“The disturbing thing scientists learned when they bribed babies with graham crackers” read a Washington Post headline. Ready to be disturbed with the best of them, I read on.
Two economists are walking down the street. One sees a $20 bill lying on the sidewalk and says, “Look at that $20 bill!” The second economist responds, “Nah, that’s not a $20 bill. If it was, someone would have picked it up already.”
He talked about how often policymakers, in his opinion, not only missed the power of social norms and influence, they often inadvertently used them in a way that actually backfired.
Today, nearly 200 randomized control trials later and with their findings permeating virtually all areas of public policy, the creation of the BIT and the wedding of behavioral science and public policy might seem like forgone conclusions.
Some of society’s stickiest problems aren’t a failure of intention, importance, or value. They’re the result of a failure to understand human behavior at the last mile—the final stage where desires and plans must turn into action.
No matter who you are, whether you are selling soap or shampoo, whether you are a government looking after the welfare of citizens, or an agency promoting financial well-being and better health, or an institution that is responsible for collecting taxes, you are in the business of changing people’s behavior.
We can pay dearly, in blood, treasure, and well-being, for experiments that aren’t done. In the nearly fifty years that Head Start has been in existence, we have spent $200 billion on it.
On Tuesday President Barack Obama issued an executive order formally establishing the White House Social and Behavioral Sciences Team while also directing federal agencies to examine how they can use behavioral science to improve outcomes for citizens across the United States.
By 2065, I predict that we will have evolved societies that explicitly embrace values and goals for ensuring the wellbeing of every person.
In his new book, The Nurture Effect, Psychologist Anthony Biglan describes how interventions aimed at creating nurturing environments could help solve some of society’s most stubborn, harmful, and costly issues.
