discounting in men who have sex with men. Methods: Participants completed an online survey, including the Monetary Choice Questionnaire and the Sexual Discounting Task. Linear regression models were used to assess the association between monetary and sexual discount rates. Results: Sexual discount rates did not predict monetary discount rates. There was a substantial amount of clustering of sexual discount rates, requiring sexual discounting data to be categorised. Conclusions: Monetary and sexual delay discounting are distinct processes that are not necessarily associated within individuals, and monetary delay discounting is not an appropriate proxy measure for sexual impulsivity. Data from the Sexual Discounting Task are typically rank-transformed for analysis. These data suggest that this might be an invalid method of analysis. Future studies should investigate the distribution of their data to determine if it is appropriate to analyse sexual discounting data as a continuous measure.

  11. 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

  12. 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.

  13. 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.

  14. Healthy, wealthy, and wise: retirement planning predicts employee health improvements.

    PubMed

    Gubler, Timothy; Pierce, Lamar

    2014-09-01

    Are poor physical and financial health driven by the same underlying psychological factors? We found that the decision to contribute to a 401(k) retirement plan predicted whether an individual acted to correct poor physical-health indicators revealed during an employer-sponsored health examination. Using this examination as a quasi-exogenous shock to employees' personal-health knowledge, we examined which employees were more likely to improve their health, controlling for differences in initial health, demographics, job type, and income. We found that existing retirement-contribution patterns and future health improvements were highly correlated. Employees who saved for the future by contributing to a 401(k) showed improvements in their abnormal blood-test results and health behaviors approximately 27% more often than noncontributors did. These findings are consistent with an underlying individual time-discounting trait that is both difficult to change and domain interdependent, and that predicts long-term individual behaviors in multiple dimensions. © The Author(s) 2014.

  15. 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.

  16. 33 CFR 155.1026 - Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... REGULATIONS FOR VESSELS Tank Vessel Response Plans for Oil § 155.1026 Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual. (a) The response plan must identify a qualified individual and at least one alternate... familiar with the implementation of the vessel response plan; and (4) Be trained in the responsibilities of...

  17. 33 CFR 155.1026 - Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... REGULATIONS FOR VESSELS Tank Vessel Response Plans for Oil § 155.1026 Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual. (a) The response plan must identify a qualified individual and at least one alternate... familiar with the implementation of the vessel response plan; and (4) Be trained in the responsibilities of...

  18. 33 CFR 155.1026 - Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... REGULATIONS FOR VESSELS Tank Vessel Response Plans for Oil § 155.1026 Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual. (a) The response plan must identify a qualified individual and at least one alternate... familiar with the implementation of the vessel response plan; and (4) Be trained in the responsibilities of...

  19. 33 CFR 155.1026 - Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... REGULATIONS FOR VESSELS Tank Vessel Response Plans for Oil § 155.1026 Qualified individual and alternate qualified individual. (a) The response plan must identify a qualified individual and at least one alternate... familiar with the implementation of the vessel response plan; and (4) Be trained in the responsibilities of...

  20. 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.

  1. 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

  2. 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.

  3. 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…

  4. 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...

  5. 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.

  6. 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

  7. 77 FR 42901 - Noncompetitive Appointment of Certain Former Overseas Employees

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-07-20

    ..., 591, et al. Same-Sex Domestic Partners: Noncompetitive Appointment of Certain Former Overseas... final regulations to establish that an employee's same-sex domestic partner qualifies as a family member... effect of this regulation is to ensure same-sex domestic partners are treated as family members. DATES...

  8. Time discounting and criminal behavior

    PubMed Central

    Åkerlund, David; Golsteyn, Bart H. H.; Grönqvist, Hans; Lindahl, Lena

    2016-01-01

    One of the most basic predictions of almost any model of crime is that individual time preferences matter. However, empirical evidence on this fundamental property is essentially nonexistent. To our knowledge, this paper provides the first pieces of evidence on the link between time discounting and crime. We use a unique dataset that combines a survey-based measure of time discount rates (at age 13) with detailed longitudinal register data on criminal behavior spanning over 18 y. Our results show that individuals with short time horizons have a significantly higher risk of criminal involvement later in life. The magnitude of the relationship is substantial and corresponds to roughly one-third of the association between intelligence and crime. PMID:27185950

  9. Employee vs independent contractor.

    PubMed

    Kolender, Ellen

    2012-01-01

    Finding qualified personnel for the cancer registry department has become increasingly difficult, as experienced abstractors retire and cancer diagnoses increase. Faced with hiring challenges, managers turn to teleworkers to fill positions and accomplish work in a timely manner. Suddenly, the hospital hires new legal staff and all telework agreements are disrupted. The question arises: Are teleworkers employees or independent contractors? Creating telework positions requires approval from the legal department and human resources. Caught off-guard in the last quarter of the year, I found myself again faced with hiring challenges.

  10. 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.

  11. 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

  12. 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…

  13. 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…

  14. 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…

  15. 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.

  16. 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

  17. 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,…

  18. 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…

  19. 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.

  20. 78 FR 15553 - Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Establishment of Exchanges and Qualified Health Plans...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-03-11

    ... at a single level of coverage but would have the option of doing so. For plan years beginning on or... exercise this option, but would instead assist employers in choosing a single QHP to offer their qualified... a SHOP (Sec. 155.705) Facilitating employee choice at a single level of coverage selected by the...

