Creierul nu tratează toți banii la fel. Descoperirea care explică de ce uneori îi cheltuim mai ușor

People perceive money differently based on its source and context, as confirmed by a study involving 5,589 participants across 21 countries. The concept of mental accounting suggests individuals categorize money subjectively, affecting their financial decisions. For instance, $100 earned from overtime is viewed differently than a tax refund of the same amount. The research, published in the Journal of Consumer Research, is the first large-scale test of mental accounting theory. It found that savings are perceived differently depending on the total price of a product, with smaller savings feeling more significant in lower-priced items. The effects of mental accounting were weaker in low-income countries, indicating that those with less discretionary spending are more sensitive to the actual value of money.