As the recession bites, Newsweek magazine has a timely
article on some of the brain processes underlying consumer decision making. The author Begley particularly emphasises research showing that people tend to be willing to spend more when they pay by credit card rather than cash:
"When you hand over a stack of 20s, you have less of something tangible: your billfold is lighter. That causes a brain region [the insula] that registers negative feelings (bad smells, unfairness, social ostracism) to become more active than when you charge a purchase. Humans have evolved to pay attention to the messages the insula sends, with the result that it hurts to pay cash. There is no such feeling of loss when you pay with plastic, so the insula doesn't react. Credit cards anesthetize the otherwise painful act of paying".
Begley goes on to quote
this study (pdf) by MIT researchers in which participants were willing to pay significantly more for football game tickets or a restaurant voucher when using a credit card compared with cash.
Begley also highlights
research by Cynthia Cryder and colleagues, showing that people are willing to pay more for products when they are feeling sad - perhaps because acquiring more stuff helps them feel better about themselves.
In short, it seems that if you want to reduce your spending this holiday season, you're best off carrying cash, not cards, and staying indoors if you're feeling blue.
译文:
减少开支？在你失意的时候，请脱离信用卡停止购物
正当经济衰退侵袭的时候，新周刊发布了一篇即时文章。该文章的内容包括一些对潜在的消费者决策的思考过程。作者
伯格利特别强调说该研究显露出当人们使用信用卡而不用现金消费时，他们愿意买得更多：
“回到20年代那段时期，你手上仅有为数不多的有形物品:连你的皮夹也很轻。比起当你为买到的东西付费时，那会导致记录消极情绪（不灵敏的嗅觉、不公平的规则、社交排斥感）的大脑区域[脑岛]比起购物的时候变得积极起来。人们会很重视从脑岛发送出来的信息，因此它会影响到你用现金付账的行为。当你用信用卡付费时，你不会有任何感觉，所以你的脑岛丝毫不受影响。信用卡会麻痹你付钱后在其他方面的痛苦行为。”
伯格利进一步引用了麻省理工大学研究者的这项研究（
便携文档格式)。在这份研究中发现：当人们使用信用卡而不使用现金时，他们更情愿花费一大笔钱来购买足球赛门票或者餐馆代金卷。
伯格利同时也强调通过与辛西亚.克莱德和同事们共同研究得出，当人们感到沮丧的时候他们更乐意去消费更多的商品——或许因为得到更多的东西可以帮助他们感觉好些。 总之，看起来如果你想在节庆季节减少开支，你最好别带钱出门，还有信用卡。如果你实在感觉无精打采，请待在家里。