Joe J Gladstone
Biographic Data
| ID | 4100899 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Joe J Gladstone |
| GIVEN NAMES | Joe J |
| FAMILY NAME | Gladstone |
| SIGNATURE | GLADSTONE J J |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Colorado Boulder |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-8783-3923 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 16 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 31 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 16 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2016 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Courageous but Indebted? Regional Courage is Associated With Higher Debt-to-Income Ratio in the United States
Geographic disparities in household indebtedness present an economic puzzle that traditional models inadequately explain. We examine whether regional psychological traits—specifically courage—help explain these differences. Analyzing data from 836,184 individuals across 1,220 U.S. counties, we tested whether areas with higher collective courage (willingness to act despite fear) exhibit higher debt-to-income ratios. Using spatial regression techni…
Sustainability Across the Status Spectrum: The S-Shaped Relationship Between Social Status and Green Consumption
The relationship between social status and green consumption is pivotal in addressing the climate crisis, yet previous research reveals conflicting perspectives. We analyze a nationally representative panel survey of more than 63,000 British respondents, tracking their green consumption, attitudes, and behaviors across multiple years. The findings reveal a previously unidentified S-shaped relationship between social status and green consumption, …
A glass half full of money: Dispositional optimism and wealth accumulation across the income spectrum
What drives some people to save more effectively for their future than others? This multistudy investigation (N = 143,461) explores how dispositional optimism-the generalized tendency to hold positive expectations about the future-shapes individuals' financial decisions and outcomes. Leveraging both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs across several countries, our findings reveal that optimism significantly predicts greater savings over time…
Buying (quality) time predicts relationship satisfaction
Seven studies examine the association between time-saving purchases (e.g., housecleaning and meal delivery services) and relationship satisfaction. Study 1 uses an 11-year longitudinal panel survey to show that increases in time-saving purchases predict long-term increases in relationship satisfaction. Study 2 replicates these findings with a 6-week daily diary study, demonstrating that time-saving purchases predict daily increases in relationshi…
When Paying Is (Even More) Painful: Personality-Based Heterogeneity in Consumption Responses to Economic Hardship
Economic downturns lead to declining consumer spending, but people vary considerably in their consumption responses. We investigate an important driver of this heterogeneity, personality. Trait level variation has been observed in the levels of psychological discomfort when making a purchase (“the pain of paying”). We test whether individuals who experience more pain when paying are not only reluctant spenders in general but also decrease spendin…
Does variety in hedonic spending improve happiness? Testing alternative causal mechanisms between hedonic variety and subjective well-being
Previous research has found only a small, inconsistent association between hedonic consumption and subjective well-being, often attributed to individuals adapting to the happiness gains from their purchases. Given that diverse experiences can reduce or avert hedonic adaptation, we hypothesized that variety in hedonic spending would be associated with greater well-being. This hypothesis was tested in four studies (total N = 2,920), using both self…
Leveraging psychological fit to encourage saving behavior
Despite their best intentions, most people fail to save enough for the future. In this research, we demonstrate that people are more successful at saving when their savings goals are aligned with their Big Five personality traits. Study 1 uses a nationally representative sample of 2,447 U.K. citizens to test whether people whose self-declared savings goals more closely match their Big Five personality also report higher levels of savings. We appl…
When Does Psychological Fit Matter? The Moderating Role of Price on Self-Brand Congruity
People prefer brands whose perceived image reflects their own psychological profile, a finding referred to as the self-brand congruity effect. For the first time, we test this effect in the field by utilizing over 17,000 real bank transaction records (Study 1, N = 405). We demonstrate that the strength of self-brand congruity is related to the financial resources a person must spend to acquire the brand, such that the effect holds only when the b…
Pooling finances and relationship satisfaction
38,534)-including both primary and secondary data-that couples who pool all of their money (compared to couples who keep all or some of their money separate) experience greater relationship satisfaction and are less likely to break up. Though joining bank accounts can benefit all couples, the effect is particularly strong among couples with scarce financial resources (i.e., those with low household income or who report feeling financially distres…
Beliefs about Whether Spending Implies Wealth
