Decisions for a future self: Identity-relevant attributes rated more important when anticipating intervening self-change

Evidence indicates people more strongly prioritize present over future outcomes when they feel dissimilar to their imagined future self (i.e. low future self-continuity). However, the role of future self-continuity in judgment and decision making beyond intertemporal trade-offs has received limited empirical attention. Guided by construal level theory and perspectives on identity processes, we hypothesized individuals would attach greater importance to the identity implications of future decision outcomes (e.g. choice of holiday destination) when they perceived their present and future selves as dissimilar. Participants (four studies; total N = 1,120) reported perceived similarity and degree of connectedness to their future self and rated the importance of various future travel and job attributes. Half of the attributes provided concrete benefits (e.g. staying in comfortable and modern accommodation) while the other half carried desirable identity implications (e.g. giving back to local communities). Results showed lower future self-similarity was selectively associated with higher perceived importance of identity-relevant (and not concrete) attributes. Perceived connectedness was less consistently related to identity-attribute importance ratings across choice contexts and did not always form a reliable composite with future self-similarity. Findings offer initial steps toward a more comprehensive account of how anticipated self-change relates to judgment and decision-making processes.