“Nudging” Policy: Behavioral Economics in the Public Square

Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein, authors of Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness joined moderators Nava Ashra, Associate Professor at Harvard Business School and Max Bazerman, co-director of the Center for Public Leadership for a discussion on behavioral economics. The panelists discussed how minimal changes or “nudges” can influence human behavior. Sunstein and Thaler also touched on how governments can use nudges and the perceived problems with using behavioral methods for policy purposes.