Choice Architecture to Improve Financial Decision Making

A-Tier
Journal: Review of Economics and Statistics
Year: 2021
Volume: 103
Issue: 1
Pages: 102-118

Authors (6)

Jeffrey Carpenter (not in RePEc) Emiliano Huet-Vaughn (not in RePEc) Peter Hans Matthews (Middlebury College) Andrea Robbett (Middlebury College) Dustin Beckett (not in RePEc) Julian Jamison (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

0.670 = (α=2.01 / 6 authors) × 2.0x A-tier

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

Abstract

We exploit the principles of choice architecture to evaluate interventions in the market for reloadable prepaid cards. Participants are randomized into three card menu presentation treatments—the market status quo, a regulation-inspired reform, or an enhanced reform designed to minimize attribute overload—and offered choices based on prior structural estimation of individual preferences. Consumers routinely choose incorrectly under the status quo, with tentative evidence that the regulation-inspired presentation may increase best card choice and clear evidence that the enhanced reform reduces worst card choice. Welfare analysis suggests the regulation-inspired presentation offers modest gains, while the enhanced policy generates substantial benefits.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:tpr:restat:v:103:y:2021:i:1:p:102-118
Journal Field
General
Author Count
6
Added to Database
2026-01-25