"Attention Allocation under Scarcity: Theory & Experiment"
Research shows that individuals facing poverty make systematically different decisions, prioritizing short-term needs while neglecting future well-being, and often experiencing reduced productivity. This paper presents a theoretical framework that explains how perceived scarcity influences decision-making and productivity through an attention allocation mechanism. I show that p-scarcity drives cognitive resources towards tasks within the scarce domain, enhancing performance and decision quality in those areas but at the cost of neglecting other dimensions. Using insights from this model, I design a novel lab experiment to induce p-scarcity and test these predictions. The findings reveal how perceptions of scarcity, beyond actual resource limitations, impact economic behavior, with implications for policies aimed at improving decision-making and productivity under conditions of scarcity.
"Rewiring Risk: Enhancing Coordination with Brain Stimulation" (with J. Apesteguia, E. Díez-Rodríguez, A. Oliviero, V. Soto-León)
Coordination problems are widespread in economic and social interactions, where individuals must align actions to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes. Evidence from lab experiments shows that players often fail to coordinate, even after multiple rounds together. To explore the drivers of these coordination failures, we use a novel non-invasive brain stimulation technique (tSMS) on the left DLPFC to modulate idiosyncratic traits. Our findings, based on two double-blinded randomized control trials, demonstrate that modulating risk attitudes significantly impacts coordination rates, offering causal evidence of a key determinant for successful coordination.
"Model Selection and Dataset Design" (with A. Salvanti)
Pre-doctoral research
"Gender Gap and Retirement Decisions: the Maternity Pension Supplement in Spain" (with A. Salvanti, C. Tris, H. Guias, J. Ferrando)
Covered in BSE Voice