An Empirical Exploration of Mental Representations in the Individual Saving Decision Process

The article tackles the analysis of the saving process by reviving a research methodology that explores mental representations and their economic implications. The conceptual background is updated to the latest interdisciplinary literature in behavioral economics and social psychology, extending the applications of construal level theory. The results are pointing out to a new way of understanding differences of opinion between groups (economists and sociologists) about saving behavior, usually considered irrational in the light of standard economic theory.