How the Physical Appearance of Money Influences Spendingh

            
NOVEMBER 28, 2012
Consumers See Worn-Out Money as Yucky and Want to Spend It
People who were given worn-out $20 bills spent 82% more of the money than consumers who were given four crisp $5 bills, reversing the expected "denomination effect," which typically leads people to spend less from larger-denomination bills, say Fabrizio Di Muro of the University of Winnipeg and Theodore Noseworthy of the University of Guelph, both in Canada. People tend to be disgusted by worn bills and want to get rid of them because of presumed contamination from others, the researchers found.
Source: Money Isn't Everything, but It Helps If It Doesn't Look Used: How the Physical Appearance of Money Influences Spending