RAND Behavioral Finance Forum 2019

Accounting on a tablet computer, close-up

Photo by mmphoto/Adobe Stock

Date: Thursday, October 3, 2019
8 a.m. to 5:15 p.m.
Location: AARP
601 E St. NW
Washington, DC 20049

About BeFi

The RAND Behavioral Finance (BeFi) Forum brings together academic, financial, and government leaders to share innovative behavioral research in financial decisionmaking and related topics through an annual conference and webinar series.

The goal of the conference is to encourage the incorporation of cutting-edge research into policy and financial products that best serve the public's interests. Presentations will include a mix of studies from academics, policy makers, and industry working to better understand financial decisions, as well as discussions of innovation in behavioral finance from policy and industry.

How to Attend

Registration has closed. With questions or for more information, please email befi@rand.org.

Keynote Speaker

Terrance Odean

Terrance Odean

Professor of Finance and The Rudd Family Foundation Chair
Haas School of Business, U.C. Berkeley
Topic: Mediating Investor Attention

Agenda

8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Registration and Breakfast
9:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
Opening Remarks
9:15 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Keynote Address
  • Mediating Investor Attention
    • Terrance Odean, UC Berkeley
10:20 a.m. – 11:05 a.m.
Session 1: Consumer Credit Behavior
  • The Semblance of Success in Nudging Consumers to Pay Down Credit Card Debt
    • Benedict Guttman-Kenney, University of Chicago
  • The Financial Impact of Dementia: Evidence from Credit Report Data
    • Joanne Hsu, Federal Reserve Board of Governors
  • Discussant: Phil Armour, RAND
11:05 a.m. – 11:50 a.m.
Session 2: Information and Advice
  • Encouraging Broker and Adviser Background Checks: A Randomized Study on Twitter
    • Jeremy Ko, Securities and Exchange Commission
  • How Do Humans Interact with Algorithms? Experimental Evidence from Health Insurance
    • M. Kate Bundorf, Stanford University
  • Discussant: Drew Anderson, RAND
12:15 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
  • Lunch Innovation Session
    • Elisabeth Costa, Behavioural Insights Team
    • Heidi Johnson, The Financial Health Network
    • Blake Allison, LifeCents
1:05 p.m. – 2:25 p.m.
Session 3: Retirement Savings in 401(k) Plans
  • From Nest Egg to Seed Capital: Empirical Evidence from ROBS Plans
    • Angela Hung, RAND Corporation
  • Target Date Funds and Portfolio Choice in 401(k) Plans
    • Steve Utkus, Vanguard
  • Serenity Now, Save Later? Evidence on Savings Puzzles from a 401(k) Field Experiment
    • Saurabh Bhargava, Carnegie Mellon University
  • Discussant: Gary Koenig, AARP
2:45 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Session 4: Investor Behavior
  • Trust, Financial Literacy and Financial Market Participation
    • Jason S. Seligman, Investment Company Institute
  • Heterogeneous Responses to Interest Rate Price Disclosures
    • Mary Zaki, University of Maryland
  • Talking About the Weather: Understanding Household Demand for Green Investment
    • David Robinson, Duke University
  • Discussant: Katherine Carman, RAND
4:15 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
Session 5 and Closing: Jobs and Precautionary Savings
  • Working Under Pressure: Improving Labor Productivity through Financial Innovation
    • Aletheia Donald, World Bank
  • Job Loss Expectations, Durable Consumption and Household Finances: Evidence from Linked Survey Data
    • Nathanael Vellekoop, University of Toronto
  • Discussant: Catherine Harvey, AARP
  • Closing: Katherine Carman, RAND