Does Scarcity Tax Parents’ Minds?

Ariel Kalil () and Mauricio Koechlin ()
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Ariel Kalil: University of Chicago - Harris School of Public Policy
Mauricio Koechlin: University of Chicago - Harris School of Public Policy

No 2026-46, Working Papers from Becker Friedman Institute for Research In Economics

Abstract: Parents with limited income spend less time engaging in educational activities with their children, often attributed to a cognitive “bandwidth tax†imposed by financial scarcity. This paper examines whether attentional capacity or self-control is the primary constraint on parental investment and distinguishes between subjective financial stress and income. Using data from the Early Investment Project, a survey of 1,932 mothers in Chicago Public Schools, the authors find that attentional capacity—not self-control—is the dominant constraint on parental engagement. Felt financial scarcity, rather than income itself, is strongly associated with reduced attention. These results suggest that the psychological experience of scarcity, rather than material conditions alone, plays a central role in shaping parental behavior and investment in children.

JEL-codes: D01 I20 J13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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