Paying Adolescents for Health Screenings Works

Abstract

With regard to their future health, adolescents are at a critical stage. Previous evaluations have shown that health screenings, counseling, and other intervention programs during this phase of life are important, particularly for those with a low socioeconomic background. Unfortunately, adolescents tend to have little interest in preventive programs. We designed a field experiment to evaluate the effectiveness of financial incentives to promote participation in health screenings. Our study comprises more than 10,000 participants, observed via high-quality administrative data from Austria. The treatment group received a €40 shopping voucher if they participated in an age-specific health screening. On average, the financial incentive increased the likelihood of participation by 280 percent. Treatment effects are comparably larger for children in families with a higher socioeconomic status, and of parents with a revealed preference for secondary health prevention.