AEA RCT Registry

Trial Information

General Information

Title

Altruism, Materialism, and Decision Making: Effects on Risk and Time Preferences

RCT ID

AEARCTR-0013872

Initial registration date

June 24, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published

June 25, 2024, 2:12 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name

Islam Abdalhafez

Affiliation

University of Oulu

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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name

Andrew Conlin

PI Affiliation

Aalto University

Contact Investigator

PI Name

Petri Sahlström

PI Affiliation

University of Oulu

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Additional Trial Information

Status

On going

Start date

2023-03-14

End date

2024-12-31

Keywords

Behavior, Finance & Microfinance

Additional Keywords

Self-determination theory, Risk tolerance, Time preference, Materialism, Altruism

JEL code(s)

D64, D91, G41

Secondary IDs

Prior work

This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.

Abstract

This study investigates how altruism (intrinsic motivation) and materialism (extrinsic motivation) influence decision-making, specifically focusing on risk tolerance and time preferences. We manipulate participants' exposure to altruistic and materialistic primes and examine their impact on financial decision-making. Using an online experimental design, participants are randomly assigned to one of three groups: a control group, a group primed with materialism, and a group primed with altruism using pre-validated videos. Subsequently, participants complete multiple price list choices to assess their risk tolerance and time preferences.

External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation

Abdalhafez, Islam, Andrew Conlin and Petri Sahlström. 2024. "Altruism, Materialism, and Decision Making: Effects on Risk and Time Preferences." AEA RCT Registry. June 25. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.13872-1.0

Sponsors & Partners

Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)

This study employs video-based priming interventions to examine the effects of altruism and materialism on decision-making. The experiment consists of three groups:

Control Group: Participants in this group receive no priming intervention, allowing them to act under their natural intrinsic motivation.
Materialism Treatment Group: Participants are exposed to a pre-validated video designed to prime materialistic attitudes
Altruism Treatment Group: Participants view a pre-validated video designed to prime altruistic attitudes

The videos used for priming have been validated in a pre-test to ensure their effectiveness in eliciting the desired mindsets. Following the priming intervention (or lack thereof in the control group), all participants complete multiple price list choices to measure their risk tolerance and time preferences.

Intervention Start Date

2024-07-01

Intervention End Date

2024-07-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)

This study has two primary outcome variables:

Risk Tolerance:
Measured using multiple price list choices, this outcome quantifies participants' willingness to take financial risks. The risk tolerance score is calculated based on participants' choices in hypothetical investment scenarios, with higher scores indicating greater risk tolerance.
Time Preference:
Also measured using multiple price list choices, this outcome assesses participants' preferences for immediate versus delayed financial rewards. The time preference score is derived from choices between smaller, immediate payoffs and larger, delayed payoffs, with higher scores indicating a stronger preference for delayed rewards (i.e., more patience).

Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

This study employs video-based priming interventions to examine the effects of altruism and materialism on decision-making. The experiment consists of three groups:

Control Group: Participants in this group receive no priming intervention, allowing them to act under their natural intrinsic motivation.
Materialism Treatment Group: Participants are exposed to a pre-validated video designed to prime materialistic attitudes
Altruism Treatment Group: Participants view a pre-validated video designed to prime altruistic attitudes

The videos used for priming have been validated in a pre-test to ensure their effectiveness in eliciting the desired mindsets. Following the priming intervention (or lack thereof in the control group), all participants complete multiple price list choices to measure their risk tolerance and time preferences.

Experimental Design Details

Not available

Randomization Method

Qualtrics automatically randomize the sample

Randomization Unit

The experiment consists of three groups:

Control Group: Participants in this group receive no priming intervention, allowing them to act under their natural intrinsic motivation.
Materialism Treatment Group: Participants are exposed to a pre-validated video designed to prime materialistic attitudes, representing extrinsic motivation.
Altruism Treatment Group: Participants view a pre-validated video designed to prime altruistic attitudes, representing intrinsic motivation.

Was the treatment clustered?

No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters

250 male and 250 female subjects

Sample size: planned number of observations

500 subjects

Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms

167 Materialism group, 167 Altruism group, 166 control group

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)

Supporting Documents and Materials

IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name

IRB Approval Date

IRB Approval Number

Analysis Plan