  1. 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…

  2. 20 CFR 411.565 - What happens if two or more ENs qualify for payment on the same ticket but have elected different...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION THE TICKET TO WORK AND SELF-SUFFICIENCY PROGRAM Employment Network Payment Systems § 411.565 What happens if two or more ENs qualify for payment on the same...

  3. 20 CFR 411.565 - What happens if two or more ENs qualify for payment on the same ticket but have elected different...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION THE TICKET TO WORK AND SELF-SUFFICIENCY PROGRAM Employment Network Payment Systems § 411.565 What happens if two or more ENs qualify for payment on the same...

  4. 20 CFR 411.565 - What happens if two or more ENs qualify for payment on the same ticket but have elected different...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION THE TICKET TO WORK AND SELF-SUFFICIENCY PROGRAM Employment Network Payment Systems § 411.565 What happens if two or more ENs qualify for payment on the same...

  5. 12 CFR 145.121 - Indemnification of directors, officers and employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... paragraph (b) of this section is subject to and qualified by 12 U.S.C. 1821(k). ... 12 Banks and Banking 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Indemnification of directors, officers and employees. 145.121 Section 145.121 Banks and Banking COMPTROLLER OF THE CURRENCY, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY...

  6. 12 CFR 145.121 - Indemnification of directors, officers and employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... paragraph (b) of this section is subject to and qualified by 12 U.S.C. 1821(k). ... 12 Banks and Banking 1 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Indemnification of directors, officers and employees. 145.121 Section 145.121 Banks and Banking COMPTROLLER OF THE CURRENCY, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY...

  7. 12 CFR 145.121 - Indemnification of directors, officers and employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... paragraph (b) of this section is subject to and qualified by 12 U.S.C. 1821(k). ... 12 Banks and Banking 1 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Indemnification of directors, officers and employees. 145.121 Section 145.121 Banks and Banking COMPTROLLER OF THE CURRENCY, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY...

  8. 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.

  9. 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

  10. 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.

  11. 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.

  12. 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.

  13. 29 CFR 779.356 - Application of exemptions to employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... Establishments Lumber and Building Materials Dealers § 779.356 Application of exemptions to employees. (a... materials qualifies as an exempt retail or service establishment under section 13(a)(2) or as an exempt... establishments (§ 779.310; McComb v. W. E. Wright Co., 168 F. 2d 40, cert. denied 335 U.S. 854). Neither...

  14. 29 CFR 779.356 - Application of exemptions to employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... Establishments Lumber and Building Materials Dealers § 779.356 Application of exemptions to employees. (a... materials qualifies as an exempt retail or service establishment under section 13(a)(2) or as an exempt... establishments (§ 779.310; McComb v. W. E. Wright Co., 168 F. 2d 40, cert. denied 335 U.S. 854). Neither...

  15. 29 CFR 779.356 - Application of exemptions to employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... Establishments Lumber and Building Materials Dealers § 779.356 Application of exemptions to employees. (a... materials qualifies as an exempt retail or service establishment under section 13(a)(2) or as an exempt... establishments (§ 779.310; McComb v. W. E. Wright Co., 168 F. 2d 40, cert. denied 335 U.S. 854). Neither...

  16. 29 CFR 779.356 - Application of exemptions to employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... Establishments Lumber and Building Materials Dealers § 779.356 Application of exemptions to employees. (a... materials qualifies as an exempt retail or service establishment under section 13(a)(2) or as an exempt... establishments (§ 779.310; McComb v. W. E. Wright Co., 168 F. 2d 40, cert. denied 335 U.S. 854). Neither...

  17. 29 CFR 779.356 - Application of exemptions to employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... Establishments Lumber and Building Materials Dealers § 779.356 Application of exemptions to employees. (a... materials qualifies as an exempt retail or service establishment under section 13(a)(2) or as an exempt... establishments (§ 779.310; McComb v. W. E. Wright Co., 168 F. 2d 40, cert. denied 335 U.S. 854). Neither...

  18. 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.

  19. 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.

  20. 17 CFR 240.3b-8 - Definitions of “Qualified OTC Market Maker, Qualified Third Market Maker” and “Qualified Block...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... Market Maker, Qualified Third Market Makerâ and âQualified Block Positionerâ. 240.3b-8 Section 240.3b-8... “Qualified Block Positioner”. For the purposes of Regulation U under the Act (12 CFR part 221): (a) The term... inventory turnover in such security. (c) The term Qualified Block Positioner means a dealer who (1) is a...

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

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

    PubMed

    Berry, Meredith S; Friedel, Jonathan E; DeHart, William B; Mahamane, Salif; Jordan, Kerry E; Odum, Amy L

    2017-06-01

    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.

  4. 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

  5. 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.

  6. 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.

  7. Norplant debate: dollars v. sense. Is Norplant discount in U.S. too little, too late?

    PubMed

    1994-01-01

    At a Congressional hearing of the pricing strategy for Norplant, and after several family planning specialists testified that Norplant's cost ($365) makes it inaccessible to many US women, Wyeth-Ayerst announced that, in 2 years, it would provide Norplant to public sector family planning clinics at a discount price. Just 1.4% of clients at Planned Parenthood clinics choose Norplant, because it is too costly. While Title X clinic officials are pleased with this announcement, many family planning providers wonder what the manufacturer's motives are. The president of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association believes that the announcement is a press ploy. The Wyeth spokesperson said the original licensing agreement with the Population Council allowed a public sector price 5 years after Norplant's introduction in the US market. The 5-year delay was intended to build private sector support and to allow Wyeth to recover its marketing and training expenses. Wyeth also wanted Norplant to become a mainstream contraceptive, so it became concerned about the private sector. Yet, the law requires a 15% rebate for qualified public health clinics now. Few family planners expressed praise for Wyeth, since it revealed no details on the public sector price. Further, health care reform may alter drug pricing before the 2-year period. In early 1994, Wyeth's exclusive patent on Norplant and on levonorgestrel expires, allowing other companies to enter the implant market. Yet, other companies need at least 1 year to negotiate with the US Food and Drug Administration for approval, thereby allowing Wyeth a window to dominate the market. Thus, by the time the 2 years is up, the discount will have no meaning. Family planners have criticized Wyeth for not offering a public sector discount for a long time, especially since public funds contributed to Norplant's development. Wyeth's only contribution was levonorgestrel. It allowed the Population Council to use

  8. 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.

