Work

Scarcity and Cognitive Function around Payday: A Conceptual and Empirical Analysis

Year: 2020

Type: article

Abstract: The ongoing demands around smoothing consumption with low and sporadic income flows in contexts of scarcity entail that minor changes in cash flows can have big psychological and behavioral effects. In this article, we examine the behavioral and cognitive impact of routine periodic fluctuations in financial status of the poor around paydays. In particular, we draw a link between a range of documented behaviors and an increase in scarcity-induced cognitive load, closer to payday. Our results, along with those of others briefly reviewed, illustrate the outsized role in scarcity contexts of otherwise trivial changes in income flows and highlight the importance of carefully structured research designs in studying the myriad challenges in scarcity contexts.

Source: Journal of the Association for Consumer Research

DOI: 10.1086/709885

Authors: Anandi Mani, Sendhil Mullainathan, Eldar Shafir, Jiaying Zhao

Institutions: University of Oxford, University of Chicago, Princeton University, University of British Columbia

Language: English

Topic: Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics

Subfield: General Decision Sciences

Field: Decision Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: No poverty

Open Access status: green

OpenAlex ID: W3030098916

FWCI: 7.216

Cites: 19

Cited by: 78

Related to: 10