Nudging Towards Stability: Addressing Churn in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

Last registered on December 09, 2025
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Nudging Towards Stability: Addressing Churn in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0017396
Initial registration date
December 04, 2025

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
December 09, 2025, 7:39 AM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
United States of America
Region
Massachusetts

Primary Investigator

Name
Dallas Gilmore
Affiliation
Stanford University
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Monica Lee
PI Affiliation
Stanford Univesity
PI Name
Susanna Loeb
PI Affiliation
Stanford Univesity

Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2024-03-04
End date
2025-02-28
Keywords
Behavior
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We study whether simple behavioral nudges can reduce churn in SNAP—when participants exit the program and re-enroll shortly after. In a 2023–2024 randomized controlled trial involving 119,882 Massachusetts households facing a recertification or interim report deadline, participants received either no messages or one of two text-message reminders designed to reduce complexity and mitigate inattention. The interventions increased submission rates by 2.5 percentage points (3 percent), improved completion rates by 3 percentage points (5 percent), and reduced churn by 0.6 to 0.8 percentage points (10–14 percent), with the simpler reminder performing slightly better. The findings show that low-cost, light-touch messages improve continuity in means-tested programs.
External Link(s)
OSF Pre-trial registration

Registration Citation

Citation
Gilmore, Dallas, Monica Lee and Susanna Loeb. 2025. "Nudging Towards Stability: Addressing Churn in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)." AEA RCT Registry. December 09. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.17396-1.0
Sponsors & Partners

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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2024-03-18
Intervention End Date
2024-09-06

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
1. Churn:
An indicator for whether a SNAP household exits the program at its recertification or interim report deadline and then re-enrolls within 120 days.

2. Submission Rate:
An indicator for whether the household submits the required recertification or interim report form by the deadline.

3. Submission Timing:
Number of days between the text message and the household’s submission of required paperwork.

4. Completion Rate:
An indicator for whether the household fully completes the recertification or interim report process and remains continuously active without disruption.

5. Completion Timing:
Number of days between the text message and the household’s completion of the recertification or interim report process.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
This study evaluates whether text-message reminders can reduce churn among SNAP participants who are due for a recertification or interim report. Eligible households that have provided a phone number are randomly assigned to one of three groups: a control group receiving standard DTA communications; Treatment 1, which receives text reminders containing informational links and a phone number for assistance; and Treatment 2, which receives reminder-only messages. The first text is sent 44 days before each household’s deadline. If a household has not submitted required paperwork, a second text with the same content is sent 25 days before the deadline. This design allows us to estimate the effects of reminders on submission, completion, and churn, and to compare reminders with and without embedded informational supports.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization was conducted by the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance using their internal computer system. Eligible SNAP households were individually and randomly assigned to either the control group or one of the two treatment groups. Assignment was automated and not influenced by researchers.
Randomization Unit
The randomization unit is the individual SNAP case (head of household).
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
0
Sample size: planned number of observations
144,276 heads of household
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
57734 heads of household control
43294 heads of household treatment 1
43248 heads of household treatment 2
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Study has received IRB approval. Details not available.
IRB Approval Date
Details not available
IRB Approval Number
Details not available
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
Yes
Intervention Completion Date
September 06, 2024, 12:00 +00:00
Data Collection Complete
Yes
Data Collection Completion Date
February 28, 2025, 12:00 +00:00
Final Sample Size: Number of Clusters (Unit of Randomization)
Was attrition correlated with treatment status?
Final Sample Size: Total Number of Observations
Final Sample Size (or Number of Clusters) by Treatment Arms
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials