Neurological and behavioural correlates of construal in economic decision-making under cognitive load

Abstract

Construal level has been shown to influence economic decisions, affecting both risk perception and risk-taking. However, there has been some inconsistency as to the exact effects of high/low construal on economic decisions, with some findings suggesting that construal might interact with cognitive load and self-control in a risk-taking context. In two experiments, the current paper examines behavioural and neurological (using functional near-infrared spectroscopy) responses to high and low construal manipulations during and economic decision task, under experimentally-induced cognitive load. We also examine the how construal interacts with self-control, financial literacy and subjective numeracy to predict lateral pre-frontal cortex (LPFC) activation during these decisions. Some of the behavioural results supported previous findings that under cognitive load, high construal prompts risk aversion. Neurological data supported the theory that construal promotes risk sensitivity. Self-control, financial literacy and subjective numeracy were all found to interact with construal in predicting LPFC activation during decision-making. These findings extend our understanding of how construal effects economic decisions under cognitive load while also providing new insights into how self-control, financial literacy and subjective numeracy might interact with construal in this context.