Abstract
We investigate heterogeneity in responsiveness to reminder letters among New York City parking ticket recipients. Using variation in the timing of letters, we find a strong aggregate response. But we find large differences across individuals: those with a low baseline propensity to respond to tickets—a natural nudge target—react least to letters. These low-response types, who incur significant late penalties, disproportionately come from already disadvantaged groups. They do react strongly to traditional, incentive-based interventions. We discuss how accounting for response heterogeneity might change one’s approach to policy and how one might use our analysis to target interventions at low-response types.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 343-370 |
Number of pages | 28 |
Journal | American Economic Journal: Economic Policy |
Volume | 14 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2022 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- General Economics,Econometrics and Finance