Closing the Gap: The Effect of Reducing Complexity and Uncertainty in College Pricing on the Choices of Low-Income Students

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Dynarski, Susan; Libassi, C. J.; Michelmore, Katherine; Owen, Stephanie
• 署名单位: University of Michigan System; University of Michigan; National Bureau of Economic Research; Columbia University; Columbia University Teachers College; Syracuse University; Colby College
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC REVIEW
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0002-8282
• DOI: 10.1257/aer.20200451
• 发表日期: 2021
• 页码: 1721-1756
• 关键词: financial-aid; behavioral economics; going interventions; education; INFORMATION; enrollment; returns; debt; PARTICIPATION; COMPLIERS

摘要

High-achieving, low-income students attend selective colleges at far lower rates than upper-income students with similar achievement. Behavioral biases, intensified by complexity and uncertainty in the admissions and aid process, may explain this gap. In a large-scale experiment we test an early commitment of free tuition at a flagship university. The intervention did not increase aid: rather, students were guaranteed before application the same grant aid that they would qualify for in expectation if admitted. The offer substantially increased application (68 percent versus 26 percent) and enrollment rates (27 percent versus 12 percent). The results suggest that uncertainty, present bias, and loss aversion loom large in students' college decisions.