Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/202446 
Year of Publication: 
2017
Series/Report no.: 
Volkswirtschaftliche Diskussionsreihe No. 334
Publisher: 
Universität Augsburg, Institut für Volkswirtschaftslehre, Augsburg
Abstract: 
Intergenerational correlations of time preference are well documented. However, there is still limited empirical evidence about the role of genetics in this transmission process. In our paper, we use data on roughly 3,000 twins from the German TwinLife project to estimate the heritability of time preference. We rely on an experimentally validated survey measure of temporal discounting, namely, self-assessed patience. The analysis of monozygotic and dizygotic twins enables us to apply standard biometric models. We find that genetic differences explain up to 23 percent of individual variation in patience. Whereas the additive genetic effect and common environmental effects are of minor importance, a major dominant genetic effect is present. These results indicate a notable degree of genetic influence on economic time preferences.
Subjects: 
Twin study
genetics
heritability
patience
time preference
JEL: 
D10
D90
J10
Z10
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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