The Behavioral Divide with Hal Hershfield – Détails, épisodes et analyse

There are many sources of conflict among couples, but money may be one of the biggest. In this episode of The Behavioral Divide with Hal Hershfield, we discuss how financial decisions are made within couples and explore ideas on how we might improve them.

We first speak with Scott Rick, Ph.D., a professor of marketing at The University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and author of Tightwads and Spendthrifts: Navigating the Money Minefield in Real Relationships (planned release January 2024). We talk about his research into couples and what seems to work well and not so well when it comes to their finances.

Next, we talk with financial advisors Stuart Vick Smith, PFS, CPA of Maxwell Locke & Ritter and Elizabeth Shabaker, CFP, CDC of Versant Capital Management on the common pitfalls they’ve encountered in managing wealth for couples. We also discuss strategies they’ve found to be successful for righting the ship to keep couples on track towards their shared goals.

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you on this topic of managing money among couples. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures

The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances. 

Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

The book Tightwads and Spendthrifts: Navigating the Money Minefield in Real Relationships is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Avantis Investors or American Century Investments. 

We’ve all likely dealt with budgeting in one form or another, but is there any well-tested advice on how best to budget? And how does it fit into making progress toward longer-term goals like saving for retirement? In this episode of The Behavioral Divide, we get two perspectives.

First, we interview wealth advisor Lowell Parker, CFP of Merriman Wealth Management, to discuss the role of budgeting within the financial plans he establishes with his clients. What we uncover on the importance of the details of those budgets may surprise you.

In our second discussion, we speak with Abby Sussman, Ph.D.—a professor at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business—who has done a great deal of research into how individuals budget and why. Abby speaks to her findings on where people often go wrong with budgeting and what they can do about it.

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you on this topic of budgeting. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures

The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances.

Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

Parents know well the high costs of raising children. Certainly, this affects our ability to save for retirement or meet other financial goals, but what about when our kids leave home? How do empty nesters tend to respond financially, and psychologically?

Work from Andrew Biggs, a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and author of The Real Retirement Crisis: Why (Almost) Everything You Know About the US Retirement System is Wrong, finds that the period after our children become financially independent can have a big impact on retirement readiness. On this episode of The Behavioral Divide, host Hal Hershfield, discusses the research with Dr. Biggs along with real-world perspective from Certified Financial Planner Robin Sherwood, who serves as a Principal at HTG Investment Advisors.

We look at how the empty-nester phase—and life transitions in general—can shape financial choices and personal fulfillment, and what can be done to make both better.

The book The Real Retirement Crisis: Why (Almost) Everything You Know About the US Retirement System is Wrong is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Avantis Investors or American Century Investments. 

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at

BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances. Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

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Did you know our financial decisions may be affected by our personality? It turns out being more agreeable, more conscientious, or more extroverted, for example, may play a role in how likely we are to choose to save our money for the future or spend it today instead.

Research from Joe Gladstone, Ph.D., Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado Boulder Leeds School of Business, has found that not only can personality traits be linked to our decisions with money, but we also may be able to use our understanding of one’s personality to prompt them towards better decisions.

On this episode of The Behavioral Divide, host Hal Hershfield dives into this topic with Professor Gladstone and Brandon Ratzlaff, Ph.D., CFP®, Director at Cypress Point Wealth Management, examining both the research and financial advisor perspective.

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at

BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances.

Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

Follow us on social media: LinkedIn: https://a.vant.is/409KwhI X: https://a.vant.is/3HKHwSL

Uncertainty is a constant in life—and especially in our financial lives. But not all uncertainty is created equal. Some arises from missing information we could know. Other times, the outcome is simply unknowable—or truly random.

In this episode of The Behavioral Divide, UCLA Professor Hal Hershfield talks with decision science expert Professor Craig Fox to unpack the psychology of uncertainty. They explore why our brains struggle to deal with it, how different types of uncertainty influence our choices, and what the research says about interventions that actually help.

Joining them is Dagny Maidman, Executive Managing Director and Wealth Advisor at Cresset, who brings the practitioner’s lens—sharing how she guides clients through unpredictable markets, imperfect information, and the emotions that come with both.

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at:

BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances. Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

Follow us on social media: LinkedIn: https://a.vant.is/409KwhI X: https://a.vant.is/3HKHwSL Subscribe to The Behavioral Divide podcast:

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Quantifying risk with hard numbers and statistics is a logical first step to improving others’ understanding of potential outcomes, but there are ways we might do even better. There’s a science to risk communication born from years of research that identifies effective strategies for bringing meaning to risk conversations with people of varying backgrounds and numerical abilities. 

On this episode of The Behavioral Divide, presented by Avantis Investors®, UCLA Professor Hal Hershfield speaks with Professor Ellen Peters from the University of Oregon and Mark Meredith, a certified financial planner and founder of Meredith Wealth Planning. Together, they dive into findings from the research and practical application to uncover methods for better risk communications.

