Behavioral Economics and the Democratization of Education

Exploring Heuristics and Biases to Increase Economic Diversity at Top Universities in the United States

Abstract

Despite affordability, many high-achieving students coming from disadvantaged backgrounds do not apply to the most competitive universities in the United States. Minding the democratizing power of high-quality education, such a phenomenon only allows inequality to perpetuate from a generation to another. This paper explores the ways in which five heuristics and biases can affect a low-income student’s reluctance to seek admission to the country’s best schools. Splitting the decision-making process into three stages, I argue that: (1) underconfidence and availability impact the prediction of admission chances, (2) framing triggers an anchoring effect influencing the assessment of attendance feasibility, and (3) representativeness sways the estimation of post-enrollment success. To mitigate these errors in judgment, the policies I propose consist of course simulation programs, engaging same-background university students in school talks, a reversed advertisement of costs, and a matching system for campus visits based on socioeconomic background.