A characterization of delay averse Choquet integrals for intertemporal analysis

Abstract In an intertemporal framework with a finite horizon, we pose the problem of characterizing which discrete Choquet integrals satisfy strong aversion to delayed rewards. This property is arguably a minimal condition for a reasonable evaluation of vectors of rewards received at successive periods of time. We relate this property to other distributional axioms discussed for this framework. Particularly, we show that for monotonic evaluations, delay-aversion is equivalent to consistency with cumulative domination. Then, we define a property (temporal anti-buoyancy) and we prove that it is necessary and sufficient for a capacity to define a strongly delay-averse Choquet integral.