Prosocial Spending and Well-Being: Revisiting a Recollection-Based Paradigm

Abstract

In the present research, we attempted a replication of a finding reported by Aknin et al. (2013) wherein recalling a previous purchase made for another individual (prosocial spending) led to greater happiness than recalling a previous purchase made for oneself (personal spending). We tested this finding online with one-thousand nine-hundred fifty Americans as part of a large, preregistered replication report. Upon completing baseline measures of happiness, respondents were randomly assigned to either recall a past spending experience that was prosocial in nature or recall a past spending experience that was personal in nature. Participants then reported their current well-being. Results indicate that, at least in our current application of the recollection paradigm, the emotional benefits of recalling an instance of prosocial spending are not any greater than those of recalling an instance of personal spending, controlling for baseline happiness. Thus, the original result from Aknin et al. (2013) was not replicated.