Download or read book Subsidies Vs Nudges written by and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The federal government provides generous tax subsidies for retirement saving in 401(k)s and IRAs. The subsidies are designed to increase household saving and retirement income security, important national goals. The estimated cost, however, exceeds $100 billion a year in lost revenue to the Treasury. Given the nationâ€TMs severe budgetary pressures, it is critical to know how effective these subsidies are in raising household saving and whether other approaches would be more cost-effective. The ability to answer these questions has been limited by inadequate U.S. data on household saving. In particular, it is hard to know whether tax subsidies encourage families to save more, or simply shift money they would otherwise save into tax-advantaged retirement accounts. The same is true for “automaticâ€ŗ saving, such as defaults in 401(k) plans, which increase retirement saving if individuals take no action. While defaults have been shown to increase retirement saving, is this increase offset by reduced saving in taxable accounts or an increase in debt, leav-ing total household saving unchanged? This brief, based on a recent study, uses high-quality Danish data to address these questions. It assesses the effect of tax subsidies and automatic contributions on retirement saving and total household saving. The Danish retirement system and patterns of retirement saving are similar to those in the United States. The effect of retirement saving policies on total household saving should be similar as well, making the findings relevant to current U.S. policy discussions. This brief proceeds as follows. The first section introduces the problem of evaluating policies designed to increase retirement saving. The second section describes the data and basic methodology used in the analysis. The third section presents findings on the effect of tax subsidies on retirement saving. The fourth section presents findings on the effect of automatic saving. The fifth section offers an explanation of these findings based on how these policies affect two types of individuals â€" “activeâ€ŗ and “passiveâ€ŗ savers. The final section concludes that an expansion of automatic saving could produce much larger increases in household saving, at lower fiscal cost, than current tax subsidies for retirement saving.
Download or read book Judging Nudging written by John A. List and published by . This book was released on 2023 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While behavioral non-price interventions ("nudges") have grown from academic curiosity to a bona fide policy tool, their relative economic efficiency remains under-researched. We develop a unified framework to estimate welfare effects of both nudges and taxes. We showcase our approach by creating a database of more than 300 carefully hand-coded point estimates of non-price and price interventions in the markets for cigarettes, influenza vaccinations, and household energy. While nudges are effective in changing behavior in all three markets, they are not necessarily the most efficient policy. We find that nudges are more efficient in the market for cigarettes, while taxes are more efficient in the energy market. For influenza vaccinations, optimal subsidies likely outperform nudges. Importantly, two key factors govern the difference in results across markets: i) an elasticity-weighted standard deviation of the behavioral bias, and ii) the magnitude of the average externality. Nudges dominate taxes whenever i) exceeds ii). Combining nudges and taxes does not always provide quantitatively significant improvements to implementing one policy tool alone.
Download or read book Behavioural Public Policy written by Adam Oliver and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2013-10-24 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this accessible collection, leading academic economists, psychologists and philosophers apply behavioural economic findings to practical policy concerns.
Download or read book Inside the Nudge Unit written by David Halpern and published by Random House. This book was released on 2015-08-27 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With a foreword by Richard Thaler, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics! New Updated Edition, 2019. Dr David Halpern, behavioural scientist and head of the government's Behavioural Insights Team, or Nudge Unit, invites you inside the unconventional, multi-million pound saving initiative that makes a big difference through influencing small, simple changes in our behaviour. Using the application of psychology to the challenges we face in the world today, the Nudge Unit is pushing us in the right direction. This is their story.
Download or read book Human Agency and Behavioral Economics written by Cass R. Sunstein and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-05-05 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Palgrave Pivot offers comprehensive evidence about what people actually think of “nudge” policies designed to steer decision makers’ choices in positive directions. The data reveal that people in diverse nations generally favor nudges by strong majorities, with a preference for educative efforts – such as calorie labels - that equip individuals to make the best decisions for their own lives. On the other hand, there are significant arguments for noneducational nudges – such as automatic enrollment in savings plans - as they allow people to devote their scarce time and attention to their most pressing concerns. The decision to use either educative or noneducative nudges raises fundamental questions about human freedom in both theory and practice. Sunstein's findings and analysis offer lessons for those involved in law and policy who are choosing which method to support as the most effective way to encourage lifestyle changes.
