Can Small Incentives Have Large Effects? The Impact of Taxes versus Bonuses on Disposable Bag Use

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Homonoff, Tatiana A.
• 署名单位: New York University
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL-ECONOMIC POLICY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1945-7731
• DOI: 10.1257/pol.20150261
• 发表日期: 2018
• 页码: 177-210
• 关键词: Loss aversion; ECONOMICS; LESSONS; CHOICE; price

摘要

This paper examines a simple element of financial incentive-design whether the incentive takes the form of a fee for bad behavior or a reward for good behavior-to determine if the framing of the incentive influences the policy's effectiveness. I investigate the effect of two similar policies aimed at reducing disposable bag use: a $0.05 tax on disposable bag use and a $0.05 bonus for reusable bag use. While the tax decreased disposable bag use by over 40 percentage points, the bonus generated virtually no effect on behavior. These results are consistent with a model of loss aversion.