How far to nudge? Assessing behavioural public policy

Nudge for (the Public) Good: How Defaults Can Affect Cooperation

In this paper we test the effect of non-binding defaults on the level of contribution to a public good. We manipulate the default numbers appearing on the decision screen to nudge subjects toward a free-rider strategy or a perfect conditional cooperator strategy. Our results show that the vast majority of our subjects did not adopt the default numbers, but their stated strategy was affected by ...

Public Sector Modernisation the Verdict so Far Good Policy - Poor,

Can, and should, behavioural neuroscience influence public policy?

Recent years have seen enormous demand amongst policy makers for new insights from the behavioural sciences, especially neuroscience. This demand is matched by an increasing willingness on behalf of behavioural scientists to translate the policy implications of their work. But can neuroscience really help shape the governance of a nation? Or does this represent growing misuse of neuroscience to...

How Far Behind Are the South Asian Countries in Relation to East Asian

We define as South Asian countries those countries that start with Iran and end with Bangladesh in Asia. Wethen use export statistics in terms of revealed comparative advantage (RCA) for 14 industrial sectors tomeasure distances of export capabilities for these countries in relation to the “Western” developed and EastAsian countries. Statistical methods such as multidimensional scaling and ...

Active commuting to school: How far is too far?

BACKGROUND Walking and cycling to school provide a convenient opportunity to incorporate physical activity into an adolescent's daily routine. School proximity to residential homes has been identified as an important determinant of active commuting among children. The purpose of this study is to identify if distance is a barrier to active commuting among adolescents, and if there is a criterion...