Download or read book How Change Happens written by Cass R. Sunstein and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2019-04-09 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An “illuminating” book that “puts norms at the center of how we thinking about change”, revealing the different ways social change occurs—for readers of Freakonomics and Thinking, Fast and Slow (The New York Times) How does social change happen? When do social movements take off? Sexual harassment was once something that women had to endure; now a movement has risen up against it. White nationalist sentiments, on the other hand, were largely kept out of mainstream discourse; now there is no shortage of media outlets for them. In this book, with the help of behavioral economics, psychology, and other fields, Cass Sunstein casts a bright new light on how change happens. Sunstein focuses on the crucial role of social norms—and on their frequent collapse. When norms lead people to silence themselves, even an unpopular status quo can persist. Then one day, someone challenges the norm—a child who exclaims that the emperor has no clothes; a woman who says “me too.” Sometimes suppressed outrage is unleashed, and long-standing practices fall. Sometimes change is more gradual, as “nudges” help produce new and different decisions—apps that count calories; texted reminders of deadlines; automatic enrollment in green energy or pension plans. Sunstein explores what kinds of nudges are effective and shows why nudges sometimes give way to bans and mandates. Finally, he considers social divisions, social cascades, and “partyism,” when identification with a political party creates a strong bias against all members of an opposing party—which can both fuel and block social change.
Download or read book Against Autonomy written by Sarah Conly and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2013 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Argues that laws that enforce what is good for the individual's well-being, or hinder what is bad, are morally justified.
Download or read book Nudge Theory in Action written by Sherzod Abdukadirov and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-09-28 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection challenges the popular but abstract concept of nudging, demonstrating the real-world application of behavioral economics in policy-making and technology. Groundbreaking and practical, it considers the existing political incentives and regulatory institutions that shape the environment in which behavioral policy-making occurs, as well as alternatives to government nudges already provided by the market. The contributions discuss the use of regulations and technology to help consumers overcome their behavioral biases and make better choices, considering the ethical questions of government and market nudges and the uncertainty inherent in designing effective nudges. Four case studies - on weight loss, energy efficiency, consumer finance, and health care - put the discussion of the efficiency of nudges into concrete, recognizable terms. A must-read for researchers studying the public policy applications of behavioral economics, this book will also appeal to practicing lawmakers and regulators.
Download or read book Nudging Public Policy written by Rosemarie Fike and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2021-11-17 with total page 277 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.
Download or read book Neuroliberalism written by Mark Whitehead and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-09-11 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many governments in the developed world can now best be described as ‘neuroliberal’: having a combination of neoliberal principles with policy initiatives derived from insights in the behavioural sciences. Neuroliberalism presents the results of the first critical global study of the impacts of the behavioural sciences on public policy and government actions, including behavioural economics, behavioural psychology and neuroeconomics. Drawing on interviews with leading behaviour change experts, organizations and policy-makers, and discussed in alignment with a series of international case studies, this volume provides a critical analysis of the ethical, economic, political and constitutional implications of behaviourally oriented government. It explores the impacts of the behavioural sciences on everyday life through a series of themes, including: understandings of the human subject; interpretations of freedom; the changing form and function of the state; the changing role of the corporation in society; and the design of everyday environments and technologies. The research presented in this volume reveals a diverse set of neuroliberal approaches to government that offer policy-makers and behaviour change professionals a real choice in relation to the systems of behavioural government they can implement. This book also argues that the behavioural sciences have the potential to support much more effective systems of government, but also generate new ethical concerns that policy-makers should be aware of.
Download or read book Choosing Not to Choose written by Cass R. Sunstein and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2015 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cass R. Sunstein is at the forefront of developing public policy to encourage people to make better decisions. In Choosing Not to Choose he presents his most complete argument for how we should understand the value of choice, and when and how we should enable people to choose not to choose. Confronting the challenging future of data-driven decision-making, Sunstein presents a manifesto for how personalized defaults should be used to enhance our freedom and well-being.
Download or read book Policy and Choice written by William J. Congdon and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2011 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Argues that public finance--the study of the government's role in economics--should incorporate principles from behavior economics and other branches of psychology.
Download or read book Trusting Nudges written by Cass R. Sunstein and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-01-03 with total page 159 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many "nudges" aim to make life simpler, safer, or easier for people to navigate, but what do members of the public really think about these policies? Drawing on surveys from numerous nations around the world, Sunstein and Reisch explore whether citizens approve of nudge policies. Their most important finding is simple and striking. In diverse countries, both democratic and nondemocratic, strong majorities approve of nudges designed to promote health, safety, and environmental protection—and their approval cuts across political divisions. In recent years, many governments have implemented behaviorally informed policies, focusing on nudges—understood as interventions that preserve freedom of choice, but that also steer people in certain directions. In some circles, nudges have become controversial, with questions raised about whether they amount to forms of manipulation. This fascinating book carefully considers these criticisms and answers important questions. What do citizens actually think about behaviorally informed policies? Do citizens have identifiable principles in mind when they approve or disapprove of the policies? Do citizens of different nations agree with each other? From the answers to these questions, the authors identify six principles of legitimacy—a "bill of rights" for nudging that build on strong public support for nudging policies around the world, while also recognizing what citizens disapprove of. Their bill of rights is designed to capture citizens’ central concerns, reflecting widespread commitments to freedom and welfare that transcend national boundaries.
Download or read book The Submerged State written by Suzanne Mettler and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2011-08-31 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Keep your government hands off my Medicare!” Such comments spotlight a central question animating Suzanne Mettler’s provocative and timely book: why are many Americans unaware of government social benefits and so hostile to them in principle, even though they receive them? The Obama administration has been roundly criticized for its inability to convey how much it has accomplished for ordinary citizens. Mettler argues that this difficulty is not merely a failure of communication; rather it is endemic to the formidable presence of the “submerged state.” In recent decades, federal policymakers have increasingly shunned the outright disbursing of benefits to individuals and families and favored instead less visible and more indirect incentives and subsidies, from tax breaks to payments for services to private companies. These submerged policies, Mettler shows, obscure the role of government and exaggerate that of the market. As a result, citizens are unaware not only of the benefits they receive, but of the massive advantages given to powerful interests, such as insurance companies and the financial industry. Neither do they realize that the policies of the submerged state shower their largest benefits on the most affluent Americans, exacerbating inequality. Mettler analyzes three Obama reforms—student aid, tax relief, and health care—to reveal the submerged state and its consequences, demonstrating how structurally difficult it is to enact policy reforms and even to obtain public recognition for achieving them. She concludes with recommendations for reform to help make hidden policies more visible and governance more comprehensible to all Americans. The sad truth is that many American citizens do not know how major social programs work—or even whether they benefit from them. Suzanne Mettler’s important new book will bring government policies back to the surface and encourage citizens to reclaim their voice in the political process.
Download or read book Harvard Law Review Volume 127 Number 6 April 2014 written by Harvard Law Review and published by Quid Pro Books. This book was released on 2014-04-10 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The contents of Number 6 (Apr. 2014) include scholarly articles and student research, as well as as the extensive, annual survey of Developments in the Law. This year's subject is SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY. Topics include "Pro-Gay and Anti-Gay Speech in Schools," "Transgender Youth and Access to Gendered Spaces in Education," "Classification and Housing of Transgender Inmates in American Prisons," "Animus and Sexual Regulation," and "Progress Where You Might Least Expect It: The Military's Repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'" Each year, the special Developments issue serves, in effect, as a new and detailed book on a cutting-edge legal subject. The issue also includes an article by Jill C. Anderson, "Misreading Like a Lawyer: Cognitive Bias in Statutory Interpretation," and an article by Ryan Bubb & Richard H. Pildes, "How Behavioral Economics Trims Its Sails and Why." In addition, student case notes explore Recent Cases on such diverse subjects as false advertising by disseminating scientific literature, free speech rights of professors in public universities, voter identification laws, sentencing by imposing the condition of penile plethysmography, aiding and abetting violations in international law, and whether intercepting unencrypted wi-fi violates the Wiretap Act. A further student work explores the recent administrative policy of the Social Security Administration's eliminating a surgical requirement for changing trans individuals' gender designation, and another explores a recent administration white paper on national security and whether bulk metadata collection violates the USA PATRIOT Act. Finally, the issue features several summaries of Recent Publications. The Harvard Law Review is offered in a quality digital edition, featuring active Contents, linked notes, active URLs in notes, and proper ebook and Bluebook formatting. The contents of Number 6 (Apr. 2014) include scholarly essays by leading academic figures, as well as substantial student research. The Review is a student-run organization whose primary purpose is to publish a journal of legal scholarship. The organization is formally independent of the Harvard Law School. Student editors make all editorial and organizational decisions.
Download or read book The Ethics of Influence written by Cass R. Sunstein and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016-08-24 with total page 237 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The Ethics of Influence, Cass R. Sunstein investigates the ethical issues surrounding government nudges, choice architecture, and mandates.
Download or read book Preference Change written by Till Grüne-Yanoff and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2009-06-11 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Changing preferencesis a phenomenonoften invoked but rarely properlyaccounted for. Throughout the history of the social sciences, researchers have come against the possibility that their subjects’ preferenceswere affected by the phenomenato be explainedor by otherfactorsnot taken into accountin the explanation.Sporadically, attempts have been made to systematically investigate these in uences, but none of these seems to have had a lasting impact. Today we are still not much further with respect to preference change than we were at the middle of the last century. This anthology hopes to provide a new impulse for research into this important subject. In particular, we have chosen two routes to amplify this impulse. First, we stress the use of modellingtechniquesfamiliar from economicsand decision theory. Instead of constructing complex, all-encompassing theories of preference change, the authors of this volume start with very simple, formal accounts of some possible and hopefully plausible mechanism of preference change. Eventually, these models may nd their way into larger, empirically adequate theories, but at this stage, we think that the most importantwork lies in building structure.Secondly,we stress the importance of interdisciplinary exchange. Only by drawing together experts from different elds can the complex empirical and theoretical issues in the modelling of preference change be adequately investigated.