Spending is influenced by many factors. One that has received little attention is the meaning that people give to the act of spending. Spending money might imply that someone is relatively wealthy-since they have money to spend-or relatively poor-since spending can deplete assets. We show that people differ in the extent to which they believe that spending implies wealth (SIW beliefs). We develop a scale to measure these beliefs and find that peo…
Spending reflects not only who we are but also who we are around: The joint effects of individual and geographic personality on consumption
Interactionist theories are considered to have resolved the classic person-situation debate by demonstrating that human behavior is most accurately described as a function of both personal characteristics as well as environmental cues. According to these theories, personality traits form part of the personal characteristics that drive behavior. We suggest that psychological theory stands to gain from also considering personality traits as an impo…
Nice guys finish last: When and why agreeableness is associated with economic hardship
Recent research suggests that agreeable individuals experience greater financial hardship than their less agreeable peers. We explore the psychological mechanisms underlying this relationship and provide evidence that it is driven by agreeable individuals considering money to be less important, but not (as previously suggested) by agreeable individuals pursuing more cooperative negotiating styles. Taking an interactionist perspective, we further …
Love, Lies, and Money: Financial Infidelity in Romantic Relationships
Romantic relationships are built on trust, but partners are not always honest about their financial behavior-they may hide spending, debt, and savings from one another. This article introduces the construct of financial infidelity, defined as "engaging in any financial behavior expected to be disapproved of by one's romantic partner and intentionally failing to disclose this behavior to them." We develop and validate the Financial Infidelity Scal…
Who Are the Scrooges? Personality Predictors of Holiday Spending
The sharp increase in consumption over the holiday season has important economic implications, yet the psychology underlying this phenomenon has received limited attention. Here, we evaluate the role of individual differences in holiday spending patterns. Using 2 million transactions across 2,133 individuals, we investigate the relationship between the Big 5 personality traits on spending at Christmas. Zero-order correlations suggest holiday spen…
Making medications stick: Improving medication adherence by highlighting the personal health costs of non-compliance
Poor compliance of prescription medication is an ongoing public health crisis. Nearly half of patients do not take their medication as prescribed, harming their own health while also increasing public health care costs. Despite these detrimental consequences, prior research has struggled to establish cost-effective and scalable interventions to improve adherence rates. We suggest that one reason for the limited success of prior interventions is t…
How your bank balance buys happiness: The importance of “cash on hand” to life satisfaction
Could liquid wealth, or "cash on hand"-the balance of one's checking and savings accounts-be a better predictor of life satisfaction than income? In a field study using 585 U.K. bank customers, we paired individual Satisfaction With Life Scale responses with anonymized account data held by the bank, including the full account balances for each respondent. Individuals with higher liquid wealth were found to have more positive perceptions of their …
Love, Lies, and Money: Financial Infidelity in Romantic Relationships
Romantic relationships are built on trust, but partners are not always honest about their financial behavior-they may hide spending, debt, and savings from one another. This article introduces the construct of financial infidelity, defined as "engaging in any financial behavior expected to be disapproved of by one's romantic partner and intentionally failing to disclose this behavior to them." We develop and validate the Financial Infidelity Scal…
Spending reflects not only who we are but also who we are around: The joint effects of individual and geographic personality on consumption
Interactionist theories are considered to have resolved the classic person-situation debate by demonstrating that human behavior is most accurately described as a function of both personal characteristics as well as environmental cues. According to these theories, personality traits form part of the personal characteristics that drive behavior. We suggest that psychological theory stands to gain from also considering personality traits as an impo…
Nice guys finish last: When and why agreeableness is associated with economic hardship
Recent research suggests that agreeable individuals experience greater financial hardship than their less agreeable peers. We explore the psychological mechanisms underlying this relationship and provide evidence that it is driven by agreeable individuals considering money to be less important, but not (as previously suggested) by agreeable individuals pursuing more cooperative negotiating styles. Taking an interactionist perspective, we further …
Pooling finances and relationship satisfaction
38,534)-including both primary and secondary data-that couples who pool all of their money (compared to couples who keep all or some of their money separate) experience greater relationship satisfaction and are less likely to break up. Though joining bank accounts can benefit all couples, the effect is particularly strong among couples with scarce financial resources (i.e., those with low household income or who report feeling financially distres…
