Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/196691 
Year of Publication: 
2019
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 12193
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
We ran a randomized field experiment to ascertain whether a costless manipulation of the informational content (restricted or enhanced information) and the framing (gain or loss framing) of the invitation letter to the breast cancer screening program in Messina, Italy, affects the take-up rate. We show that giving enhanced loss-framed information about the risks of not having a mammography increases the take-up. This manipulation is especially effective among subjects with lower baseline take-ups – those living farther away from the screening site, residing in municipalities with low education, or with no recent screening experience – contributing to reduce socio-economic inequalities in screening. When we investigate the mechanisms behind our findings, we show that subjects exposed to our proposed manipulation are also less likely to postpone the appointment, signaling enhanced awareness about the risks related with delayed participation.
Subjects: 
breast cancer screening
framing
information provision
randomized field experiment
JEL: 
C93
H51
I11
I18
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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