Present bias: The present self trumps the future self
We tend to prefer immediate rewards at the expense of future rewards.
Do you regularly eat unhealthy snacks despite your intention to eat healthier?
Have you ever impulsively spent money on things you didn't really need?
Do you often choose immediate comfort over the effort required for physical activity?
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Present bias is our tendency to prefer immediate rewards at the expense of future rewards.
Immediate rewards tend to be preferred over future rewards, even if these future rewards may be objectively more beneficial or significant. This bias can cause people to make choices and take actions that are not beneficial to their future happiness and health. Present bias is a specific form of temporal discounting: our tendency to prefer smaller, immediate rewards over larger, delayed rewards.
Evolutionary origins
The origins of present bias can be traced back to our evolutionary heritage.
From an evolutionary point of view, our brains have an innate tendency to seek immediate rewards. Our ancestors, from non-human ancestors to hunter-gatherers, lived in immediate-return environments in which their actions produced immediate, clear results. To survive in a world of scarce resources and many dangers, they had to constantly focus on the present or immediate future, to meet their immediate needs such as food, water, shelter, and protection from predators. The distant future was of less importance to them because it was highly uncertain.
Nowadays we live in a delayed-return environment. Many of our actions and choices do not benefit us immediately, sometimes taking years to yield the intended rewards. Our brains have not evolved to deal with such delayed rewards, which can lead to suboptimal decision making in modern environments.
The present self and the future self
The present self and the future self are like two sides of the same person. The present self refers to the person you are right now, in the present moment. The future self refers to the person you will be at some point in the future, possibly years or decades from now. Both selves refer to the same person, of course, but to understand present bias it is helpful to see them as entirely different persons with different needs and interests. Immediate rewards benefit the present self, while delayed rewards benefit the future self.
The present self prioritises decisions and actions that deliver immediate rewards, such as instant pleasure, relaxation, comfort, or satisfaction. For example, enjoying delicious food, lounging on the couch while watching entertaining series or TV shows, playing video games late into the night, indulging in sweet snacks, impulsive shopping, scrolling through social media or engaging in addictive behaviours such as smoking or gambling.
The future self would like the present self to make decisions and take actions that yield delayed rewards, such as future health and well-being, financial security and long-term relationships. It wants the present self to plan for the long term, delay gratification, save for retirement, exercise regularly, eat nutritious foods, get enough sleep, manage stress, save money, invest for the future, and invest in social connections.
The interests of the present self and the future self are often (but not always) in conflict, because many choices require a trade-off between the present and the future. Money saved for future financial security cannot be spent on immediately rewarding activities such as shopping or going on holiday. Maintaining a balanced diet for long-term health benefits requires sacrificing instant gratification, such as eating an ice cream for dessert or indulging in sugary drinks.
If an action does not produce an immediate reward, the costs are to the present self and any benefits to the future self. The future self feels like a stranger to the present self. It’s an imaginary person, who does not yet exist, who the present self has never met and never will meet. Why would the present self make sacrifices for the sake of someone it barely knows? What has the future self ever done for the present self? Nothing! And it never will. So why not light another cigarette or spend money on luxury items instead of saving it for later?
Balance
To live a happy and fulfilling life, it is crucial to understand and consciously balance the interests and needs of both the present self and the future self. While it is important to consider our long-term goals, we should not neglect the needs of the present.
The present moment is where we experience life. Neglecting the needs of the present self can lead to feelings of stress, dissatisfaction, frustration and unhappiness. For our emotional and physical well-being, we must take time for activities that bring enjoyment, relaxation, gratitude, and fulfilment in the present moment. To live authentically, our actions, which always take place in the present moment, must be aligned with our needs and goals, life purpose and personal values.
How to reduce the adverse impact of the present bias
Protecting ourselves from the negative consequences of biases can be tiresome and impractical, but it can be worth it when the stakes are high. In this case, the stakes can be very high, as many decisions of the present self affect the well-being, relationships and financial stability of the future self.
⚒️ Become aware of the present bias
Becoming aware of the potential adverse influence of the present bias is the first step in reducing its impact.
When making a decision that involves a trade-off between immediate rewards or costs and delayed benefits or consequences, take a step back to examine whether the influence of the present bias could lead to adverse consequences for your future self. Ask yourself questions such as:
🙂 Do I prioritise immediate rewards over long-term benefits? Evaluate whether you favour short-term gains at the expense of potential long-term benefits.
🙂 Am I overlooking potential future negative consequences? Consider whether you are ignoring potential negative consequences that may arise in the future as a result of your current decision.
🙂 What would I advise a close friend or family member in a similar situation? Consider what you would advise a close friend or family member facing a similar decision and whether that advice aligns with your current approach.
🤔 Is this decision truly aligned with my needs and goals, life purpose and personal values? Assess whether the decision aligns with what you genuinely want or need, separate from any tendency to favour immediate rewards at the expense of future benefits.
If you become aware that the influence of the present bias may have negative consequences for your future self, you may want to take steps to mitigate its effects so that you can make a more balanced evaluation of your options.