  9. 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.

  10. 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.

  11. 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.

  12. 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

  13. 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…

  14. 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.

  15. 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

  16. 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.

  17. 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

  18. Hearing focuses on price of Norplant; Wyeth pledges discount for public sector.

    PubMed

    1993-11-23

    In November 1993, Democratic US Representative Ron Wyden held a hearing on the cost of the contraceptive implant Norplant. Its US distributor, Wyeth-Ayerst, informed the US House Subcommittee on Regulation, Business Opportunities and Technology that it would offer the public sector a discounted price for Norplant 5 years after it had been on the US market. Public funds contributed to the development of Norplant. USAID provided $17.2 million of the $41.3 million that the Population Council spent on developing Norplant. Wyeth provided the Council levonorgestrel, the drug used in Norplant, thereby holding the right to market Norplant in the US and Canada. USAID buys Norplant from the distributor for all other countries for $23, while Wyeth sells Norplant in a package of insertion and educational materials for $365. This large gap infuriates groups providing family planning services to low-income women. Medicaid pays for Norplant and its insertion for the poorest women. Wealthier women either pay for Norplant themselves, or their health insurance pays for it. This leaves low-income women with no access to Norplant. Wyeth has formed the Norplant Foundation to provide Norplant to low-income women whom Medicaid will not cover. It also trains most providers in insertion and removal procedures. The law requires Wyeth to reimburse qualified public health clinics 15% of costs. The reason Wyeth does not yet give the public sector a discounted price is that it wants Norplant to become firmly entrenched in the private sector first. Other panelists commented on how Norplant's success may encourage other companies to return to contraception research. Liability and political controversy are still concerns, however. Another panelist expressed concern that consumers have become too dependent on pharmaceutical companies and their commercial interests.

  19. 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

  20. 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.

  1. 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…

  2. 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

  3. 12 CFR 545.121 - Indemnification of directors, officers and employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... qualified by 12 U.S.C. 1821(k). [54 FR 49492, Nov. 30, 1989, as amended at 56 FR 59866, Nov. 26, 1991; 60 FR... 12 Banks and Banking 5 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Indemnification of directors, officers and employees. 545.121 Section 545.121 Banks and Banking OFFICE OF THRIFT SUPERVISION, DEPARTMENT OF THE...

  4. 12 CFR 545.121 - Indemnification of directors, officers and employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... qualified by 12 U.S.C. 1821(k). [54 FR 49492, Nov. 30, 1989, as amended at 56 FR 59866, Nov. 26, 1991; 60 FR... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2014-01-01 2012-01-01 true Indemnification of directors, officers and employees. 545.121 Section 545.121 Banks and Banking OFFICE OF THRIFT SUPERVISION, DEPARTMENT OF THE...

  5. 12 CFR 545.121 - Indemnification of directors, officers and employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... qualified by 12 U.S.C. 1821(k). [54 FR 49492, Nov. 30, 1989, as amended at 56 FR 59866, Nov. 26, 1991; 60 FR... 12 Banks and Banking 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Indemnification of directors, officers and employees. 545.121 Section 545.121 Banks and Banking OFFICE OF THRIFT SUPERVISION, DEPARTMENT OF THE...

  6. 12 CFR 545.121 - Indemnification of directors, officers and employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... qualified by 12 U.S.C. 1821(k). [54 FR 49492, Nov. 30, 1989, as amended at 56 FR 59866, Nov. 26, 1991; 60 FR... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Indemnification of directors, officers and employees. 545.121 Section 545.121 Banks and Banking OFFICE OF THRIFT SUPERVISION, DEPARTMENT OF THE...

  7. 12 CFR 545.121 - Indemnification of directors, officers and employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... qualified by 12 U.S.C. 1821(k). [54 FR 49492, Nov. 30, 1989, as amended at 56 FR 59866, Nov. 26, 1991; 60 FR... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2013-01-01 2012-01-01 true Indemnification of directors, officers and employees. 545.121 Section 545.121 Banks and Banking OFFICE OF THRIFT SUPERVISION, DEPARTMENT OF THE...

  8. 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.

  9. 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.

  10. 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.

  11. 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.

  12. 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

  13. 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

  14. 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.

  15. 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.

  16. 42 CFR 417.156 - When the HMO must be offered to employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... HEALTH CARE PREPAYMENT PLANS Inclusion of Qualified Health Maintenance Organizations in Employee Health... inclusion in a health benefits plan is received at a time when existing contracts or agreements do not provide for inclusion, the employing entity must include the HMO option in the health benefits plan at the...

