Debtors at Play: Gaming Behavior and Consumer Credit Risk

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Gong, Shuaishuai; Levine, Ross; Lin, Chen; Xie, Wensi
• 署名单位: University of Macau; Stanford University; University of Hong Kong; Chinese University of Hong Kong
• 刊物名称: MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0025-1909
• DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.2023.4931
• 发表日期: 2024
• 页码: 5691-5708
• 关键词: Behavioral finance; video game; self-control; Credit risk

摘要

Exploiting a unique high-frequency, individual-level database, we (1) construct individual-level, incentive-compatible proxies of impulsivity based on video gaming behavior and (2) use these proxies to evaluate predictions concerning how impulsivity shapes individuals' responses to a relaxation of credit constraints as captured by receiving a credit card. We discover that precard gaming intensity-as measured by the frequency and amount of game expenditures-is strongly and positively associated with (a) the probability of defaulting on credit card debt in the future, (b) postcard expenditures on luxury and addictive items, (c) surges in consumption spending immediately after receiving the credit card, and (d) rapid debt accumulation after obtaining the card. Differences in financial literacy, income, income variability, education, and demographics do not drive the results. The results are consistent with (1) neurological and psychological studies stressing that excessive gaming is associated with impulse control deficiencies and (2) behavioral theories stressing that impulsivity, i.e., time-inconsistent preferences for immediate gratification and ineffective strategies for avoiding myopic cues and temptations, substantially influence individual expenditure patterns and borrowing decisions when liquidity constraints are relaxed.