Put Your Money Where Your Butt Is: a Commitment Savings Account For Smoking Cessation

We designed and tested a voluntary commitment product to help smokers quit smoking. The product (CARES) offered individuals an account in which they deposit funds for six months, after which they take a urine test for nicotine and cotinine. If they pass, their money is returned; otherwise, their money is forfeited. Smokers randomly offered CARES were an estimated 3.1 percentage points more likely to pass the test than the control group. Treatment-on-the-treated estimates suggest that CARES increased test passage by 29 percentage points. We also find that graphic, aversive cue cards are effective, although less effective than CARES.

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