A nudge isn't always enough

Bronchetti, Erin Todd, Thomas S. Dee, David B. Huffman, and Ellen Magenheim. “A nudge isn't always enough”. Issue in Brief 12-21, Chestnut Hill, Mass.: Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, December 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/2345/bc-ir:104687.
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Abstract

The brief's key findings are: (1) Defaults, such as 401(k) auto-enrollment, have encouraged people to adopt behaviors that align with their intentions. (2) Researchers have begun to explore what happens when the default may not align with intentions. A new experiment tested whether defaults could encourage low-income tax filers to invest about 10 percent of their refunds in U.S. Savings Bonds. (4) The default did not work: only 9 percent of the experimental group purchased bonds, no different than the control group. (5) The evidence suggests a likely explanation: participants had plans to spend their refunds.

Title
A nudge isn't always enough
Author
Bronchetti, Erin Todd
Dee, Thomas S.
Huffman, David B.
Magenheim, Ellen
Center
Center for Retirement Research
Genre
report
Date Issued
December 2012
Publisher
Center for Retirement Research at Boston College
Series Title
Issue in Brief
Series Number
12-21
Version Identification
Version of record.
Persistent Link
http://hdl.handle.net/2345/bc-ir:104687
Use Restrictions
These materials are made available for use in research, teaching and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source. The publisher or original authors may retain copyright to the materials.
Subject
Financing retirement

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