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  4. May 2024
  5. Change Behavior, Motivation Will Follow(?): Acquired Taste and Incentives

AEA Papers and Proceedings

ISSN 2574-0768 (Print) | ISSN 2574-0776 (Online)

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Change Behavior, Motivation Will Follow(?): Acquired Taste and Incentives

  • Gretchen Chapman
  • Uri Gneezy
AEA Papers and Proceedings
vol. 114, May 2024
(pp. 660–65)
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Abstract

Whereas it is well established that changing motivation can affect behavior, we pose the opposite question: can changing behavior alter motivation? We examine three phenomena that provide an affirmative answer. Preference discovery occurs when a new behavior (e.g., trying sushi) reveals a previously hidden preference. Acquired tastes are new preferences that develop with repeated behavior (e.g., drinking coffee), often requiring individuals to overcome initial aversions. Habit formation entails a behavior that is initially incentivized but then maintained after the incentive is removed (e.g., maintaining a gym habit). In each case, incentives can catalyze the new motivation.

Citation

Chapman, Gretchen, and Uri Gneezy. 2024. "Change Behavior, Motivation Will Follow(?): Acquired Taste and Incentives." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 114: 660–65. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20241088

Additional Materials

JEL Classification

  • D91 Micro-Based Behavioral Economics: Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making