A worldwide consensus on nudging? Not quite, but almost

Abstract

Nudges are choice-preserving interventions that steer people's behavior in specific directions while still allowing them to go their own way. Some nudges have been controversial, because they are seen as objectionably paternalistic. This study reports on nationally representative surveys in eight diverse countries, investigating what people actually think about nudges and nudging. The study covers Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, Russia, South Africa, and South Korea. Generally, we find strong majority support for nudges in all countries, with the important exception of Japan, and with spectacularly high approval rates in China and South Korea. We connect the findings here to earlier studies involving Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Our primary conclusion is that while citizens generally approve of health and safety nudges, the nations of the world appear to fall into three distinct categories: (i) a group of nations, mostly liberal democracies, where strong majorities approve of nudges whenever they (a) are seen to fit with the interests and values of most citizens and (b) do not have illicit purposes; (ii) a group of nations where overwhelming majorities approve of nearly all nudges; and (iii) a group of nations that usually show majority approval, but markedly reduced approval rates. We offer some speculations about the relationship between approval rates and trust.

Which Europeans Like Nudges? Approval and Controversy in Four European Countries

“…Investigating this matter, Sunstein (Forthcoming) for the United States as well as Reisch and Sunstein () for European countries find strong consumer support for 15 nudges related to health and environment topics. In a recent study, Sunstein, Reisch, and Rauber () found similar majority approval of nudges by the populations in a sample of countries worldwide.…”

Trusting Nudges? Lessons from an International Survey

“…Regarding explanatory variables, our principal focus is on trust in governmental institutions. By replicating the surveys that have been conducted in (Reisch and Sunstein 2016Sunstein 2016a;Sunstein et al 2018), we also test the robustness of our earlier results regarding approval rates and socio-demographics, in particular the influence of gender. Finally, by compiling all available data on nudge approval rates from the three waves in overall 16 countries, we hope to shed light on the acceptance of nudges.…”

Behavioural Insights and (Un)healthy Dietary Choices: a Review of Current Evidence

“…Overall, people seem to approve of nudges that support their effort to eat healthier (Junghans et al 2015;Reisch and Sunstein 2016;Sunstein et al 2017), but it is surely valuable and necessary to continue to educate consumers about these behavioural mechanisms and supply them with behavioural tools for self-regulation. For instance, individuals who are informed about the general tendency to underestimate the caloric content of food provide better estimates than those who do not receive such bias disclosure (Chandon and Wansink 2007).…”