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Misconceptions about nudges

Author

Listed:
  • Cass R. Sunstein

    (Robert Walmsley University Professor, Harvard University)

Abstract

Some people believe that nudges are an insult to human agency; that nudges are based on excessive trust in government; that nudges are covert; that nudges are manipulative; that nudges exploit behavioral biases; that nudges depend on a belief that human beings are irrational; and that nudges work only at the margins and cannot accomplish much. These are misconceptions. Nudges always respect, and often promote, human agency; because nudges insist on preserving freedom of choice, they do not put excessive trust in government; nudges are generally transparent rather than covert or forms of manipulation; many nudges are educative, and even when they are not, they tend to make life simpler and more navigable; and some nudges have quite large impacts.

Suggested Citation

  • Cass R. Sunstein, 2018. "Misconceptions about nudges," Journal of Behavioral Economics for Policy, Society for the Advancement of Behavioral Economics (SABE), vol. 2(1), pages 61-67, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:beh:jbepv1:v:2:y:2018:i:1:p:61-67
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    6. Hunt Allcott & Judd B. Kessler, 2015. "The Welfare Effects of Nudges: A Case Study of Energy Use Social Comparisons," NBER Working Papers 21671, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    8. Tatiana A. Homonoff, 2013. "Can Small Incentives Have Large Effects? The Impact of Taxes versus Bonuses on Disposable Bag Use," Working Papers 1483, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
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    10. Sunstein, Cass R., 2017. "Nudges that fail," Behavioural Public Policy, Cambridge University Press, vol. 1(1), pages 4-25, May.
    11. Reisch, Lucia A. & Sunstein, Cass R., 2016. "Do Europeans like nudges?," Judgment and Decision Making, Cambridge University Press, vol. 11(4), pages 310-325, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Bruns, Hendrik & Perino, Grischa, 2023. "The role of autonomy and reactance for nudging — Experimentally comparing defaults to recommendations and mandates," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    2. Luca Congiu & Ivan Moscati, 2022. "A review of nudges: Definitions, justifications, effectiveness," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(1), pages 188-213, February.
    3. David Oliver Kasdan, 2020. "Do Koreans like being nudged? Survey evidence for the contextuality of behavioral public policy," Rationality and Society, , vol. 32(3), pages 313-333, August.
    4. Lamiraud, Karine & Patris, Julien & Vranceanu, Radu, 2024. "Can attentional nudges improve efficiency of bilateral multi-attribute negotiations?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 110(C).
    5. W. Kip Viscusi, 2022. "Efficiency criteria for nudges and norms," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 191(3), pages 465-482, June.
    6. D. O. Kasdan, 2019. "Cass R. Sunstein and Lucia A. Reisch: Trusting Nudges," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 42(2), pages 325-328, June.
    7. James Alm & Lilith Burgstaller & Arrita Domi & Amanda März & Matthias Kasper, 2023. "Nudges, Boosts, and Sludge: Using New Behavioral Approaches to Improve Tax Compliance," Economies, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-22, September.
    8. Sören Bär & Laura Korrmann & Markus Kurscheidt, 2022. "How Nudging Inspires Sustainable Behavior among Event Attendees: A Qualitative Analysis of Selected Music Festivals," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-26, May.
    9. Mills, Stuart, 2022. "Finding the ‘nudge’ in hypernudge," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    10. J. M. Bauer & L. A. Reisch, 2019. "Behavioural Insights and (Un)healthy Dietary Choices: a Review of Current Evidence," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 42(1), pages 3-45, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    nudges; behavioral economic; default rules; manipulation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D01 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Microeconomic Behavior: Underlying Principles
    • D9 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics
    • B41 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Economic Methodology - - - Economic Methodology
    • H11 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - Structure and Scope of Government
    • H2 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue

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