The Influence of Visual Timeline on Economic Decision Making

Last registered on February 10, 2026
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
The Influence of Visual Timeline on Economic Decision Making
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0017839
Initial registration date
February 08, 2026

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
February 10, 2026, 6:41 AM EST

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

Locations

Country
Singapore
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Jun Ren Lim
Affiliation
Nanyang Technological University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Tasha Giri
PI Affiliation
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Ying Hng Yow
PI Affiliation
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2026-02-08
End date
2026-03-27
Keywords
Behavior
Additional Keywords
Economic Decision Making
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
In the proposed study, we aim to investigate how visual representations of time influence intertemporal decision making. Specifically, we examine both the presence and the length of a visual timeline in choices that involves tradeoffs between smaller-sooner and larger-later rewards through an online experiment. We intend to study a range of decisions commonly examined in economics that are influenced by behavioral determinants such as risk-taking and time horizon perception.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Giri, Tasha, Jun Ren Lim and Ying Hng Yow. 2026. "The Influence of Visual Timeline on Economic Decision Making." AEA RCT Registry. February 10. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.17839-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2026-02-08
Intervention End Date
2026-03-27

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
1) Binary outcome of the choosing between immediate vs delayed rewards
2) Switching points across their decisions
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
The primary endpoint of the experiment is intertemporal choice behavior, measured through participants’ selections between smaller–sooner and larger–later rewards.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
1) Time Horizon perception
2) Prospective
3) Risk-taking behaviour
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Secondary endpoints include measures of perceived time horizons, prospective and risk-taking behavior, which capture potential mechanisms through which visual timelines influence decision making.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The study will be conducted as an online experiment and recruited through Prolific, an online crowdsourcing platform for research. We intend to recruit 300 participants across the United Kingdom and they will complete the experiment on Qualtrics. The experiment consists of a main task, follow-up tasks, and a post-questionnaire survey which would take approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete.
Experimental Design Details
In Qualtrics, participants first complete a consent form and a comprehension quiz question to proceed. They must pass all checks to continue. In the main task, they will undergo 24 rounds of decisions between receiving immediate or delayed rewards, knowing that one round will be randomly chosen for bonus compensation. Thereafter, they will complete a series of questions in the follow-up tasks and post experiment questionnaire. Upon survey completion, they would receive compensation which includes a randomly chosen bonus from the tasks in addition to a completion fee.
Randomization Method
Qualtrics' randomizer in the survey flow
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
300 participants
Sample size: planned number of observations
300 participants
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
100 participants each in control group and treatment groups 1 and 2
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Nanyang Technological University
IRB Approval Date
2025-11-27
IRB Approval Number
SSS/ECON/2025/S1/016_E_Nov
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials