Cass R. Sunstein, “Misconceptions about Nudges.” Journal of Behavioral Economics for Policy 2(1): 61-67, 2018.
• Professor Sunstein examines seven mistaken or misleading – but frequently voiced – complaints about nudges.
• (1) “Nudges are an insult to human agency” But…compared to what?; how can the provision of information, for example, be such an insult?; try active choosing if defaults make you nervous – but people often prefer a default!
• (2) “Nudges are based on excessive trust in government” But…compared to what?; governments must nudge; nudges, by definition, have low “error” costs; the private sector engages in lots of nefarious nudging; nudges can (and should) be made transparent.
• (3) “Nudges are covert” But…aren’t GPS devices and warning labels transparent?; is this misconception based on concerns about randomized field experiments?; transparency doesn’t seem to undermine the effectiveness of nudges.
• (4) “Nudges are manipulative” But…how is a reminder manipulative?; maybe a graphic warning is a little manipulative, ok?; but in general, manipulation should be made of sterner stuff.
• (5) “Nudges exploit behavioral biases” But…do GPS and other technologies that improve navigability exploit a bias in a nefarious way?; many nudges counteract behavioral biases, such as inertia; nonetheless, defaults might indeed work because of inertia.
• (6) “Nudges wrongly assume that people are irrational” But…well, let’s say boundedly rational; nudging is inevitable; we needn’t resolve every philosophical issue to make pragmatic progress.
• (7) “Nudges work only at the margins; they cannot achieve a whole lot” But…millions of additional school meals consumed?; billions in increased savings?; sigh.
• Professor Sunstein examines seven mistaken or misleading – but frequently voiced – complaints about nudges.
• (1) “Nudges are an insult to human agency” But…compared to what?; how can the provision of information, for example, be such an insult?; try active choosing if defaults make you nervous – but people often prefer a default!
• (2) “Nudges are based on excessive trust in government” But…compared to what?; governments must nudge; nudges, by definition, have low “error” costs; the private sector engages in lots of nefarious nudging; nudges can (and should) be made transparent.
• (3) “Nudges are covert” But…aren’t GPS devices and warning labels transparent?; is this misconception based on concerns about randomized field experiments?; transparency doesn’t seem to undermine the effectiveness of nudges.
• (4) “Nudges are manipulative” But…how is a reminder manipulative?; maybe a graphic warning is a little manipulative, ok?; but in general, manipulation should be made of sterner stuff.
• (5) “Nudges exploit behavioral biases” But…do GPS and other technologies that improve navigability exploit a bias in a nefarious way?; many nudges counteract behavioral biases, such as inertia; nonetheless, defaults might indeed work because of inertia.
• (6) “Nudges wrongly assume that people are irrational” But…well, let’s say boundedly rational; nudging is inevitable; we needn’t resolve every philosophical issue to make pragmatic progress.
• (7) “Nudges work only at the margins; they cannot achieve a whole lot” But…millions of additional school meals consumed?; billions in increased savings?; sigh.
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