  17. 42 CFR 417.156 - When the HMO must be offered to employees.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... HEALTH CARE PREPAYMENT PLANS Inclusion of Qualified Health Maintenance Organizations in Employee Health... inclusion in a health benefits plan is received at a time when existing contracts or agreements do not provide for inclusion, the employing entity must include the HMO option in the health benefits plan at the...

  18. 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.

  19. 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.

  20. 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.

  1. 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.

  2. Employee retention: an issue of survival in healthcare.

    PubMed

    Collins, Sandra K; Collins, Kevin S

    2004-01-01

    Successful healthcare organizations emphasize attracting human resource assets and aggressively seek to resolve and prevent high employee turnover. Understanding the key components surrounding the importance of measuring employee turnover, learning how it affects patient care, and realizing what is needed to retain quality employees is central to the resolution. Measuring employee turnover in a healthcare department is fundamental to the success of the organization and the quality of care it delivers. Some studies indicate the cost of turnover can average 150% of the employee's annual salary. Furthermore, when employees leave, their duties are shifted to the remaining personnel who feel obligated to shoulder the additional burden. The most important impact of employee turnover may be the effect on patient care. Generally, all patients prefer to be cared for by the same members of a healthcare team each time they require treatment. This involves building relationships between the patients and their respective healthcare organizations. These relationships are important to the success of the facility, especially in cases where the same treatment/care can be received elsewhere. Creating an organizational environment that is dedicated to the retention of talented personnel is the first step in reducing employee turnover. Determining why employees are leaving an organization is an important part of developing an effective strategy. One way this information can be obtained is by conducting detailed exit interviews. Organizations should focus on the following issues in order to maintain their qualified workforce in the long term: communication; decision making; compensation, benefits, and career development; recruitment; appreciation and understanding; and management.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. 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

  6. 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

  7. 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.

  8. 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

  9. 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

  10. 42 CFR 495.204 - Incentive payments to qualifying MA organizations for qualifying MA-EPs and qualifying MA...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... methodological proposal for estimating the portion of each qualifying MA EP's salary or revenue attributable to... enrollees of the MA organization in the payment year. The methodological proposal— (i) Must be approved by... account for the MA-enrollee related Part B practice costs of the qualifying MA EP. (iii) Methodological...

  11. 42 CFR 495.204 - Incentive payments to qualifying MA organizations for qualifying MA-EPs and qualifying MA...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... methodological proposal for estimating the portion of each qualifying MA EP's salary or revenue attributable to... enrollees of the MA organization in the payment year. The methodological proposal— (i) Must be approved by... account for the MA-enrollee related Part B practice costs of the qualifying MA EP. (iii) Methodological...

  12. 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

  13. 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.

  14. 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

  15. 26 CFR 1.72-16 - Life insurance contracts purchased under qualified employee plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... insurance policy at the end of the year, the entire amount of such excess is considered current life... under which the benefits are paid at a date or dates later than the death of the employee, section 101(d... 26 Internal Revenue 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Life insurance contracts purchased under...

  16. Time discounting and protected-area priorities.

    PubMed

    Armsworth, Paul R

    2018-05-08

    Should conservation organizations focus on protecting habitats that are at imminent risk of being converted but are expensive or more remote areas that are less immediately threatened but where a large amount of land can be set aside? Variants of this trade-off commonly arise in spatial planning. We examined this trade-off using models of land use change near a deforestation frontier. The optimal choice of where to protect was determined by how decisions taken today accounted for ecological benefits and economic costs of conservation actions that would occur sometime in the future. We used an ecological and economic discount rate to weight these benefits and costs. A large economic discount rate favored protecting more remote areas, whereas a large, positive ecological discount rate favored protecting habitat near the current deforestation frontier. We also showed how the decision over where to protect was impacted by the influence that economic factors had in determining landowners' decisions, the rate of technological change and ecological heterogeneity of the landscape. How benefits and costs through time are accounted for warrants careful consideration when specifying conservation objectives. It may provide a niche axis along which conservation organizations differentiate themselves when competing for donor funding or other support. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  17. Positive autobiographical memory retrieval reduces temporal discounting.

    PubMed

    Lempert, Karolina M; Speer, Megan E; Delgado, Mauricio R; Phelps, Elizabeth A

    2017-10-01

    People generally prefer rewards sooner rather than later. This phenomenon, temporal discounting, underlies many societal problems, including addiction and obesity. One way to reduce temporal discounting is to imagine positive future experiences. Since there is overlap in the neural circuitry associated with imagining future experiences and remembering past events, here we investigate whether recalling positive memories can also promote more patient choice. We found that participants were more patient after retrieving positive autobiographical memories, but not when they recalled negative memories. Moreover, individuals were more impulsive after imagining novel positive scenes that were not related to their memories, showing that positive imagery alone does not drive this effect. Activity in the striatum and temporo parietal junction during memory retrieval predicted more patient choice, suggesting that to the extent that memory recall is rewarding and involves perspective-taking, it influences decision-making. Furthermore, representational similarity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex between memory recall and decision phases correlated with the behavioral effect across participants. Thus, we have identified a novel manipulation for reducing temporal discounting-remembering the positive past-and have begun to characterize the psychological and neural mechanisms behind it. © The Author (2017). Published by Oxford University Press.

  18. 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.

  19. 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…

  20. 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.

  1. 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.

  2. 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

  3. 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.

  4. 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

  5. Delay and probability discounting of sexual and monetary outcomes in individuals with cocaine use disorders and matched controls.

