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Humans use mental shortcuts in everyday life to help process information and make quick decisions. But when it comes to personal finance, they can lead to bad choices.
Some of these undesirable outcomes are the result of “anchor bias,” which can undermine consumers’ rational thinking.
This cognitive bias causes the brain to Over-reliance Form subsequent thoughts and judgments on the basis of initial impressions or figures. In other words, early information “anchors” future choices.
“It’s the idea that you subconsciously remember a number,” said Jennifer Itzkowitz, an associate professor of finance at Seton Hall University who studies anchors in investing. fixed deviation. “It affects future decisions.”
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Humans are more likely to default to these mental shortcuts — known in psychology jargon as “heuristics” — when confronted with complex topics like finance, when consumers can be overwhelmed by information, Itzkowitz said.
“You have to be aware of this bias, or you’re going to fall prey to it every day,” says Bradley Krantz, a certified financial planner in Boulder, Colorado, and founder of the Financial Psychology Institute. Klontz) said.
Here are some of the ways anchoring bias may be at play in your financial life.
1. 401(k) matches can be unintentional anchors
CNBC member Klontz said the “anchor” could be intentional or unintentional. consultant Committee.
401(k) matches can serve as unintentional anchors. Companies choose their own 401(k) matching structures, which can inadvertently affect employees’ savings rates.
For example, a company might choose to pay a matching fee of up to 3% of an employee’s salary. So workers may think that putting 3 percent of their income into a 401(k) account is enough for their retirement savings — but it probably won’t be.
Instead, employers can use anchoring concepts to increase savings.For example, Google set up Send emails to employees touting a relatively high anchor, such as a 10% or 20% contribution rate, to influence employees to increase their savings.
2. For shoppers, the first price they see is fixed
On the other hand, many retailers are intentionally using anchoring principles to influence consumer buying behavior, Kranz said.
This often happens when stores advertise a sale, he said.
For example, a retailer might mark down a pair of pants from $60 to $30. Consumers tend to judge sale prices relative to the original price, so the new price appears cheap. But objectively speaking, $30 isn’t necessarily a bargain for consumers — especially if a store’s recurring sale means the pants will never be $60.
Another example from the Institute for Corporate Finance: If consumers first see a T-shirt that costs $1,200 and then see a second T-shirt that costs $100, they are likely to think that the second T-shirt is T-shirts are cheap. However, if that person only sees the second shirt, which costs $100, they might not think it’s cheap.
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or, take this example As opposed to planning a vacation, from job site Indeed: A couple might find an all-inclusive ticket to Hawaii for $800 each. They then subsequently found tickets to Puerto Rico for $400 each, but those tickets only included airfare. The couple may choose to travel to Puerto Rico to save money, but end up paying the same amount after including the extra costs of the hotel room and meals.
“The anchor point – the first price you see – unduly influences your point of view,” wrote Tim Vipond, Chairman of the Board of Directors, CFI Education.
3. Investing Apps: Starting Small Can Get You In The Way
Some mobile apps for investing lure customers by suggesting they can start investing with as little as $5, Itzkowitz said.
She said the ad was designed to bring investment to the masses in a low-cost way, but could inadvertently lead users to paltry savings amounts. In turn, savers could have a false sense of financial security, she added.
“No matter how much people paid for a stock when they first bought it, they will continue to spend the same amount,” said Itzkowitz, who recently co-authored an article Research Papers Research anchors on investment trading platforms like Stash, Robinhood, SoFi, and Stockpile.
Encouraging investors to start with small investments “could lead to less wealth accumulation in that brokerage account due to anchoring bias,” the paper said.
This was true for all groups, regardless of factors such as income, age and gender, Itzkowitz said.
4. Anchoring bias is a tricky tactic in negotiations
Companies and individuals use anchoring as a common negotiation tactic, for example in connection with salary negotiations or sales, Kranz said.
For example, during the hiring process, a company may try to fix a potential employee’s initial salary level. Any increase from there might feel like a win for future workers, but not as much as employers originally hoped.
Ultimately, the key to combating anchoring bias is to constantly question your financial instincts.
“Assume these things are being used in a nefarious way to rob you of your money,” Krantz said. “Always second-guess yourself.”
