If you want to spend less cash, skip the twenties and stock your
wallet with hundred-dollar bills, says Joydeep Srivastava,
professor of marketing. Srivastava co-authored recent research
that found people are more likely to think twice about making a
purchase when they carry one large denomination of cash rather
than many smaller denominations equal to the same amount of
money. This is because there is a greater “pain of paying”
associated with breaking a large bill. “If you want to cut back
on your spending in this tight economy, keep your cash in a few
big bills vs. a number of smaller ones,” said Srivastava.
“You’ll be more reluctant to break that hundred-dollar bill, so
you’ll end up However, Srivastava also cautions against the
consequences of a “what the hell” effect that kicks in once
self-control has been overcome. He conducted three studies with
co-researcher Priya Raghubir of New York University, and found
that once consumers decide to spend money, those carrying large
bills actually spent more than