Bard College Berlin News
Prof. Dr. Israel Waichman publishes data-based research on “nudging” in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization
'Nudging' is one of the most recognized behavioral policy interventions. Think about the requirement to opt-out of organ donations, energy conservation labels or the automatic enrollment in retirement plans. 'Default decisions' comprise particularly effective forms of 'nudges' to change behavior. They are pre-set decisions unless individuals actively change the outcome that had already been determined for them by policy-makers. For example, in Germany, where organ donation requires opting in, only 12% participate, while Austria's opt-out system results in 99% donors.
When a policymaker considers the interests of the whole group instead of a particular individual, a social nudge occurs , which implies serious ethical concerns regarding the violation of an individual's autonomy. In contrast, a self-nudge is when individuals set their own default decisions (e.g., in the first job, one decides whether or not to pay a Church fee). A self-nudge solves the problem of individual autonomy but does it achieve high efficiency for the group? In a recent study, Diederich, Goeschl, and Waichman answered this question by conducting a generic social dilemma experiment with 1,080 participants from the general population in Germany.
They found that the social nudge potentially violates autonomy as only 8% of participants choose it as a preference. They also identified an autonomy and efficiency conflict: group-level contributions under self-nudge are consistently lower than under the social nudge. They conclude with concrete policy recommendations.
Read the full article here.
Post Date: 01-13-2025