    PubMed

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

    2015-01-01

    Individuals with cocaine use disorders are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS, partly due to higher rates of unprotected sex. Recent research suggests delay discounting of condom use is a factor in sexual HIV risk. Delay discounting is a behavioral economic concept describing how delaying an event reduces that event's value or impact on behavior. Probability discounting is a related concept describing how the uncertainty of an event decreases its impact on behavior. Individuals with cocaine use disorders (n = 23) and matched non-cocaine-using controls (n = 24) were compared in decision-making tasks involving hypothetical outcomes: delay discounting of condom-protected sex (Sexual Delay Discounting Task), delay discounting of money, the effect of sexually transmitted infection (STI) risk on likelihood of condom use (Sexual Probability Discounting Task), and probability discounting of money. The Cocaine group discounted delayed condom-protected sex (i.e., were more likely to have unprotected sex vs. wait for a condom) significantly more than controls in two of four Sexual Delay Discounting Task partner conditions. The Cocaine group also discounted delayed money (i.e., preferred smaller immediate amounts over larger delayed amounts) significantly more than controls. In the Sexual Probability Discounting Task, both groups showed sensitivity to STI risk, however the groups did not differ. The Cocaine group did not consistently discount probabilistic money more or less than controls. Steeper discounting of delayed, but not probabilistic, sexual outcomes may contribute to greater rates of sexual HIV risk among individuals with cocaine use disorders. Probability discounting of sexual outcomes may contribute to risk of unprotected sex in both groups. Correlations showed sexual and monetary results were unrelated, for both delay and probability discounting. The results highlight the importance of studying specific behavioral processes (e.g., delay and probability

  6. Delay and Probability Discounting of Sexual and Monetary Outcomes in Individuals with Cocaine Use Disorders and Matched Controls

    PubMed Central

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

    2015-01-01

    Individuals with cocaine use disorders are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS, partly due to higher rates of unprotected sex. Recent research suggests delay discounting of condom use is a factor in sexual HIV risk. Delay discounting is a behavioral economic concept describing how delaying an event reduces that event’s value or impact on behavior. Probability discounting is a related concept describing how the uncertainty of an event decreases its impact on behavior. Individuals with cocaine use disorders (n = 23) and matched non-cocaine-using controls (n = 24) were compared in decision-making tasks involving hypothetical outcomes: delay discounting of condom-protected sex (Sexual Delay Discounting Task), delay discounting of money, the effect of sexually transmitted infection (STI) risk on likelihood of condom use (Sexual Probability Discounting Task), and probability discounting of money. The Cocaine group discounted delayed condom-protected sex (i.e., were more likely to have unprotected sex vs. wait for a condom) significantly more than controls in two of four Sexual Delay Discounting Task partner conditions. The Cocaine group also discounted delayed money (i.e., preferred smaller immediate amounts over larger delayed amounts) significantly more than controls. In the Sexual Probability Discounting Task, both groups showed sensitivity to STI risk, however the groups did not differ. The Cocaine group did not consistently discount probabilistic money more or less than controls. Steeper discounting of delayed, but not probabilistic, sexual outcomes may contribute to greater rates of sexual HIV risk among individuals with cocaine use disorders. Probability discounting of sexual outcomes may contribute to risk of unprotected sex in both groups. Correlations showed sexual and monetary results were unrelated, for both delay and probability discounting. The results highlight the importance of studying specific behavioral processes (e.g., delay and probability

  7. Assembling a solid staff. Job rotation, job shaping and cross-training help employee retention.

    PubMed

    Redling, Robert

    2003-03-01

    Qualified workers for medical practices are in short supply, and you want to keep the good staff you have. Here are strategies to match employees with the right positions, ease workplace stress, heighten morale and ensure coverage of duties when you're down a position or two.

  8. 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.

  9. 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

  10. 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

  11. Enhanced Tobacco Control Initiative at Johns Hopkins Health System: Employee Fairness Perception.

    PubMed

    Durrani, Shabnum; Lucik, Meg; Safeer, Richard

    2018-02-01

    Organizations often fail to establish a clear awareness of what employees consider fair when implementing changes to employee benefits in the workplace. In 2016, the Johns Hopkins Health System (JHHS) enhanced their tobacco control efforts. In addition to enhanced smoking cessation benefits, employees were offered an increased reduction in their insurance premiums if they were nonsmokers. To qualify for the reduction, employees participated in testing rather than relying on self-reporting as had been done in the past. The shift to testing prompted a concern by some senior management at JHHS who did not want employees to feel they were not trusted. As the program unfolded at JHHS, the four-component model of procedural justice was applied to provide a framework for reviewing the implementation of the new voluntary tobacco testing at JHHS from a fairness lens. The purpose of this article is to illustrate the application of the four-component procedural model of justice to the tobacco testing process at JHHS. As approximately 75% of employees participated in the program, the experience at JHHS can be instructive to other employers who are looking to implement changes in their workplaces and how to minimize unintended consequences with their employees.

  12. 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.

  13. 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…

  14. 40 CFR 258.75 - Discounting.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) SOLID WASTES CRITERIA FOR MUNICIPAL... State may allow discounting of closure cost estimates in § 258.71(a), post-closure cost estimates in § 258.72(a), and/or corrective action costs in § 258.73(a) up to the rate of return for essentially risk...

  15. 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

  16. 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.

  17. 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.

  18. 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…

  19. 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)

  20. 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.

  1. 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

  2. 40 CFR 258.75 - Discounting.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... § 258.72(a), and/or corrective action costs in § 258.73(a) up to the rate of return for essentially risk free investments, net of inflation, under the following conditions: (a) The State Director determines... estimate of site life; and (d) Discounted cost estimates must be adjusted annually to reflect inflation and...

