The Effect of Psychological Scarcity on Health Decisions of Rural Residents in China

Abstract

Economic studies have shown that living in poverty may produce a subjective feeling of scarcity, which affects people's cognitive functions and decision-making. Understanding this mechanism could inform healthcare designers on designing inclusive health interventions by considering the psychological scarcity and limited cognitive resources of impoverished individuals. We conducted a psychological experiment to test the impact of psychological scarcity on cognitive function and health decisions of rural residents in China. We randomly assign participants to two financial scenarios (hard vs. easy) with the technique of priming to induce their immediate financial worries. Then we measure cognitive function using Raven’s Progressive Matrices and uncover their decision-making priorities with a budget allocation task. 301 participants finished the study and 264 were included in the main analysis. The results show that both immediate financial worries and cumulative poverty have negative effects on participants’ cognitive performance. Responses to scarcity could lead to attentional focus on limited resources, thereby neglecting long-term health consequences, particularly for the lower income group. Based on the findings, we suggest a number of human factors design considerations that are critical to successful healthcare design.