# Peer Advice on Financial Decisions: A case of the blind leading the blind?

Authors: Sandro Ambuehl; B. Douglas Bernheim; Fulya Ersoy; Donna Harris
Venue: Review of Economics and Statistics, 2025, 107(1)
Year: 2025
Source: https://direct.mit.edu/rest/article-abstract/doi/10.1162/rest_a_01269/113778/Peer-Advice-on-Financial-Decisions-A-Case-of-the
PDF: https://sandroambuehl.com/assets/papers/peer-advice-financial-decisions.pdf
Plain text version: https://sandroambuehl.com/assets/plain-text/peer-advice-financial-decisions.tex
LaTeX source bundle: https://sandroambuehl.com/assets/plain-text/peer-advice-financial-decisions.tex

## Abstract

We investigate the impact of peer interaction on the quality of financial decision making in a laboratory experiment. Face-to-face communication with a randomly assigned peer significantly improves the quality of subsequent private decisions even though simple mimicry would have the opposite effect.
We present evidence that the mechanism involves general conceptual learning, and that the most effective learning relationships are horizontal rather than vertical. The benefits of demonstrably effective financial education do not propagate to peers.

## Additional Links

- Media - Wall Street Journal coverage: https://www.thestar.com/wsj/markets/2018/12/07/for-the-best-financial-advice-ask-somebody-as-uninformed-as-you.html
- Media - MarketWatch coverage: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/want-to-plan-your-finances-why-clueless-friends-may-have-good-results-2018-09-17