Leveraging psychological fit to encourage saving behavior
Despite their best intentions, most people fail to save enough for the future. In this research, we demonstrate that people are more successful at saving when their savings goals are aligned with their Big Five personality traits. Study 1 uses a nationally representative sample of 2,447 U.K. citizens to test whether people whose self-declared savings goals more closely match their Big Five personality also report higher levels of savings. We appl…
Beliefs about Whether Spending Implies Wealth
Spending is influenced by many factors. One that has received little attention is the meaning that people give to the act of spending. Spending money might imply that someone is relatively wealthy-since they have money to spend-or relatively poor-since spending can deplete assets. We show that people differ in the extent to which they believe that spending implies wealth (SIW beliefs). We develop a scale to measure these beliefs and find that peo…
A glass half full of money: Dispositional optimism and wealth accumulation across the income spectrum
What drives some people to save more effectively for their future than others? This multistudy investigation (N = 143,461) explores how dispositional optimism-the generalized tendency to hold positive expectations about the future-shapes individuals' financial decisions and outcomes. Leveraging both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs across several countries, our findings reveal that optimism significantly predicts greater savings over time…
Buying (quality) time predicts relationship satisfaction
Seven studies examine the association between time-saving purchases (e.g., housecleaning and meal delivery services) and relationship satisfaction. Study 1 uses an 11-year longitudinal panel survey to show that increases in time-saving purchases predict long-term increases in relationship satisfaction. Study 2 replicates these findings with a 6-week daily diary study, demonstrating that time-saving purchases predict daily increases in relationshi…
How your bank balance buys happiness: The importance of “cash on hand” to life satisfaction
Could liquid wealth, or "cash on hand"-the balance of one's checking and savings accounts-be a better predictor of life satisfaction than income? In a field study using 585 U.K. bank customers, we paired individual Satisfaction With Life Scale responses with anonymized account data held by the bank, including the full account balances for each respondent. Individuals with higher liquid wealth were found to have more positive perceptions of their …
Who Are the Scrooges? Personality Predictors of Holiday Spending
The sharp increase in consumption over the holiday season has important economic implications, yet the psychology underlying this phenomenon has received limited attention. Here, we evaluate the role of individual differences in holiday spending patterns. Using 2 million transactions across 2,133 individuals, we investigate the relationship between the Big 5 personality traits on spending at Christmas. Zero-order correlations suggest holiday spen…
Making medications stick: Improving medication adherence by highlighting the personal health costs of non-compliance
Poor compliance of prescription medication is an ongoing public health crisis. Nearly half of patients do not take their medication as prescribed, harming their own health while also increasing public health care costs. Despite these detrimental consequences, prior research has struggled to establish cost-effective and scalable interventions to improve adherence rates. We suggest that one reason for the limited success of prior interventions is t…
Spending reflects not only who we are but also who we are around: The joint effects of individual and geographic personality on consumption
Interactionist theories are considered to have resolved the classic person-situation debate by demonstrating that human behavior is most accurately described as a function of both personal characteristics as well as environmental cues. According to these theories, personality traits form part of the personal characteristics that drive behavior. We suggest that psychological theory stands to gain from also considering personality traits as an impo…
Nice guys finish last: When and why agreeableness is associated with economic hardship
Recent research suggests that agreeable individuals experience greater financial hardship than their less agreeable peers. We explore the psychological mechanisms underlying this relationship and provide evidence that it is driven by agreeable individuals considering money to be less important, but not (as previously suggested) by agreeable individuals pursuing more cooperative negotiating styles. Taking an interactionist perspective, we further …
Love, Lies, and Money: Financial Infidelity in Romantic Relationships
Romantic relationships are built on trust, but partners are not always honest about their financial behavior-they may hide spending, debt, and savings from one another. This article introduces the construct of financial infidelity, defined as "engaging in any financial behavior expected to be disapproved of by one's romantic partner and intentionally failing to disclose this behavior to them." We develop and validate the Financial Infidelity Scal…
Beliefs about Whether Spending Implies Wealth
