TO DISCOUNT OR NOT TO DISCOUNT

This thesis examines intertemporal decision-making in a critical way. Minor subjects of controversy regarding a phenomenon called discounting the future are discussed. The normative use of different discount rates in different circumstances such as different groups of people, different goods and losses and gains are defended, just as using past utility in future decisions and the possibility of zero and negative discounting. Key finding is the substitution of time preference per se for confounding factors loosely correlated with time. The use of confounding factors allows for a rational way to discount the future.