Behavioural science’s capability to improve the efficiency of public policies is no news. In 2015, 150+ government officials, staff of international organisations and academics met in Paris to discuss the challenges and opportunities of applying behavioural insights to policy-making as part of the OECD initiative on “New Approaches to Economic Challenges” (NAEC). Behavioural insights and new approaches to policy design: The views from the field provides a summary of the international seminar.
More recently, a World Bank blog titled Behavioral science in public policy: Future of government? by Carolina Sánchez-Páramo, Renos Vakis and Zeina Afif, discussed the experience of the first 10 countries which invested in behavioural science. From tax compliance to policy design to the future of the government, the authors explain the key takeaways from the report Behavioral Science Around the World: Profiles of 10 Countries.
In our last post, we shared the United Nations Behavioural Science Report, 2021 in the spotlight! This report contained information on the role of Behavioural Science in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, application in the UN - trends and capabilities, and opportunities. The report ends with some “Key Takeaways” and a description of the application of Behavioural Science in 25 UN Entities. In case you missed it, we have a time-saving solution for you - Brief Takeaways from U.N. Behavioral Science Week by Evan Nesterak.
Scaling the Social Impact of Behavioural Science - How to scale Behavioural Interventions globally, when the interventions are designed based on local norms? How to use AI and Machine learning in behavioural science and a social impact context? What skills are needed to be thriving in the applied behavioural science field? To know about this and much more, listen to this episode of B.E.Good featuring Piyush Tantia. (Listen here)
Self-guided Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Apps for Depression: Systematic Assessment of Features, Functionality, and Congruence With Evidence - This study assesses the features, functionality, data security, and congruence with evidence of self-guided Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) based apps targeting users affected by depression. Out of 3006 apps, only 98 met the inclusion criteria, of these only 28 apps offered at least four evidence-based CBT techniques. Only one-third of the apps offered suicide risk management resources. Sharing of users’ data is widespread, highlighting shortcomings in health app market governance.
Can Money Buy Happiness? A Deeper Dive
In this article, Triumph Kerins tries to answer the age-old question - can money buy happiness, and if so, to what degree? The author busts the “The $75,000 myth”, explains the psychological concept called the hedonic treadmill, the role of feelings of progress and repeated rewards and concludes with the need for appropriate balance between more money and mental wellbeing.
The Perils and Promises of Wearables from a Behavioral Perspective
In this article, Kelly Peters explores the effect of wearable devices and understand the implications behavioural science can have on their effectiveness and digitized healthcare solutions. She discusses the “backfiring effect” wearables may have as well as their positive contributions to the cause of fitness.
Why Is It So Hard to Be Rational?
“The real challenge isn’t being right but knowing how wrong you might be“. In this article from The New Yorker, Joshua Rothman brings the insights on individual and mass rationality from various sources together. He cites multiple studies and authors to elaborate on the a-z of rationality and explains them with examples.
You 2.0: In the heat of the moment - According to Lowenstein “It's very difficult to make sense of people who are acting under the influence of emotions that you're not experiencing.” and that emotions can completely change us. Has it ever happened to you, that in a fit of anger or fear, you have undertaken an action that we would never have otherwise and didn’t know you were capable of? To know more about the phenomenon of the “Hot-cold empathy gap “ and how it influences our behaviour, listen to this episode of Hidden Brain featuring George Lowenstein. (Listen here)
Combining Artificial Intelligence and Behavioral Economics -Can Machine Learning and AI work together with Behavioural Economics to build predictive models? Where could these be used and how? Would they be effective? Will it be beneficial or harmful for the intended audience? To know the answer to these questions and know more, listen to this episode of The Brainy Business featuring Sam Albert, where all things AI, Machine Learning and Behavioural Economics is discussed. (Listen here)
Cognitive Bias in relationships - Should we always trust our intuition? How does blind spot work? How do we listen more and communicate things better? To know answers to these questions and to know more on topics like a blind spot, In-group bias, Out - group bias, the illusion of transparency, empathy in relationships, listen to this episode of The Psychology Podcast featuring Gleb Tsipursky. (Listen here)
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Editors: Divya Purohit, Simran Odrani, Junofy Anto Rozarina