Models of reference-dependent preferences propose that individuals evaluate outcomes as gains or losses relative to a neutral reference point. We test for reference dependence in a large dataset of marathon finishing times (n = 9,524,071). Models of reference-dependent preferences such as...

People, across a wide range of personal and professional domains, need to detect change accurately. Previous research has documented systematic shortcomings in doing so, in particular, a pattern of over- and under-reaction to indications of change, resulting from a tendency to overweight signals...

Going to the gym is likely to be judged more positively if it is known that the gym-goer is vaccinated against COVID-19 than unvaccinated. We investigate how people make sense of vaccination-contingent behaviors --- behaviors, such as going to the gym or a bar, which are judged differently...

Although many empirical investigations have documented reference-dependent preferences, most studies of reference dependence have considered only status quo reference points. In a large-scale field study of marathon runners, we test whether goals, a non-status quo reference point, act similarly...