A Conference on

BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS AND CONSUMER POLICY

Sponsored by the Bureau of Economics
Federal Trade Commission

FTC Conference Center
601 New Jersey Ave. NW
Washington, DC 2001
April 20, 2007

Agenda

Links to presentation slides, session transcripts, and session videos are available below.

Note: Most video files include more than one session. Please allow a few minutes for buffering in order to be able to move to the minute indicated for a given session within a video file.


8:30 Registration and Coffee
9:00 Welcome: Paul Pautler (Deputy Director, Bureau of Economics)
Opening Presentation: Economic Imperialism
9:45- 10:45 Session A: Behavioral economics and policy decision rules
10:45-11:00 Break
11:00 - 12:00 Session B: Information, Persuasion, and Deception: Marketing Techniques and Their Impact on Consumer Choice
12:00 - 12:45 Lunch
12:45 - 1:15 Session C: FTC Regulation
1:15- 2:15 Session D: Disclosure Research
2:15 - 3:00 Session E: Consumer Choice - phone plans
3:00 - 3:15 Break
3:15 - 4:15 Session F: Consumer Choice - credit cards
4:15 - 5:00 Session G: Roundtable Discussion on Current and Future Role of Behavioral Research on Consumer Protection Policy

 

BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS AND CONSUMER POLICY

 

8:30 Registration and Coffee
9:00 Opening Presentation
Opening Session Transcript
Opening Session Video
  (Beginning of file to minute 38.)
  • Welcome: Paul Pautler (Deputy Director, Bureau of Economics, FTC)
  • Presentation: “Economic Imperialism” - Edward Lazear (Chairman, Council of Economic Advisors)
9:45- 10:45 Session A: Behavioral Economics and Policy Decision Rules
Session A Transcript
Session A Video
  (Minute 38 to end of file.)

This keynote presentation by Colin Camerer sets out decision rules for the implementation of consumer policy as suggested by behavioral economics research.

  • Presentation: Colin Camerer (Cal Tech) “Behavioral Economics and Consumer Policy Decision Rules.” General discussion of how behavioral economics can influence consumer policy, based in part on Camerer et al. (2003)
  • Paper
  • Discussants:
    • Jonathan Klick (Florida State)
    • Paul Pautler (FTC)
    • Jack Calfee (AEI)
10:45-11:00 Break
11:00-12:00 Session B: Information, Persuasion, and Deception: Marketing Techniques and Their Impact on Consumer Choice

Session B Transcript
Session B Video
  (Entire file.)

These presentations explore challenges to the conventional view of advertising based on neoclassical assumptions. Professor Karlan presents the results of a field experiment in the market for credit in S. Africa where certain “psychological manipulations” are found to influence the interest rate paid for loans. Professor Laibson discusses alternative advertising models where firms take advantage of consumer failures in ways that do not necessarily provide more useful information to consumers.

  • Presentation: Dean Karlan (Yale) “What's Psychology Worth? A Field Experiment in the Consumer Credit Market” (with Bertrand, Mullainathan, Shafir, and Zinman)
  • Discussant: Paul Rubin (Emory)
  • Presentation: David Laibson (Harvard) “Market Generation of Information in Response to Consumer Cognitive Limitations”
  • Discussant: Alan Schwartz (Yale Law)
12:00 - 12:45 Lunch
12:45 - 1:15 Session C: FTC Policy and Research

Session C Transcript
Session C Video
  (Beginning of file to minute 19.)
  • Presentation: Pauline Ippolito (FTC) “Consumer Policy at the Federal Trade Commission”
1:15- 2:15 Session D: Disclosure Research
Session D Transcript
Session D Video
  (Minute 19 to hour 1, minute 17.)
  • Presentation: James Lacko and Jan Pappalardo (FTC) “Information Regulation is Tricky: Lessons from Mortgage Disclosure Research”
  • Discussant: Eric J. Johnson (Columbia)
  • Presentation: Justin Sydnor (Case Western) “Lessons from Prospect Theory for Consumer Disclosure Policy”
  • Discussant: Eric Durbin (FTC)
2:15 - 3:00 Session E: Consumer Choice - Phone Plans

Session E Transcript
Session E Video
  (Hour 1, minute 17 to end of file.)
  • Eugenio Miravete (Texas, Austin) “Rational Attention in a Repeated Decision Problem”
  • Discussant: Tim Brennan (UMBC/RFF)
3:00 - 3:15 Break
3:15 - 4:15 Session F: Consumer Choice - Credit Cards
Session F Transcript
Session F Video
  (Beginning of file to minute 58.)

Both papers presented in this session analyze credit card decisions for a large panel of consumers over time.

  • Presentation: John Driscoll (Federal Reserve) "Stimulus and Response: The Path from Naivete to Sophistication in the Credit Card Market." (with S Agarwal, Gabaix, X,, J Driscoll and D Laibson)
  • Discussant: Joel Schrag (FTC)
  • Presentation: Howard Beales (George Washington) “Rationality, Revolving, and Rewards: An Analysis of Revolving Behavior on New Credit Cards” (with Lacey L. Plache)
  • Discussant: Ron Borzekowski (Federal Reserve)
4:15 - 5:00 Session G: Roundtable Discussion on Current and Future Role of Behavioral Research on Consumer Protection Policy
Session G Transcript
Session G Video
  (Hour 1, minute 0 to end of file.)

The panel will discuss various policy related aspects of the consumer behavior research: what it says now about consumer protection policy options and what directions the research should take in the future to make it more relevant to policy decisions.

  • Moderator: William Kovacic
    • (FTC Commissioner)
  • Panel:
    • Joel Winston (FTC)
    • Matthew Rabin (Cal Berkeley)
    • Pauline Ippolito (FTC)
    • Colin Camerer (Cal Tech)

Last Modified: Monday, June 25, 2007