Understanding people's spending decisions

Last registered on August 20, 2026
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Understanding people's spending decisions
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0019425
Initial registration date
August 17, 2026

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
August 20, 2026, 9:22 AM EDT

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

Locations

Country
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Region
Country
United States of America
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Weijie Zhang
Affiliation
London School of Economics
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2025-06-01
End date
2026-04-30
Keywords
Behavior
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
This paper studies why households often respond little to news of a positive future cash flow shock but increase spending sharply when the money is received.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Zhang, Weijie. 2026. "Understanding people's spending decisions." AEA RCT Registry. August 20. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.19425-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Respondents are given different hypothetical scenarios. The difference between the treatment and control conditions is how a positive future cash flow shock is framed.
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2025-06-01
Intervention End Date
2026-04-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Spending responses, preferred choices
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
For spending responses, respondents are randomly assigned to two types of future cash flows. The treatment cash flow is designed to provide greater certainty and ownership than the control cash flow. Respondents are then asked about their spending responses to the cash flow shock. For time preferences, respondents are asked to choose between a smaller immediate cash flow and a larger delayed cash flow. The larger delayed cash flow in the treatment condition is designed to provide respondents with greater perceived control over the cash flow than in the control condition.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization done by a computer
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
No cluster
Sample size: planned number of observations
2800
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
The treatment and control groups have similar sample sizes, depending on the randomization. Across waves, each group ranges from approximately 100 to 240 respondents.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
IRB Approval Date
IRB Approval Number
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials