Intertemporal Choices of new generation college students in Varying Spatial Distance: Insights from a Behavioral Study

Objective: To explore whether spatial distance affects intertemporal decision-making and how it affects intertemporal decision-making, so as to provide new research evidence for the impact of spatial distance on intertemporal decision-making and give play to the correct guiding role of decision-making in real life. Methods: through the situational experiment, focusing on the impact of spatial distance on intertemporal decision-making, it mainly includes two scenarios, one is the situation of savings and financial products, and the other is the situation of supermarket shopping. Results: there were significant differences among different spatial distance groups, and the far spatial distance group preferred shorter and fewer SS options; There were significant differences in subjective perception of spatial distance between the experimental groups; The RPI value of risk preference had no significant difference among the experimental groups; Gender has no significant effect on intertemporal decision preference. Conclusion: spatial distance has influence on intertemporal decision-making; With the increase of spatial distance, decision-makers prefer short-term options; The relationship between the spatial distance perception of different gender individuals and intertemporal decision-making; Individual risk preference did not prevent the occurrence of this influence relationship.

Key words: spatial distance;intertemporal decision-making;situational experiment