The effect of cognitive load on economic decision-making: a replication attempt

B-Tier
Journal: Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization
Year: 2023
Volume: 210
Issue: C
Pages: 226-242

Authors (4)

Ball, Sheryl (Virginia Polytechnic Institute) Katz, Benjamin (not in RePEc) Li, Flora (not in RePEc) Smith, Alec (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

0.503 = (α=2.01 / 4 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

When cognitive load exceeds cognitive capacity, individuals may make poorer decisions, especially when substantial deliberation is required. Deck and Jahedi’s (2015) influential work on cognitive load found that individuals whose arithmetic performance is most impacted by high cognitive load become more risk averse, less patient and more subject to the anchoring effect. Since results of cognitive load manipulation studies are mixed, replication of influential studies is essential to strengthen our understanding of the effects of cognitive load. In this paper, we attempt to closely replicate Experiment 1 in Deck and Jahedi (2015). Though we observe similar effects of cognitive load on arithmetic performance, we fail to replicate their overall results on risky choice and impatience. While we are unable to clearly identify the reasons for this non-replication, the evidence points to subtle differences in the allocation of attention and effort across subject pools.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:jeborg:v:210:y:2023:i:c:p:226-242
Journal Field
Theory
Author Count
4
Added to Database
2026-01-24