How vs. How and Why Nudges: When Stating Your Case Isn’t as Effective

Funded Research Proposal

Marketers and policymakers often use nudges to help consumers make welfare-increasing decisions, such as encouraging physically and mentally healthy choices. This research explores when one nudge is more effective than another. More specifically, it demonstrates nudges focusing on telling consumers how to do something are more effective than nudges telling consumers how and why to do something. This is because listing the reasons why a consumer should do something creates the potential for a mismatch between the listed reasons and a consumer’s personal reasons for considering engaging in a behavior. This mismatch, in turn, leads consumers to believe said behavior will benefit their quality of life less than they might have believed otherwise. These findingsRead More

Exerting Effort to Choose Increases Generosity

Funded Research Proposal

Recently in the gifting industry, websites allow consumers to set up cash registries (e.g., honeymoon and baby fund registries) to elicit gifts in different ways. For example, consumers may set up a cash registry that lists a lump sum expense (e.g., $5,000 for a honeymoon). Alternatively, they may set up an itemized registry, that breaks up the total expense into smaller expenses, such as travel, lodging, and activities during the honeymoon.Read More

Motivating Goal Pursuit by Normalizing Difficulty

Funded Research Proposal

In this research, we test a simple messaging intervention to motivate individuals struggling in their goal pursuit. Specifically, we study the impact of setting a norm about the experience of goal pursuit. We suggest that informing consumers that it is normal to struggle during goal pursuit – a “difficult goal pursuit” norm – is an effective approach to motivating struggling consumers.Read More

Making Up for Failure: A Simple Nudge to Improve Goal Persistence

Funded Research Proposal

Our research introduces an innovative nudge aimed at increasing goal persistence: making up for failure. If consumers fail their goal today (e.g., do not work out for 20 minutes), they are encouraged to make up for that failure tomorrow (e.g., work out 40 minutes tomorrow).Read More