The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) provides food assistance to those in need, and while the program reaches many who are eligible, program participation falls short of reaching all who are eligible. One factor contributing to this gap in participation is difficulty understanding program eligibility, a common challenge with means‐tested benefit programs. Governments have attempted to improve public understanding of these complex programs using a range of tools to reduce learning costs, yet we know little about the extent to which these tools work and why. This preregistered survey experiment tests three commonly used methods of communicating SNAP program information, including a flyer, screening tool, and video. Cumulatively, our findings demonstrate that efforts to reduce SNAP learning costs are generally effective at improving comprehension recall and that the type of intervention matters, with the video increasing comprehension scores more than the flyer and screening tool. However, the impact of the intervention does not vary substantially according to household income.

中文翻译：

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利用技术降低学习成本并提高计划理解力：补充营养援助计划调查实验的经验教训


补充营养援助计划 (SNAP) 向有需要的人提供粮食援助，虽然该计划惠及许多符合条件的人，但该计划的参与程度不足以惠及所有符合条件的人。造成参与差距的一个因素是难以理解计划资格，这是经济状况调查福利计划的一个常见挑战。各国政府试图使用一系列工具来提高公众对这些复杂项目的理解，以降低学习成本，但我们对这些工具的作用程度及其原因知之甚少。这项预先注册的调查实验测试了三种常用的 SNAP 计划信息传达方法，包括传单、筛选工具和视频。总的来说，我们的研究结果表明，降低 SNAP 学习成本的努力通常可以有效提高理解回忆，并且干预类型很重要，视频比传单和筛选工具更能提高理解分数。然而，干预措施的影响并不会因家庭收入的不同而有很大差异。