Thinking About Time as Money Decreases Environmental Behavior

Ashley V. Whillans; Elizabeth W. Dunn

Article | Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes

Thinking About Time as Money Decreases Environmental Behavior

by Ashley V. Whillans and Elizabeth W. Dunn

Abstract

Surprisingly, Americans are no more likely to engage in environmental behavior today than 20 years ago. A novel explanation for this pattern may lie in the increased tendency to see time as money. Using large-scale survey data, we show that people are less likely to engage in environmental behavior if they are paid by the hour, a form of compensation that leads people to see their time as money. Using experimental methodology, we show that making the economic value of time salient reduces environmental intentions and behavior. This occurs in part because thinking about the economic value of time creates awareness of the opportunity costs associated with environmental behavior. We mitigate these effects by reframing environmental behavior as an act consistent with self-interest. Together, this research suggests that viewing time as money shapes environmental decisions, potentially shedding light on patterns of environmental behavior across time and around the world.

Keywords: Money; Environmental Sustainability; Behavior; Perception;

Format: Print

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Citation:

Whillans, Ashley V., and Elizabeth W. Dunn. "Thinking About Time as Money Decreases Environmental Behavior." Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 127 (March 2015): 44–52.

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Thinking About Time as Money Decreases Environmental Behavior

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