The study looked at how people in South Africa spend their money and whether their spending is influenced more by what they expect to earn in the future or by their current income. They used data from 1984 to 2015 and found that people's spending habits in South Africa are more tied to their past income than their current income. This means that changes in income don't immediately affect how much people spend. The researchers also found that traditional economic theories about spending may not apply well in South Africa, suggesting that policies aimed at boosting spending might not work as expected in this country.