The Mother of All Cognitive Illusions
It’s little wonder that people would believe that higher taxes would make them feel bad. But this is a cognitive error, pure and simple.
Behavioral Economics
How Immigrants Drive Entrepreneurship and Innovation
New research reveals how immigrants are making the economy hum. Far from taking jobs, immigrants are creating them.
What Happens to People and Businesses When Cash Transfers Scale?
A decade ago, giving money directly to those in poverty was seen as a radical idea. Today, that perception is shifting. But there are still unanswered questions about the effects of cash transfers when used at scale.
Solving the Problem of “Obviousness” with Prediction Platforms
In the fall issue of Public Opinion Quarterly in 1949, sociologist Paul Lazarsfeld pulled one of my favorite social science head fakes of all time.
Thinking Realistically About Disaster Risk
Most disaster risk assessments make the mistake of treating human behavior as constant over time, and that’s a problem.
Defaults Are Not the Same by Default
A new meta-analysis reveals when and where one of behavioral science’s most successful nudges works best (or not at all).