  3. Does Self-Directedness in Learning and Careers Predict the Employability of Low-Qualified Employees?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Raemdonck, Isabel; Tillema, Harm; de Grip, Andries; Valcke, Martin; Segers, Mien

    2012-01-01

    Employability has become a key element in sustaining successful vocational careers. The role of self-directedness is considered paramount in maintaining one's employability. However, it also requires certain competences on part of employees to invest in learning and career development. This study examines the influence of self-directedness in…

  4. 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

  5. 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.

  6. 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

  7. 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.

  8. 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

  9. Pragmatism and Feminism as Qualified Relativism.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thayer-Bacon, Barbara

    2003-01-01

    Explores pragmatism's association with relativism in order to highlight how aspects of the classis pragmatists' positions support qualified relativism. Addresses qualified relativism and the characteristics of qualified relativists. States that qualified relativists can claim roots to their position in Peirce, James, and Dewey, some of the…

  10. 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

  11. 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)

  12. 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).

  13. 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.

  14. 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.

  15. 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

  16. 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.

  17. 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.

  18. 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

  19. 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.

  20. 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

  1. 42 CFR 435.116 - Qualified pregnant women and children who are not qualified family members.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Qualified pregnant women and children who are not... Categorically Needy Mandatory Coverage of Pregnant Women, Children Under 8, and Newborn Children § 435.116 Qualified pregnant women and children who are not qualified family members. (a) The agency must provide...

  2. 42 CFR 435.116 - Qualified pregnant women and children who are not qualified family members.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Qualified pregnant women and children who are not... Categorically Needy Mandatory Coverage of Pregnant Women, Children Under 8, and Newborn Children § 435.116 Qualified pregnant women and children who are not qualified family members. (a) The agency must provide...

  3. 42 CFR 435.116 - Qualified pregnant women and children who are not qualified family members.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Qualified pregnant women and children who are not... Categorically Needy Mandatory Coverage of Pregnant Women, Children Under 8, and Newborn Children § 435.116 Qualified pregnant women and children who are not qualified family members. (a) The agency must provide...

  4. 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…

  5. 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.

  6. 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…

  7. Is there time discounting for risk premium?

    PubMed

    Shavit, Tal; Rosenboim, Mosi

    2015-03-01

    Individuals with a higher subjective discount rate concentrate more on the present and delay is more significant for them. However, when a risky asset is delayed, not only is the outcome delayed but also the risk. In this paper, we suggest a new, two-stage experimental method with real monetary incentives that allows us to distinguish between the effect of the risk and the effect of the time when pricing a risky asset. We show that when individuals have greater preference for the present, their risk aversion for a risky asset realized in the future decreases. We argue that the effect of the risk for future asset is lower for individuals with higher time preference because they discount not only the outcome but also the risks. © Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

  8. Discount cosmetic surgery: industry trends and strategies for success.

    PubMed

    Krieger, Lloyd M

    2002-08-01

    Discount cosmetic surgery is a topic of interest to plastic surgeons. To understand this trend and its effects on plastic surgeons, it is necessary to review the economics of cosmetic surgery, plastic surgery's practice environment, and the broader business principles of service industries. Recent work looked at the economics of the plastic surgery market. This analysis demonstrated that increased local density of plastic surgeons was associated with lower adjusted fees for cosmetic procedures. A survey of plastic surgeons about their practice environment revealed that 93 percent categorized the majority of their patients as very or moderately price-sensitive. Fully 98 percent described their business climate as very or moderately competitive and most plastic surgeons thought they lost a sizable number of cosmetic patients within the last year for reasons of price.A standard industry analysis, when applied to cosmetic surgery, reveals the following: an increased number of surgeons leads to lower fees (reducing their bargaining power as suppliers), patients are price-sensitive (increasing their bargaining power as buyers), and there are few barriers to entry among providers (allowing potential new entrants into the market). Such a situation is conducive to discounting taking hold-and even becoming the industry norm. In this environment, business strategy dictates there are three protocols for success: discounting, differentiation, and focus. Discounting joins the trend toward cutting fees. Success comes from increasing volume and efficiency and thus preserving profits. Differentiation creates an industrywide perception of uniqueness; this requires broadly positioning plastic surgeons as holders of a distinct brand identity separate from other "cosmetic surgeons." The final strategy is to focus on a particular buyer group to develop a market niche, such as establishing a "Park Avenue" practice catering to patients who demand a prestigious surgeon, although this is

  9. 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.

  10. 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.

  11. 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...

  12. 76 FR 45208 - Agency Use of Appropriated Funds for Child Care Costs for Lower Income Employees

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-07-28

    ... benefits, where possible, to same-sex domestic partners. The changes to subpart A also would remove... identified statutorily based benefits that those agencies believed could be extended to qualified same-sex... to extend such benefits to the same-sex domestic partners of Federal employees. The Memorandum [[Page...

  13. 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.

  14. 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.

  15. 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).

  16. 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.

  17. 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).

  18. 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.

  19. 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.

  20. 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

  1. 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.

  2. Response effort discounts the subjective value of rewards.

    PubMed

    Nishiyama, Ryoji

    2014-09-01

    Factors associated with obtaining a reward, such as a temporal delay in receiving the reward, can influence the subjective value of the reward. Cognitive as well as physical response effort is also known to influence choice behaviors. The present study used hypothetical situations to assess whether response effort affects the subjective value of rewards. The results demonstrated that increasing response effort increases the amount of money that participants are willing to forgo to avoid engaging in work. An exponential as well as hyperbolic function provided a good fit for such discounting. The findings suggest that response effort discounts the subjective value of a reward as a function of its amount. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. 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…

  4. 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.

  5. 18 CFR 704.39 - Discount rate.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2013-04-01 2012-04-01 true Discount rate. 704.39 Section 704.39 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL PLAN FORMULATION... the Water Resources Council of the rate thus computed. (c) Subject to the provisions of paragraphs (d...

  6. 18 CFR 704.39 - Discount rate.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Discount rate. 704.39 Section 704.39 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL PLAN FORMULATION... the Water Resources Council of the rate thus computed. (c) Subject to the provisions of paragraphs (d...

  7. 18 CFR 704.39 - Discount rate.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Discount rate. 704.39 Section 704.39 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL PLAN FORMULATION... the Water Resources Council of the rate thus computed. (c) Subject to the provisions of paragraphs (d...

  8. 18 CFR 704.39 - Discount rate.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discount rate. 704.39 Section 704.39 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL PLAN FORMULATION... the Water Resources Council of the rate thus computed. (c) Subject to the provisions of paragraphs (d...

  9. 18 CFR 704.39 - Discount rate.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Discount rate. 704.39 Section 704.39 Conservation of Power and Water Resources WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL PLAN FORMULATION... the Water Resources Council of the rate thus computed. (c) Subject to the provisions of paragraphs (d...

  10. 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.

  11. 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.

  12. 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

  13. 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

  14. 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.

  15. 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.

  16. 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.

  17. 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.

  18. 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

  19. 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…

  20. 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.

  1. 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

  2. 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.

  3. 7 CFR 1150.109 - Qualified program.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... AGREEMENTS AND ORDERS; MILK), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE DAIRY PROMOTION PROGRAM Dairy Promotion and Research Order Definitions § 1150.109 Qualified program. Qualified program means any dairy product promotion, research or nutrition education program which is certified as a qualified program pursuant to § 1150.153...

  4. 7 CFR 1150.109 - Qualified program.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... Agreements and Orders; Milk), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE DAIRY PROMOTION PROGRAM Dairy Promotion and Research Order Definitions § 1150.109 Qualified program. Qualified program means any dairy product promotion, research or nutrition education program which is certified as a qualified program pursuant to § 1150.153...

  5. 7 CFR 1150.109 - Qualified program.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... AGREEMENTS AND ORDERS; MILK), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE DAIRY PROMOTION PROGRAM Dairy Promotion and Research Order Definitions § 1150.109 Qualified program. Qualified program means any dairy product promotion, research or nutrition education program which is certified as a qualified program pursuant to § 1150.153...

  6. 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.

  7. 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...

  8. 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...

  9. 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...

  10. 42 CFR 417.164 - Effect of revocation of qualification on inclusion in employee's health benefit plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Effect of revocation of qualification on inclusion... Qualified Health Maintenance Organizations § 417.164 Effect of revocation of qualification on inclusion in... rules apply: (a) The HMO may not seek inclusion in employees health benefits plans under subpart E of...

  11. 42 CFR 417.164 - Effect of revocation of qualification on inclusion in employee's health benefit plans.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Effect of revocation of qualification on inclusion... Qualified Health Maintenance Organizations § 417.164 Effect of revocation of qualification on inclusion in... rules apply: (a) The HMO may not seek inclusion in employees health benefits plans under subpart E of...

  12. 26 CFR 1.936-10 - Qualified investments.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 26 Internal Revenue 10 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Qualified investments. 1.936-10 Section 1.936... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES (CONTINUED) Possessions of the United States § 1.936-10 Qualified investments. (a) In general. [Reserved] (b) Qualified investments in Puerto Rico. [Reserved] (c) Qualified investment...

  13. 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.

  14. 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.

  15. 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.

  16. "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.

  17. 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

  18. 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.

  19. 7 CFR 4290.110 - Qualified management.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 15 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Qualified management. 4290.110 Section 4290.110... Qualifications for the RBIC Program Organizing A Rbic § 4290.110 Qualified management. Link to an amendment..., that its current or proposed management team is qualified and has the knowledge, experience, and...

  20. 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.

  1. 7 CFR 4290.110 - Qualified management.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 15 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Qualified management. 4290.110 Section 4290.110... Qualifications for the RBIC Program Organizing A Rbic § 4290.110 Qualified management. An Applicant must show, to the satisfaction of the Secretary, that its current or proposed management team is qualified and has...

  2. 7 CFR 4290.110 - Qualified management.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 15 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Qualified management. 4290.110 Section 4290.110... Qualifications for the RBIC Program Organizing A Rbic § 4290.110 Qualified management. An Applicant must show, to the satisfaction of the Secretary, that its current or proposed management team is qualified and has...

  3. 7 CFR 4290.110 - Qualified management.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 15 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Qualified management. 4290.110 Section 4290.110... Qualifications for the RBIC Program Organizing A Rbic § 4290.110 Qualified management. An Applicant must show, to the satisfaction of the Secretary, that its current or proposed management team is qualified and has...

  4. 7 CFR 4290.110 - Qualified management.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 15 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Qualified management. 4290.110 Section 4290.110... Qualifications for the RBIC Program Organizing A Rbic § 4290.110 Qualified management. An Applicant must show, to the satisfaction of the Secretary, that its current or proposed management team is qualified and has...

  5. 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

  6. 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 (0.9discounting becomes very large at high selfing rates, so that the automatic advantage of selfing changes to a disadvantage. These results suggest that mixed mating systems with high selfing rates can be maintained by selection, whereas mixed mating systems with low to moderate selfing rates are more likely attributable to unavoidable geitonogamous selfing.

  7. 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…

  8. 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

  9. 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.

  10. Assessing spirituality. Healthcare organizations must address their employees' spiritual needs.

    PubMed

    Bazan, W; Dwyer, D

    1998-01-01

    Catholic institutions need to respond to their managers, physicians, and other employees experiencing deep pain about the meaning and purpose of life. Initial approaches to people in spiritual distress include "tough love", codependence, and assistance programs, along with prayer and compassion. But a different approach that gives people the space and freedom to pursue their spiritual search and ask questions to discover deeper meaning in life may be more effective. It allows them to accept that they are where they need to be on their spiritual journey, even if that place is painful. Healthcare organizations can, through their structures and culture, create environments that promote this spiritual work. The entire organization must be spiritually grounded. Organizations can develop specific programs to address employees' spiritual yearnings, including: Private spiritual direction or companionship Formal mentoring Renewal days or retreats Spirituality programs for professionals Organizations must consider spirituality in recruiting, uphold policies on spirituality, and ensure physicians receive the same spiritual support as other employees. Resources should be allocated for expanded spiritual services, quiet places for reflection, meditation and related classes, traditional retreats, and qualified personnel.

  11. 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

  12. 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.

  13. 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.

  14. 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…

  15. 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…

  16. 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

  17. 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

  18. 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.

  19. 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

  20. 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

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. An Analysis of a Biometric Screening and Premium Incentive-Based Employee Wellness Program: Enrollment Patterns, Cost, and Outcome.

    PubMed

    Maeng, Daniel D; Geng, Zhi; Marshall, Wendy M; Hess, Allison L; Tomcavage, Janet F

    2017-11-14

    Since 2012, a large health care system has offered an employee wellness program providing premium discounts for those who voluntarily undergo biometric screenings and meet goals. This study evaluates the program impact on care utilization and total cost of care, taking into account employee self-selection into the program. A retrospective claims data analysis of 6453 employees between 2011 and 2015 was conducted, categorizing the sample into 3 mutually exclusive subgroups: Subgroup 1 enrolled and met goals in all years, Subgroup 2 enrolled or met goals in some years but not all, and Subgroup 3 never enrolled. Each subgroup was compared to a cohort of employees in other employer groups (N = 24,061). Using a difference-in-difference method, significant reductions in total medical cost (14.2%; P = 0.014) and emergency department (ED) visits (11.2%; P = 0.058) were observed only among Subgroup 2 in 2015. No significant impact was detected among those in Subgroup 1. Those in Subgroup 1 were less likely to have chronic conditions at baseline. The results indicate that the wellness program enrollment was characterized by self-selection of healthier employees, among whom the program appeared to have no significant impact. Yet, cost savings and reductions in ED visits were observed among the subset of employees who enrolled or met goal in some years but not all, suggesting a potential link between the wellness program and positive behavior changes among certain subsets of the employee population.

  4. Delay Discounting and Intelligence: A Meta-Analysis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shamosh, Noah A.; Gray, Jeremy R.

    2008-01-01

    Delay discounting (DD), the tendency to prefer smaller, sooner rewards to larger, later ones, is an important indicator of self-control. Assessments of DD superficially require individuals to make choices based on motivational processes. However, several lines of evidence suggest that DD may be systematically related to cognitive ability. We…

  5. 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.

  6. 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.

  7. 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.

  8. 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).

  9. 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.

  10. 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

  11. 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…

  12. 30 CFR 75.155 - Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ...-hoisting engineer; or (2) If a State has no program for qualifying persons as electric-hoisting engineers... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. 75... Persons § 75.155 Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. (a)(1) A person is a qualified hoisting...

  13. 30 CFR 75.155 - Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ...-hoisting engineer; or (2) If a State has no program for qualifying persons as electric-hoisting engineers... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. 75... Persons § 75.155 Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. (a)(1) A person is a qualified hoisting...

  14. 30 CFR 75.155 - Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ...-hoisting engineer; or (2) If a State has no program for qualifying persons as electric-hoisting engineers... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. 75... Persons § 75.155 Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. (a)(1) A person is a qualified hoisting...

  15. 30 CFR 75.155 - Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ...-hoisting engineer; or (2) If a State has no program for qualifying persons as electric-hoisting engineers... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. 75... Persons § 75.155 Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. (a)(1) A person is a qualified hoisting...

  16. 30 CFR 75.155 - Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ...-hoisting engineer; or (2) If a State has no program for qualifying persons as electric-hoisting engineers... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. 75... Persons § 75.155 Qualified hoisting engineer; qualifications. (a)(1) A person is a qualified hoisting...

  17. 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

  18. Supply chain coordination with defective items and quantity discount

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, Hsien-Jen; Lin, Yu-Jen

    2014-12-01

    This study develops an integrated inventory system involving defective items and quantity discount for optimal pricing and ordering strategies. The model analysed in this study is one in which the buyer orders a quantity, the vendor produces more than buyer's order quantity in order to reduce set-up cost, and then he/she offers an all-units quantity discount to the buyer. Our objective is to determine the optimal order quantity, retail price, mark-up rate, and the number of shipments per production run from the vendor to the buyer, so that the entire supply chain joint total profit incurred has a maximum value. Furthermore, an algorithm of finding the optimal solution is developed. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate the theoretical results.

  19. 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

  20. 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.

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