Spending is influenced by many factors. One that has received little attention is the meaning that people give to the act of spending. Spending money might imply that someone is relatively wealthy-since they have money to spend-or relatively poor-since spending can deplete assets. We show that people differ in the extent to which they believe that spending implies wealth (SIW beliefs). We develop a scale to measure these beliefs and find that peo…
When Does Psychological Fit Matter? The Moderating Role of Price on Self-Brand Congruity
People prefer brands whose perceived image reflects their own psychological profile, a finding referred to as the self-brand congruity effect. For the first time, we test this effect in the field by utilizing over 17,000 real bank transaction records (Study 1, N = 405). We demonstrate that the strength of self-brand congruity is related to the financial resources a person must spend to acquire the brand, such that the effect holds only when the b…
Pooling finances and relationship satisfaction
38,534)-including both primary and secondary data-that couples who pool all of their money (compared to couples who keep all or some of their money separate) experience greater relationship satisfaction and are less likely to break up. Though joining bank accounts can benefit all couples, the effect is particularly strong among couples with scarce financial resources (i.e., those with low household income or who report feeling financially distres…
Leveraging psychological fit to encourage saving behavior
Despite their best intentions, most people fail to save enough for the future. In this research, we demonstrate that people are more successful at saving when their savings goals are aligned with their Big Five personality traits. Study 1 uses a nationally representative sample of 2,447 U.K. citizens to test whether people whose self-declared savings goals more closely match their Big Five personality also report higher levels of savings. We appl…
When Paying Is (Even More) Painful: Personality-Based Heterogeneity in Consumption Responses to Economic Hardship
Economic downturns lead to declining consumer spending, but people vary considerably in their consumption responses. We investigate an important driver of this heterogeneity, personality. Trait level variation has been observed in the levels of psychological discomfort when making a purchase (“the pain of paying”). We test whether individuals who experience more pain when paying are not only reluctant spenders in general but also decrease spendin…
Does variety in hedonic spending improve happiness? Testing alternative causal mechanisms between hedonic variety and subjective well-being
Previous research has found only a small, inconsistent association between hedonic consumption and subjective well-being, often attributed to individuals adapting to the happiness gains from their purchases. Given that diverse experiences can reduce or avert hedonic adaptation, we hypothesized that variety in hedonic spending would be associated with greater well-being. This hypothesis was tested in four studies (total N = 2,920), using both self…
Courageous but Indebted? Regional Courage is Associated With Higher Debt-to-Income Ratio in the United States
Geographic disparities in household indebtedness present an economic puzzle that traditional models inadequately explain. We examine whether regional psychological traits—specifically courage—help explain these differences. Analyzing data from 836,184 individuals across 1,220 U.S. counties, we tested whether areas with higher collective courage (willingness to act despite fear) exhibit higher debt-to-income ratios. Using spatial regression techni…
Sustainability Across the Status Spectrum: The S-Shaped Relationship Between Social Status and Green Consumption
The relationship between social status and green consumption is pivotal in addressing the climate crisis, yet previous research reveals conflicting perspectives. We analyze a nationally representative panel survey of more than 63,000 British respondents, tracking their green consumption, attitudes, and behaviors across multiple years. The findings reveal a previously unidentified S-shaped relationship between social status and green consumption, …
A glass half full of money: Dispositional optimism and wealth accumulation across the income spectrum
What drives some people to save more effectively for their future than others? This multistudy investigation (N = 143,461) explores how dispositional optimism-the generalized tendency to hold positive expectations about the future-shapes individuals' financial decisions and outcomes. Leveraging both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs across several countries, our findings reveal that optimism significantly predicts greater savings over time…
Buying (quality) time predicts relationship satisfaction
Seven studies examine the association between time-saving purchases (e.g., housecleaning and meal delivery services) and relationship satisfaction. Study 1 uses an 11-year longitudinal panel survey to show that increases in time-saving purchases predict long-term increases in relationship satisfaction. Study 2 replicates these findings with a 6-week daily diary study, demonstrating that time-saving purchases predict daily increases in relationshi…
Psychology (15 works) · Social Psychology (13 works) · Economics (8 works) · Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction (8 works) · Personality (7 works) · Social Psychology (7 works) · Big Five personality traits (6 works) · Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification (4 works) · Financial Literacy, Pension, Retirement Analysis (4 works) · PsycINFO (4 works)