How to measure time preferences in children – A comparison of two methods

We measure time preferences in a sample of 561 children aged seven to eleven years. Using awithin-subject design we compare the behavior of our subjects in two distinct experimentaltasks: a standard choice list with multiple decisions and a simpler time-investment-exerciserequiring one decision only. We find that both measures yield very similar aggregate results,correlate significantly within subjects and can be explained by basically the same explanatoryvariables. Advantages and disadvantages of both measures as well as gender differences arediscussed. Our findings are relevant for the design of experiments to measure time preferences.