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Effects of Stress on Preferences, Beliefs, and Constraints

Last registered on July 26, 2018
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Effects of Stress on Preferences, Beliefs, and Constraints
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0002741
Initial registration date
February 18, 2018

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
February 19, 2018, 3:51 PM EST

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

Last updated
July 26, 2018, 11:25 AM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country
Kenya
Region
Nairobi

Primary Investigator

Name
Johannes Haushofer
Affiliation
Stockholm University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Prachi Jain
PI Affiliation
Loyola Marymount University
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2017-02-15
End date
2017-12-13
Keywords
Finance & Microfinance, Health, Welfare
Additional Keywords
Stress, Executive Function, Self-effiacy, Discounting, Development, Behavior
JEL code(s)
G41
Secondary IDs
Abstract
We conduct a randomized laboratory experiment examining the e ffects of stress (implemented using four methods) on temporal discounting, eff ort provision, and executive control. Our study includes 1142 subjects from the informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya. Respondents are randomly administered either a control or a treatment (stress) protocol, for seven consecutive days. This allows us to estimate the causal impacts of stress on decision-making after one and seven days of administration.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Haushofer, Johannes and Prachi Jain. 2018. "Effects of Stress on Preferences, Beliefs, and Constraints." AEA RCT Registry. July 26. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.2741-2.0
Former Citation
Haushofer, Johannes and Prachi Jain. 2018. "Effects of Stress on Preferences, Beliefs, and Constraints." AEA RCT Registry. July 26. https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/2741/history/32191
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We induce stress in four diff erent ways across subjects: the Trier Social Stress Task (TSST) which induces psychosocial stress, physical stress using the Cold Pressor Task , fi nancial stress using the Centipede Game, and using hydrocortisone administration to induce the neurobiological consequences of stress.
Intervention Start Date
2017-02-15
Intervention End Date
2017-12-13

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Self-efficacy, executive function, and time preferences.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
See the uploaded Pre-analysis Plan for a thorough description of all outcome measures.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Salivary Cortisol, Self-reported Stress, Heart Rate and Beliefs about treatment
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
See the attached Pre-analysis Plan for more detail.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
See the attached pre-analysis plan for in-depth explanation of the experimental design.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Computer.
Randomization Unit
Sessions.
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
86 cohorts.
Sample size: planned number of observations
1142
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Centipede Game Stressor - 278
Trier Social Stress Test Stressor - 285
Cold Pressor Task Stressor - 278
Hydrocortisone Administration - 301
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Princeton University Institutional Review Board
IRB Approval Date
2015-10-21
IRB Approval Number
N/A
Analysis Plan

Analysis Plan Documents

SOBC2a_PAP_2018-02-13_jh.pdf

MD5: 675d3bbdaf6f3a39dcff336660b312b1

SHA1: 88abfa0b1f7031bdbe99692cbe417b14399ee9b4

Uploaded At: February 18, 2018

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