More germane to our intertemporal choice environment, behavioural explanations
for a lack of willingness to accumulate savings include non-exponential
discounting models (Loewenstein, Prelec, and Weber 1999; O’Donoghue and
Rabin 2001),which emphasize the potential for overconfidence or over-optimistic
expectations regarding one’s ability to save in the future. However, the concept
of the endowment effect also points to a disincentive to save: if an individual’s
current income is defined as the relevant reference state, then saving out of current
income implies a loss relative to that state which is then weighed against a
gain received in the future. Any asymmetry between a perceived loss of this nature
relative to future gains lowers the incentive to save. Loewenstein and Prelec
(1992) suggest that an asymmetry exists in intertemporal decision making with
respect to gains and losses, mimicking that in prospect theory (Kahneman and
Tversky 1979). In this explanation, intertemporal utility is concave in gains and
convex in losses.1
More germane to our intertemporal choice environment, behavioural explanationsfor a lack of willingness to accumulate savings include non-exponentialdiscounting models (Loewenstein, Prelec, and Weber 1999; O’Donoghue andRabin 2001),which emphasize the potential for overconfidence or over-optimisticexpectations regarding one’s ability to save in the future. However, the conceptof the endowment effect also points to a disincentive to save: if an individual’scurrent income is defined as the relevant reference state, then saving out of currentincome implies a loss relative to that state which is then weighed against again received in the future. Any asymmetry between a perceived loss of this naturerelative to future gains lowers the incentive to save. Loewenstein and Prelec(1992) suggest that an asymmetry exists in intertemporal decision making withrespect to gains and losses, mimicking that in prospect theory (Kahneman andTversky 1979). In this explanation, intertemporal utility is concave in gains andconvex in losses.1
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