“These pretzels are making me thirsty” so I’ll have water tomorrow: A partial replication and extension of adults’ induced-state episodic foresight

Abstract

The ability to consider the future under the influence of an induced current state is known as induced-state episodic foresight. One study to date has examined adults’ induced episodic foresight and found that adults’ (like children’s) preferences for the future are related to their current state such that they predicted wanting water (vs. pretzels) in the future when experiencing a current state of thirst [1]. We attempted to replicate these findings in adults. In Study 1, adults (N = 198) in a laboratory selected pretzels for tomorrow at the same rate (around 20%) in an experimental condition (thirst induced) and a control condition (thirst not induced). In a lecture, 32% of adults preferred pretzels for tomorrow without thirst induction (Study 2, N = 63). Partially replicating Kramer et al. [1], we found that a minority of adults preferred pretzels (vs. water) when experiencing a current state of thirst. However, in contrast to their findings, our results showed that when thirst was not induced, a minority of adults also preferred pretzels for tomorrow. Thus, adults’ future preference was similar regardless of thirst induction. We also tested thirst as a mechanism for adults’ preference for the future and found that across conditions adults’ thirst predicted their choice of water (vs. pretzels) for the future. In sum, our results partially replicated Kramer et al. [1] by showing the current state, regardless of thirst induction, predicts adults’ choices for the future.