⚒️ Increase your connection with your future self
The more connected the present self feels with the future self, the more likely the present self will want to make sacrifices for the sake of the future self. People who see their future self as a family member or close friend are more likely to engage in behaviours that will benefit them in the long run.
Researchers have explored different ways to help people feel more connected with their future self by making their future self more salient and vivid. The results of this empirical research suggest that people for whom the future self seems less like a fictional stranger: save more for the long term, behave more ethically, procrastinate less, engage more in career planning, and delay gratification more often.
Connecting with your future self can make a difference when you make a decision that has long-term consequences, such as signing up for the gym or saving for retirement, because it focusses your attention on future consequences. Try out the techniques below to find out if they work for you:
👉 Write a letter from your future self to your present self. Writing such a letter allows you to see the world from the perspective of your future self and can help you identify what is really important to you, such as your needs and goals, life purpose and personal values.
Choose a time frame that allows for significant progress toward your goals, or that aligns with major life events or transitions you anticipate. A time frame of 3 to 10 years is often appropriate, as this period provides sufficient time for meaningful changes to occur in your life.
In your letter you can consider aspects such as: How are you doing? Where do you live? With whom? Which people are most important to you? How do you earn your money? In what role? What skills have you developed? How fit and healthy are you? What are your hobbies? What do you value? How do you take care of your physical and emotional health? How do you look back on the choices you have made? What advice would you give your present self?
👉 Confront yourself with a digitally processed photo that shows what your future self will look like. Use an app that generates realistic images of what you would look like in old age (after checking its privacy policy). It may come as a shock to you to see your future self with prominent wrinkles, sagging skin, and age spots. Imagine the life your future self is living, using the aspects mentioned in the previous item.
⚒️ Use commitment devices
Commitment devices are strategies you use to commit yourself to certain courses of action that align with your needs and goals, life purpose and personal values. These devices often include self-imposed restrictions to make unwanted behaviour more difficult, or penalties to make unwanted behaviour less satisfying.
Ulysses pacts
A Ulysses pact (also called Ulysses contract) is a voluntary choice you make in the present to limit what you can do in the future. It is a way to bind yourself to behaviour that will benefit you in the long run. The term is derived from the Greek myth of Odysseus (Ulysses in Roman mythology) who commanded his sailors to tie him to the mast of his ship so that he could resist the temptation of the Sirens' song and sail safely past the Sirens' island.
For example, leave your cash and payment cards at home so you can't buy anything when you go out. Don’t buy unhealthy snacks while shopping, so that you don't have them at home when you crave them. Set app-specific time limits or use app blockers to limit access to time-consuming or distracting apps. Keep your mobile phone in a time lock container or safe during the periods you don’t want to be distracted by it. Set up automatic monthly deposits into a savings account to save money consistently.
Behavioural contracts
A behavioural contract (also called habit contract or commitment contract) is an agreement between you and one or two people in which you specify the behaviour you will adhere to, and the immediate, tangible, concrete punishment for not keeping your commitment. This penalty must be severe enough to influence your behaviour, but no so severe that you won’t enter into the agreement.
For example, a contract with your gym buddy or personal trainer in which you commit to a daily workout of 30 minutes. If you miss a workout, you have to donate 10 euros to a charity you don't like. You can use commitment contract platforms like stickK to help you achieve your goals.
⚒️ Get an accountability partner
An accountability partner is someone who helps you stay on track with the commitments you’ve made to yourself. You share your commitment with your accountability partner, who contacts you regularly to discuss your progress, reminds you of deadlines and goals you have set for yourself, and encourages you. Involving someone else in your goals increases your commitment to achieving them because you are a social animal. In general, you care about what others think of you and don't want to disappoint them.
⚒️ Reframe present day sacrifices
Different ways of presenting the same information (frames) tend to lead to different perceptions, interpretations, judgements, emotions, decisions and actions (the framing effect). By reframing the sacrifices of the current self, it can feel psychologically easier to undertake them. People are much more likely to sign up for an automatic savings plan if the automatic savings amount is, for example, framed as $5 per day than if it is framed as $150 per month, even though both amounts per month are about the same.
Reframe your present day sacrifices as investments in your future happiness and well-being, as opportunities for character building and personal growth, and as opportunities to learn more about what really matters to you. Reframing sacrifices as actions that align with your life purpose and personal values can make them feel more meaningful.
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We tend to favour immediate rewards at the expense of future rewards. This can undermine the achievement of long-term benefits such as future well-being and financial security. Reducing the impact of present bias requires conscious effort and applying techniques such as increasing your connection with your future self, using commitment devices, getting an accountability partner and reframing present day sacrifices.
References
Podcasts featuring Hal Hershfield:
👉 You 2.0: Your Future Is Now, Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam
👉 Podcast #914: Set Your Future Self Up for Success, The Art of Manliness, Brett McKay
👉 Episodes S26 E1 until E5, The Next Big Idea Daily, Rufus Griscom
4 Tips to Empathize with "Future You", Psychology Today, by Shahram Heshmat, Ph.D.
How to Stop the Present Bias From Ruining Your Future, Psychology Today, by Shawn M. Burn Ph.D.
My blogposts about biases and heuristics are available here:
https://www.a3lifedesign.com/blog-english/category/Biases
