A Wednesday perspective from Nathaniel Barr & @kellypeters.bsky.social, from the archive: The history of behavioral science is minuscule relative to its future. Looking ahead, what questions will behavioral scientists be called to answer?

Would be interesting to understand how your research might inform how governments should coordinate w citizens on difficult budgetary choices.

Handy who's who for the economists and behavioural scientists.

Fascinating to see that the apotheosis of reason & logic, the arbiters of sound judgment, can be persuaded by a little bit of social proof.

Bumping this.

I like exercises that have us work through the details of possible imagined futures. This one caught my attention because it was positioned as “a little nudge towards hope.” I agree that this imagined future succeeds in nudging out the nihilism we might foresee because existential risk.

A life saving example of a nudge in action.

BE cited to explain casual real-world observation. Nicely done.

Lovely use of BE.

Your Summer Reading List.

See 5 examples of how behavioral economics principles have been used to improve the lives of patients. chibe.upenn.edu/blog/5-examp...

[Article Publication] Here it is : www.nature.com/articles/s41... For people interested by the relations between behavioral economics and political philosophy.

The magic of anchoring in behavioral economics! He reset the status quo, so this *feels* like a dramatic improvement.

Tesla closed up 10 percent today at $237/share. It's P=E ratio is $118 - an astronomical number that would have scared every intelligent investor off until fairly recently. This is a case that behavioral economics was created for. 3/

I’m honored to be named Advocate of the Year for the 29th Annual Webbys! Every day, I fight to make sure our communities are seen, heard, and protected—so to be recognized for that work at the Webbys means the world. Follow along on Monday, May 12 at #Webbys.

A colleague at Stanford’s business school used The Stanford Daily to argue—poorly—against DEI. The piece was riddled with historical errors and left one searching for fact, so I broke my public writing hiatus to respond. I hope you’ll read and share the piece. stanforddaily.com/2025/04/22/w...

The topic existential risk is permeating many facets of society. This article features some of our research on its effects on GenZ & their (bleak) outlook on the future, & how it, along w today's high cost of living, is affecting long term financial savings. www.benefitscanada.com/events/confe...

Beijing researchers analyzed data from over 13,000 US adults and found depression rose from 8.45% pre-COVID to 12.2% post-pandemic, with the sharpest jump to 16.6% in those aged 20–39. The mental health impact of COVID is still unfolding. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

In conversation with Timothy Snyder “On Freedom” and the future of democracy #DXC25

The holidays might be a good time to start a new habit for slow science.

Huge scoop from @propublica.org reporter Kavitha Surana today that you must read. The Senate emergency health post Dobbs report highlights how hospitals rarely advise doctors on how to treat patients under abortion bans. www.propublica.org/article/abor...

It still astonishes me that more people in politics and our media pretend to be concerned about kids having missed school than kids having been killed or sickened by Covid.

“In reality, the duty to prevent collisions should fall on the road engineers, car companies, and public officials who create the system in which people drive, bike, or walk—and not on road users themselves.” — @davidzipper.bsky.social in @fastcompany.com #VisionZero

During my presentation on my methodology for applying behavioral insights, a consultant said it'd be hard to sell experiments bc 'they expect us to have solutions.' I said he should be selling curiosity & a desire to know. In his domain there is no way anyone has the answers. RCTs satisfy both.

"By envisioning what the distant future might bring, we can begin to uncover the kinds of questions the science of human behavior will be called upon to answer." via Nathaniel Barr, @kellypeters.bsky.social, @behscientist.bsky.social 1/ behavioralscientist.org/behavioral-s...

Recent estimates suggest that 99% of livestock in the United States is factory-farmed. Globally, the majority of animals are raised on factory farms. Reducing meat consumption can lessen the demand for factory farming and its associated harms. @ourworldindata.org

The Indian government is about to give 18 million students, faculty and researchers free access to nearly 13,000 journals after striking a major deal with global publishers. https://buff.ly/3ZFYCaL #ShareGoodNewsToo

Why it’s psychologically hard to switch to public transit or biking. “Over time, land use & infrastructure quality will largely dictate how people travel. But nudges can tilt decisions…they can lead people to adjust their current habits before they otherwise would have.” slate.com/technology/2...

JUST PUBLISHED: "Food Imperialism: Keeping the Poorest People Poor" We need to understand how food trade is being used as a weapon to maintain poverty. Learn about the Food Imperialist's Playbook and more! #colonialism #imperialism #foodSystems #food #trade medium.com/the-new-clim...

Invited to give a few lectures at Columbia. I ended up dragging old my old lectures where I emphasize scientific thinking & methods as the crucial foundation for behavioral insights practitioners. I figure we can’t hear enough about recognizing & building on ST now more than ever.

read more about our findings here www.propublica.org/article/form...

The kind of reading rabbit hole it’s great to get lost in

Read this to be in the front seat of a powerful drive through many-laned intersections of art, philosophy of science, astronomy, history, the fight against colonization, racism, and slavery!

Here are some more factoids for you along these lines. In Kenya, universal basic income meant half as many reports of women being abused by their partners. And in Canada's pilot in Dauphin in the 1970s, violent crime dropped by 37%; most of it domestic in nature. UBI is the power to say no to abuse.

This account is worth your follow. Niall is a man on a mission. I have learned quite a bit about setting aspirational goals & how to go about attaining them one day & one setback at a time. I recommend scrolling back thru his entire journey, but also buy his book for yourself & as a gift.

When perception > truth www.niemanlab.org/2024/11/are-...

He tells me he can pursue his dream of working as a bespoke shoemaker because the cost of living is low (specifically, rent). You can rent a tiny space in Tokyo for very little money, whereas commercial space in the US tends to be both big and expensive.

Oooooo the things I want to say… 😤🤬 bsky.app/profile/ener...

So...people take a conservative position that turns into a liberal position as soon as you ask them to give it even one minute of thought.

Optimist: The cup is half full. Pessimist: The cup is half empty. Rhetorician: The cup is a metaphor.

Choose 20 books that have stayed with you or influenced you. One book per day for 20 days, in no particular order. No explanations, no reviews, just covers. #BookSky #Books #BookChallenge Day 3

And here's Part I for those who missed it. Though it still makes sense reading in either order. #degrowth #postgrowth #climatecrisis [gift link] medium.com/the-new-clim...

Choose 20 books that have stayed with you or influenced you. One book per day for 20 days, in no particular order. No explanations, no reviews, just covers. #BookSky #Books #BookChallenge Day 2

Pre-ordering books months before their release is a gift to my future self. 📚 #Books #BookSky #nudge

Choose 20 books that have stayed with you or influenced you. One book per day for 20 days, in no particular order. No explanations, no reviews, just covers. #BookSky #Books #BookChallenge Day 1

During the pandemic, we found that pairing an imagination task (visualizing consequences of a risky choice) with a risk quiz (feedback about viral exposure risk) changed beliefs & intentions about risky health behaviors in daily life. www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1... #AcademicSky #PsychSciSky #EpiSky

Newbie helping newbies: if you are looking for a way to connect with more likeminded people, check this AMAZING way of finding them: blueskydirectory.com/starter-pack...

This is another version of the bluesky nudge

1/IMPORTANT thread about Bluesky funding and origins. Many folks know that it was seeded by Jack Dorsey around a libertarian vision of a magical network that wouldn’t need moderation because it would be decentralized and baked into a protocol (somehow).