Tightwads and Spendthrifts

Abstract

Consumers often behave differently than they would ideally like to behave. We propose that an anticipatory pain of paying drives tightwads to spend less than they would ideally like to spend. Spendthrifts, by contrast, experience too little pain of paying and typically spend more than they would ideally like to spend. This article introduces and validates the Tightwad-Spendthrift scale, a measure of individual differences in the pain of paying. Spending differences between tightwads and spendthrifts are greatest in situations that amplify the pain of paying and smallest in situations that diminish the pain of paying.

Keywords: Consumer Decision Making, Individual Differences, Behavioral Economics, Experimental Economics

JEL Classification: C91, D91, M31