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When saving is gambling

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  • Cookson, J. Anthony

Abstract

Prize-linked savings (PLS) accounts, which allocate interest using lottery payments rather than fixed interest, encourage savings by appealing to households’ gambling preferences. I introduce new data on casino cash withdrawals to measure gambling, and examine how individual gambling expenditures respond to the introduction of PLS in Nebraska using a difference-in-differences design. After PLS is introduced, individuals who live in counties that offer PLS reduce gambling by at least 3% more than unaffected individuals. The substitution effect is stronger in low-frills gambling environments, which most resemble PLS, indicating that these accounts fulfill the desire to gamble.

Suggested Citation

  • Cookson, J. Anthony, 2018. "When saving is gambling," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 129(1), pages 24-45.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jfinec:v:129:y:2018:i:1:p:24-45
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jfineco.2018.04.001
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    3. Justin Cox & Adam Schwartz & Robert Ness, 2020. "Does what happen in Vegas stay in Vegas? Football gambling and stock market activity," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 44(4), pages 724-748, October.
    4. Shawn Cole & Benjamin Iverson & Peter Tufano, 2022. "Can Gambling Increase Savings? Empirical Evidence on Prize-Linked Savings Accounts," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 68(5), pages 3282-3308, May.
    5. Marco Fabbri & Paolo Nicola Barbieri & Maria Bigoni, 2019. "Ride Your Luck! A Field Experiment on Lottery-Based Incentives for Compliance," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(9), pages 4336-4348, September.
    6. Müller, Karsten & Pan, Yuanyuan & Schwarz, Carlo, 2023. "Social Media and Stock Market Participation," CEPR Discussion Papers 18445, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    7. Hendy, Patrick & Slonim, Robert & Atalay, Kadir, 2021. "Unsticking credit card repayments from the minimum: Advice, anchors and financial incentives," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 30(C).
    8. Chi Liao, 2023. "Risk‐taking begets risk‐taking: Evidence from casino openings and investor portfolios," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 58(1), pages 143-165, February.
    9. Burke, Jeremy, 2021. "Do prize-linked incentives promote positive financial behavior? Evidence from a debt reduction intervention," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    10. Demir, Tolga & Mohammadi, Ali & Shafi, Kourosh, 2022. "Crowdfunding as gambling: Evidence from repeated natural experiments," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    11. Gallagher, Emily A. & Gopalan, Radhakrishnan & Grinstein-Weiss, Michal & Sabat, Jorge, 2020. "Medicaid and household savings behavior: New evidence from tax refunds," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 136(2), pages 523-546.
    12. Kormanyos, Emily & Hanspal, Tobin & Hackethal, Andreas, 2023. "Do gamblers invest in lottery stocks?," SAFE Working Paper Series 373, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE, revised 2023.
    13. Gatchev, Vladimir A. & Seth, Rama & Singh, Ajai & Vishwanatha, S.R., 2023. "Price bands and their effects on equity markets: Evidence from a natural experiment," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    14. Christoph Semken & David Rossell, 2022. "Specification analysis for technology use and teenager well‐being: Statistical validity and a Bayesian proposal," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series C, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 71(5), pages 1330-1355, November.
    15. Xindan Li & Avanidhar Subrahmanyam & Xuewei Yang & Wei Jiang, 0. "Winners, Losers, and Regulators in a Derivatives Market Bubble," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 34(1), pages 313-350.
    16. Demir, Tolga & Mohammad, Ali & Shafi, Kourosh, 2019. "Crowdfunding as Gambling: Evidence from Repeated Natural Experiments," Working Paper Series in Economics and Institutions of Innovation 481, Royal Institute of Technology, CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Prize linked savings; Gambling; Risk aversion; Financial literacy; Credit unions;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • D14 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Saving; Personal Finance
    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism

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