Human Capital and the Lifetime Costs of Impatience

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Cadena, Brian C.; Keys, Benjamin J.
• 署名单位: University of Colorado System; University of Colorado Boulder; University of Chicago
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL-ECONOMIC POLICY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1945-7731
• DOI: 10.1257/pol.20130081
• 发表日期: 2015
• 页码: 126-153
• 关键词: job search; ability; preferences; HEALTH

摘要

In this paper, we examine the role of impatience in human capital formation-arguably the most important investment decision individuals make during their lifetimes. We focus on a set of investment behaviors that cannot be explained solely by variation in exponential discounting. Using data from the NLSY and a straightforward measure of impatience, we find that impatient people more frequently invest in dynamically inconsistent ways, such as dropping out of college with one year or less remaining. The cumulative investment differences result in the impatient earning 13 percent less and expressing more regret as this cohort reaches middle age.