Saving for the future self: neural measures of future self-continuity predict temporal discounting - PubMed (original) (raw)

Saving for the future self: neural measures of future self-continuity predict temporal discounting

Hal Ersner-Hershfield et al. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci. 2009 Mar.

Abstract

Despite increases in the human life span, people have not increased their rate of saving. In a phenomenon known as 'temporal discounting', people value immediate gains over future gains. According to a future self-continuity hypothesis, individuals perceive and treat the future self differently from the present self, and so might fail to save for their future. Neuroimaging offers a novel means of testing this hypothesis, since previous research indicates that self- vs other-judgments elicit activation in the rostral anterior cingulate (rACC). Using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging, we predicted and found not only individual differences in rACC activation while rating the current vs future self, but also that individual differences in current vs future self activation predicted temporal discounting assessed behaviorally a week after scanning. In addition to supporting the future self-continuity hypothesis, these findings hold implications for significant financial decisions, such as choosing whether to save for the future or spend in the present.

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Figures

Fig. 1

Fig. 1

Self-reference task trial structure and timing.

Fig. 2

Fig. 2

Brain regions correlated with the model main effects and interaction. (A) Brain regions correlated with Person (self > other), including the MPFC and rACC. (B) Time (current > future), including the posterior cingulate. (C) Person × Time, selectively activating the rACC; threshold p < 0.01 uncorrected.

Fig. 3

Fig. 3

Neural activation differences between current self and future self trials correlate with discounting rates. (A) Conjunction showing that the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) and rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) are selectively activated by both Person (self vs other) and Person × Time (current vs future self); threshold p < 0.005, uncorrected. (B) Activation time courses for each condition in the right rACC volume of interest. The white section represents predicted peak signal change related to person judgment. Error bars indicate standard error of the mean. (C) Scatterplot of individual differences in discount rates [log(k) + 10] and individual differences between peak current self and future self activation in the rACC volume of interest (r = 0.47, p < 0.05). Note: For display purposes and ease of interpretation, a constant of 10 was added to the log(k) values.

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