While satisfaction is a heavily researched construct in consumer behavior, the primary focus has been on expectations and product performance, with limited attention to how both the time at which costs are incurred and the type of costs incurred might influence satisfaction assessments. The present research applies a mental accounting model to suggest that the timing of costs (i.e., with respect to accounting periods and budgeting periods) and the nature of costs (i.e., whether costs are temporal or monetary) influence both the salience of costs and satisfaction with product performance. Specifically, for costs of time, but not money, accounting periods influence both cost salience and satisfaction with positive product performance outcomes. For costs of money, but not time, budgeting periods influence both cost salience and satisfaction with positive product performance outcomes. Eight studies examine these asymmetries and the process by which they arise.
","abstract_html":"<p>While satisfaction is a heavily researched construct in consumer behavior, the primary focus has been on expectations and product performance, with limited attention to how both the time at which costs are incurred and the type of costs incurred might influence satisfaction assessments. The present research applies a mental accounting model to suggest that the timing of costs (i.e., with respect to accounting periods and budgeting periods) and the nature of costs (i.e., whether costs are temporal or monetary) influence both the salience of costs and satisfaction with product performance. Specifically, for costs of time, but not money, accounting periods influence both cost salience and satisfaction with positive product performance outcomes. For costs of money, but not time, budgeting periods influence both cost salience and satisfaction with positive product performance outcomes. Eight studies examine these asymmetries and the process by which they arise.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Soster, Robin L."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Ph.D.","degree_level":"Campus Access Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Moore School of Business","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["William O Bearden","Ashwani Monga"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2011,"date_issued":"2011-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2011-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:37:21Z","subjects":["Business","Business Administration, Management, and Operations","Consumer Behavior","Mental Accounting","Satisfaction","Time-Money Differences"],"languages":[],"rights":["© 2011, Robin L. Soster"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/474","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["William O Bearden","Ashwani Monga"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Soster, Robin L."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Moore School of Business"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Campus Access Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph.D."]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Business","Business Administration, Management, and Operations","Consumer Behavior","Mental Accounting","Satisfaction","Time-Money Differences"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["© 2011, Robin L. Soster"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/474"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["While satisfaction is a heavily researched construct in consumer behavior, the primary focus has been on expectations and product performance, with limited attention to how both the time at which costs are incurred and the type of costs incurred might influence satisfaction assessments. The present research applies a mental accounting model to suggest that the timing of costs (i.e., with respect to accounting periods and budgeting periods) and the nature of costs (i.e., whether costs are temporal or monetary) influence both the salience of costs and satisfaction with product performance. Specifically, for costs of time, but not money, accounting periods influence both cost salience and satisfaction with positive product performance outcomes. For costs of money, but not time, budgeting periods influence both cost salience and satisfaction with positive product performance outcomes. Eight studies examine these asymmetries and the process by which they arise.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Costs of Time Versus Money: A Mental Accounting View of Satisfaction"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["William O Bearden","Ashwani Monga"],"dc:creator":["Soster, Robin L."],"dc:description.abstract":["While satisfaction is a heavily researched construct in consumer behavior, the primary focus has been on expectations and product performance, with limited attention to how both the time at which costs are incurred and the type of costs incurred might influence satisfaction assessments. The present research applies a mental accounting model to suggest that the timing of costs (i.e., with respect to accounting periods and budgeting periods) and the nature of costs (i.e., whether costs are temporal or monetary) influence both the salience of costs and satisfaction with product performance. Specifically, for costs of time, but not money, accounting periods influence both cost salience and satisfaction with positive product performance outcomes. For costs of money, but not time, budgeting periods influence both cost salience and satisfaction with positive product performance outcomes. Eight studies examine these asymmetries and the process by which they arise.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/474"],"dc:rights":["© 2011, Robin L. Soster"],"dc:subject":["Business","Business Administration, Management, and Operations","Consumer Behavior","Mental Accounting","Satisfaction","Time-Money Differences"],"dc:title":["Costs of Time Versus Money: A Mental Accounting View of Satisfaction"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Moore School of Business"],"thesis:degree_level":["Campus Access Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ph.D."]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:37:21Z"}