Cognitive Abilities and Household Financial Decision Making

Sumit Agarwal and Bhashkar Mazumder

American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 2013, vol. 5, issue 1, 193-207

Abstract: We analyze the effects of cognitive abilities on two examples of consumer financial decisions where suboptimal behavior is well defined. The first example features the optimal use of credit cards for convenience transactions after a balance transfer and the second involves a financial mistake on a home equity loan application. We find that consumers with higher overall test scores, and specifically those with higher math scores, are substantially less likely to make a financial mistake. These mistakes are generally not associated with nonmath test scores. (JEL D14, G21)

JEL-codes: D14 G21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
Note: DOI: 10.1257/app.5.1.193
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (184)

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Working Paper: Cognitive abilities and household financial decision making (2011)
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