Are You a Spendthrift or a Tightwad?

I am always fascinated when scientists learn more about how the human mind works.  Our lives express a broad range of possibilities. Some of us are more emotional while others are more rational. Some are trusting and some are always skeptical. Some are happy following the crowd while others are stubbornly individualistic. Some are tightwads and others are spendthrifts.

In fact, these differences are what make it fun to be human.  When the differences disappear, life loses its interest. Hollywood's views of totalitarian societies, as in the movie of George Orwell's 1984, are generally filmed in black and white. 

I am always interested in this topic because I'd like to understand better how people make decisions about mortgages or, more to the point, who so many do so poorly at it.  Thus it is with some interest that I read about psychologists who using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to see what parts of the brain are activated when people engage in making shopping decisions.

They put people in the machine, give them some money, present them with a series of shopping choices, and see what goes on in their brains.  It turns out that just before someone makes a decision to buy, an area of the brain associated with pleasurable experiences becomes active.

Conversely, when a subject wasn't attracted to the item offered or thought that the price was too high, another area of the brain would become active. That was the same area that would be active if you smelled something unpleasant. By the way, all items in this test were priced well below retail so they all were bargains.

The most interesting thing was that whether you are a tightwad or a spendthrift, it appears that buying decisions are based pretty much on instant emotional reactions.  So much for this careful, rational shopper who gathers all the facts and then makes a well thought out decision.

You can read more at http://tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/tightwads-and-spendthrifts/

Perhaps you would be more interested in seeing how you rate on the tightwads versus spendthrift scale.  To take the test, go to http://www.behavioraldecisionresearch.com/

Have fun!