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Getting to the Top of Mind: How Reminders Increase Saving

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Author Info

  • Dean Karlan
  • Margaret McConnell
  • Sendhil Mullainathan
  • Jonathan Zinman

Abstract

We develop and test a simple model of limited attention in intertemporal choice. The model posits that individuals fully attend to consumption in all periods but fail to attend to some future lumpy expenditure opportunities. This asymmetry generates some predictions that overlap with other models of present-bias. Our model also generates the unique predictions that reminders will increase saving, and that a reminder that makes a specific expenditure more salient will be especially effective. We find support for these predictions in three field experiments that randomly assign reminders to new savings account holders.

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Bibliographic Info

Paper provided by Center for Retirement Research in its series Working Papers, Center for Retirement Research at Boston College with number wp2010-2.

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Length: 43 pages
Date of creation: Apr 2010
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:crr:crrwps:wp2010-2

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  1. Esther Duflo & Michael Kremer & Jonathan Robinson, 2011. "Nudging Farmers to Use Fertilizer: Theory and Experimental Evidence from Kenya," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(6), pages 2350-90, October.
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  14. Nava Ashaf & Dean Karlan & Wesley Yin, 2006. "Deposit collectors," Natural Field Experiments 00205, The Field Experiments Website.
  15. Brigitte C. Madrian & Dennis F. Shea, 2001. "THE POWER OF SUGGESTION: INERTIA IN 401(k) PARTICIPATION AND SAVINGS BEHAVIOR," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 116(4), pages 1149-1187, November.
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Blog mentions

As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
  1. Nudge Database IV
    by Mark Egan in Economics, Psychology and Policy on 2013-04-14 16:17:00
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Cited by:
  1. Victor Stango & Jonathan Zinman, 2011. "Limited and Varying Consumer Attention: Evidence from Shocks to the Salience of Bank Overdraft Fees," NBER Working Papers 17028, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  2. Dena Ringold & Alaka Holla & Margaret Koziol & Santhosh Srinivasan, 2012. "Citizens and Service Delivery : Assessing the Use of Social Accountability Approaches in the Human Development Sectors," World Bank Publications, The World Bank, number 2377, 5.
  3. Buehren, Niklas, 2011. "Allocating Cash Savings and the Role of Information: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Uganda," Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference, Berlin 2011 16, Verein für Socialpolitik, Research Committee Development Economics.
  4. Brune, Lasse & Gine, Xavier & Goldberg, Jessica & Yang, Dean, 2011. "Commitments to save : a field experiment in rural Malawi," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5748, The World Bank.
  5. Altmann, Steffen & Traxler, Christian, 2012. "Nudges at the Dentist," IZA Discussion Papers 6699, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
  6. Michael Hamp & Carolina Laureti, 2011. "Balancing flexibility and discipline in microfinance: Innovative financial products that benefit clients and service providers," Working Papers CEB 11-044, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
  7. Pascaline Dupas & Jonathan Robinson, 2011. "Why Don't the Poor Save More? Evidence from Health Savings Experiments," NBER Working Papers 17255, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  8. B. Douglas Bernheim & Andrey Fradkin & Igor Popov, 2011. "The Welfare Economics of Default Options: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis of 401(k) Plans," NBER Working Papers 17587, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

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