Nudging Public Policy

Rosemarie Fike; Stefanie Haeffele; Arielle John

doi:10.5771/9781786614872

Summary

This book asks several critical questions relevant to those interested in public policy: What is a nudge? What are the ethical implications of and justifications for nudges? Are we able to have nudges without affecting one’s freedom to choose? In what institutional context are nudges likely to work well and in what context are they likely to fail? The text explores several real-world instances of government attempts at successful choice architecture across a wide range of policy topics: internet privacy laws, environmental policy, education policy, the sharing economy, and creating a national culture.

This approach also highlights the spontaneous and evolutionary nature of social institutions like culture and trust. Attempts from policymakers to generate these social institutions where they did not exist previously are unlikely to succeed unless they are aligned with the unique characteristics of the society in question. This raises the question of whether the seemingly successful policy interventions were even necessary. A few of the chapters in this book directly examine these issues through case studies of both Latin America and Singapore.

Each chapter in this volume explores the ways in which individuals in society respond to attempts by policymakers to “nudge” them towards a specific outcome. Some chapters explore the theoretical arguments in favor of utilizing this behavioral policy approach. Others explore the feasibility and potential limitations of this approach to public policy. Several of the chapters apply market process theory to understand a particular case study where nudge policies have been put into practice. The chapters, authored by an interdisciplinary group of policy scholars, include discussions of internet privacy laws, the sharing economy, education policy, environmental policy, as well as social issues such as trust and culture.

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Bibliographic data

Copyright year: 2021
ISBN-Print: 978-1-78661-485-8
ISBN-Online: 978-1-78661-487-2
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham
Language: English
Pages: 268
Product type: Edited Book

1. Contents No access
2. List of Figures and Tables No access
Introduction No access Pages 1 - 10
1. What Is Economic Rationality? No access
2. Rationality as a Process No access
3. Human Action and Rationality No access
4. Truisms in Behavioral Economics No access
5. Conclusion No access
6. Notes No access
7. References No access
1. What Is a Nudge? No access
2. Taxonomy No access
3. Conclusion No access
4. Notes No access
5. References No access
1. Using Nudge Policy No access
2. Should Nudges Be Local? No access
3. Conclusion No access
4. References No access
1. What Is a Nudge? No access
2. Nudges in Colonial Algeria No access
3. Facilitated French Migration as Nudges No access
4. Nudging Settler Mortality No access
5. Predatory Nudging in the United States No access
6. Public Policy Implications No access
7. Conclusion No access
8. Notes No access
9. References No access
1. An Economic View of Institutional and Cultural Change No access
2. The Entrepreneurial Choice Architect No access
3. Nation-Building and Institutional Change No access
4. Individual and Group-Oriented Nudges No access
5. Nudging, Propaganda, and National Mythmaking No access
6. The Case of Singapore No access
7. Keep Singapore Clean No access
8. Speak Mandarin No access
9. Two Is Enough No access
10. Analysis and Conclusion No access
11. Notes No access
12. References No access
1. Lobbying and Democratic Governance No access
2. The Transparency-Regulation Trade-off No access
3. Using Nudges to Improve Transparency No access
4. Case Study: A Nudge that Hurts Transparency No access
5. Measuring Lobby Transparency No access
6. Models Predicting Interest Group Totals No access
7. Models Predicting Lobbyist Totals No access
8. Data, Methodology, and Results No access
9. Discussion No access
10. Appendix No access
11. Notes No access
12. References No access
1. Human Capital Theory No access
2. Signaling Theory No access
3. The Parental Influence on Education Choices No access
4. Who Else Nudges in Higher Education, and How? No access
5. The School-to-Work Pipeline No access
6. Data and Steps to Improve Data Availability No access
7. Conclusion No access
8. Notes No access
9. References No access
1. Social Nudges and the Environment No access
2. Mechanisms of Green Nudging No access
3. Limitations of and Concerns about Green Nudging No access
4. Conclusion No access
5. Notes No access
6. References No access
1. The Rhetoric of Privacy and Privacy Regulation No access
2. Privacy Laws in the United States and Nudge Theory No access
3. Privacy Preferences No access
4. Zero-Priced and Priced Exchanges No access
5. The Risks of Disclosure and Its Impact on the Privacy Paradox No access
6. Consumers Know the Online Environment No access
7. Opt-In Mandates and the Cost of Regime Change No access
8. Shifting the Consent Environment No access
9. Putting the Threads Together No access
10. References No access
1. The Sharing Economy, Policymaking, and the Complexity of Latin America No access
2. TRUST-ENHANCING Mechanisms, Nudges, and Sharing Economy Platforms in Latin America No access
3. Nudging Strategies in Latin American Countries No access
4. Discussion on Nudging and Emergent Institutions in Latin America No access
5. COVID-19 and the Duel of Paternalism versus Organized Anarchies No access
6. Conclusion and Policy Recommendations No access
7. References No access
Index No access Pages 255 - 266
About the Contributors No access Pages 267 - 268