Nudging at Scale: Experimental Evidence from FAFSA Completion Campaigns

Kelli A. Bird, Ben Castleman (), Jeffrey Denning, Joshua Goodman (), Cait Lamberton and Kelly Ochs Rosinger

No 26158, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: Do nudge interventions that have generated positive impacts at a local level maintain efficacy when scaled state or nationwide? What specific mechanisms explain the positive impacts of promising smaller-scale nudges? We investigate, through two randomized controlled trials, the impact of a national and state-level campaign to encourage students to apply for financial aid for college. The campaigns collectively reached over 800,000 students, with multiple treatment arms to investigate different potential mechanisms. We find no impacts on financial aid receipt or college enrollment overall or for any student subgroups. We find no evidence that different approaches to message framing, delivery, or timing, or access to one-on-one advising affected campaign efficacy. We discuss why nudge strategies that work locally may be hard to scale effectively.

JEL-codes: D9 I23 I24 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-exp
Note: ED LS
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (17)

Published as Bird, Kelli A. & Castleman, Benjamin L. & Denning, Jeffrey T. & Goodman, Joshua & Lamberton, Cait & Rosinger, Kelly Ochs, 2021. "Nudging at scale: Experimental evidence from FAFSA completion campaigns," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 105-128.

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