Medical Decisions to Benefit Self and Others
Many decisions affect outcomes for others as well as the self, and the ones who benefit from the actions may differ from the ones who bear the costs. For example, seasonal flu mortality is greatest among the elderly, but young people are responsible for most of the transmission of the virus. Thus, vaccination by the young benefits the elderly more than the young themselves. Two studies (a scenario study and a game theoretic laboratory study) examine the conditions under which individuals will vaccinate in order to benefit others. A third study examines value for outcomes to others in the context of allocating scarce health resources, demonstrating that the metrics people use to value life depend on question format. These studies illuminate some of the psychological processes underlying decisions that benefit others.
Dr. Chapman is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at Rutgers University. You can learn more about Dr. Chapman's research at http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~gbc/
