Intuition would suggest that for the same input, most people would prefer remuneration of $100,000 ahead of $50,000. My intuition tells me that this preference would be even more significant for educated professionals who know the value of money. It appears, however, that this is not always the case. Indeed, a Harvard University study suggests […]

Intuition would suggest that for the same input, most people would prefer remuneration of $100,000 ahead of $50,000. My intuition tells me that this preference would be even more significant for educated professionals who know the value of money. It appears, however, that this is not always the case. Indeed, a Harvard University study suggests that it is not always the case. The study in question, researchers asked students and faculty to choose between two options: Option 1 – earning $50,000 a year when everyone else around them makes $25,000 Option 2 – earning $100,000 a year when everyone else around them makes $200,000  Of those surveyed, 50% chose option 1 – thus placing a higher priority on earning more than others than their own income. By any measure, this is counterintuitive.  Would you have guessed this outcome? Probably not. But now that you have seen these findings, you can, with some…