Today I bought some clothes at an upscale retailer in Muscatine. The woman ahead of me was paying for her purchases with cash. She was digging through her purse for a penny to get the exact change. I took her 5 minutes to search for a penny. I figured that if she was a minimum wage earner her time must be worth 10 cents a minute. So she spent 50 cents to get the exact change. I suspect she thinks she's a thrifty shopper. It's been my experience that most women always dig for the exact change even though a long line forms behind them. Why do women dig for the exact change when it would be faster to write a check, use a debit card, or receive change back?
I don't have an answer. But I'd like to make a laundry list. (1) Women pay more to have their blouses dry cleaned then men. Is it possible that women are just different? (2) Women make less than men and their time preference heavily discounts the future. (3) Women have a lower marginal cost of time so they consume more of it. (4) The expected value of the benefits are aysmetrical to the actual benefits.
I welcome more suggestions.
How old was the lady? Maybe she afraid of technology and/or has never written a check. It is hard to believe but these people still exist in the 21st century. I guess you can blame medicine!?
ReplyDeleteThe lady was 40ish...but i've seen this behavior with most women...
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