Long-Term Effect of Mathematical Literacy on Consumer Behavior : Evidence from Curricular Reforms

In this paper, we study the effects of high school mathematical education on the saving-related behavior of consumers later in life. We employ a staggered treatment robust event study design, exploiting the variation in high school math coursework requirements from a series of curricular reforms introduced by multiple states across the US in the late 1980s. Our estimations show that increases in required mathematical education, as proxied by the reforms, can significantly impact later-in-life spending patterns, including up to 15.4% reduction in monthly packaged goods expenditure and an increase in coupon usage of more than a quarter. These effects are robust to potential biases from staggered adoption or temporal or spatial correlation. Further analyses show that the results vary across demographic groups, are more potent for minorities, and are persistent with age despite reduced magnitude. Additionally, through an examination of effect dynamics before and after the Great Recession, we present evidence of the effect of mathematical literacy on consumers’ response to an economic crisis, with treated households displaying increases in coupon and price promotion take-up post-2008