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com. Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

Important Disclosures The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances.

Follow us on social media: LinkedIn: https://a.vant.is/4ppUSVI   X: https://a.vant.is/4psIwMw Subscribe to The Behavioral Divide podcast:

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Do you find that your emails to clients and prospects at times seem to go unread? You reach out. No response. What gives?

When we’re dealing with busy people, how we approach and construct our communications matters. In fact, there are proven methods for increasing the chances that busy people respond or take the actions we need them to take.

On this episode of The Behavioral Divide, presented by Avantis Investors®, UCLA Professor Hal Hershfield speaks with Professor Todd Rogers from the Harvard Kennedy School and co-author of Writing for Busy Readers: Communicate More Effectively in the Real World. They explore his research on how best to reach busy people and how that can be put into practice. To focus the discussion on tips relevant to advisors, the interview is informed by questions submitted in advance by the team at Wealth Architects.

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures

The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances.

Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

The book Writing for Busy Readers: Communicate More Effectively in the Real World is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Avantis Investors or American Century Investments.

Follow us on social media: LinkedIn: https://a.vant.is/4ppUSVI   X: https://a.vant.is/4psIwMw Subscribe to The Behavioral Divide podcast:

Spotify: https://a.vant.is/3IlDEIy   Apple: https://a.vant.is/3IgEhDe YouTube: https://a.vant.is/3InJedi

Not all bad outcomes result from bad decisions just like not all good outcomes come from good decisions. This simple thought speaks to the importance of the process of making decisions and not just their results, particularly when any amount of luck is involved. We probably don’t want to repeat bad decisions just because last time we got lucky and things worked out great!

On this episode of The Behavioral Divide, presented by Avantis Investors®, Professor Hal Hershfield speaks with two guests about the science of decision making and tips they’ve found effective for improving our approach to big decisions. Joining Hal for this discussion are former poker pro, best-selling author, and decision strategist Annie Duke along with Ben Felix, CIO of PWL Capital and one of the hosts of the popular Rational Reminder podcast.

They cover how to implement better processes for decision making, how to reduce the risk of behavioral bias in your decisions, how to judge the quality of your decisions, and more.

If you enjoy the show, please subscribe or let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures

The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances.

Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

Follow us on social media:

LinkedIn: https://a.vant.is/4ppUSVI X: https://a.vant.is/4psIwMw

Subscribe to The Behavioral Divide podcast:

Spotify: https://a.vant.is/3IlDEIy

Apple: https://a.vant.is/3IgEhDe

While most would be happy to have more money, the reality is that more money may not lead to greater happiness for everyone. For many, living a fulfilled life goes beyond finances, so can we increase happiness and meaning in life through the decisions we make with our money today? To explore this question, we speak with UCLA Professor Cassie Holmes and an accomplished financial advisor, Joseph Janiczek, MSFS, ChFC, Chief Executive Officer of Janiczek Wealth Management.

In our discussion with Cassie, we discuss her book, Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most, and her research into how wellbeing is affected by how much time we have and how we use it. We talk about how our decisions with our money may help us use our time in more meaningful ways for greater lasting happiness.

Joseph speaks to how his firm has found ways to evolve client discussions towards a more holistic view of their clients’ lives. Joseph shares that, through the use of creative tools, client meetings feature topics that go well beyond a client’s financial picture to include aspects that matter to each individual’s overall happiness.

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you on this topic of enhancing meaning through how we choose to spend our money. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures

The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances.

Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.

The book Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Avantis Investors or American Century Investments.

Age is a topic many prefer to avoid. But, when it comes to financial decisions, age may be something we should be thinking about. Age can certainly play a role at different stages of our financial journey. On this episode, we look to the literature as well as speak with a long-tenured financial advisor to gain a firmer grasp on how exactly the choices we make are affected by age and understand what types of mistakes we are prone to both earlier and later in life.

Our first discussion is with Duke University Professor Greg Samanez-Larkin—one of the world’s experts on how financial decisions change as we age. Greg speaks to his own research along with other breakthrough studies on this topic of aging. Greg highlights where younger and older adults tend to face the greatest challenges and what we might be able to do to overcome them.

We also speak with financial advisor and founder of Constitution Wealth, Christopher Van Slyke, CFP. Christopher speaks to what he’s observed among his client base along, in particular speaking to the value of experience and the difficulties that come with addressing cognitive decline.

If you enjoy the show, please let us know by giving our series a five-star rating. We’d also love to hear from you on this topic of age and financial decision making. To join in on the discussion, send us a note at BehavioralDivide@AvantisInvestors.com.

Important Disclosures

The views expressed in this presentation are the speaker’s own and not necessarily those of American Century Investments. This presentation is for general information only and is not intended to provide investment, tax or legal advice or recommendations for any particular situation or type of retirement plan. Please consult with a financial, tax or legal advisor on your own particular circumstances.

Hal Hershfield is not affiliated with American Century Investments.