Behavioral science in organizations: from simple nudges to a broader view of behaviour change

What are nudges and how they influence our behaviour?

Have you ever planned to complete an important work task but ended up not doing it, even though you knew it was beneficial? This phenomenon, where we plan to do something but fail to follow through, is known as the intention-action gap. Now imagine this scenario again: you planned to complete a report, but got distracted by an unexpected meeting, and forgot about it. However, later in the day, you received a calendar reminder and managed to complete the report before heading home.

That calendar reminder acted as a nudge—an external prompt that helped you follow through on your intention, ultimately improving your productivity at work.

The concept of a “nudge” was popularized by behavioral economists Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein in their groundbreaking book “Nudge”, published in 2008. A nudge is a subtle intervention that helps people make better decisions, often without them realizing it but it also keeps personal freedom of choice. It’s simply about making the right choice the easy choice. For instance, placing fruit at eye level in a cafeteria encourages healthier eating, while setting default options for retirement savings plans increases participation rates without forcing anyone to do anything.

Nudges are non-coercive, leveraging what we know about human psychology to improve decision-making. By adjusting the environment where decisions are made, nudges help bridge the gap between people’s intentions and their actions. This idea has found its way into various sectors, including health, finance, and sustainability, and is now increasingly used in workplaces to support employees in making better choices.

Evolving Beyond Simple Nudge

Early behavioral interventions often targeted individual cognitive biases, such as loss aversion or status quo bias. These biases do play a significant role in human behavior. For example, framing a message about energy savings in terms of potential losses (“If you don’t turn off your computer, you’ll waste X amount of money”) can effectively nudge employees to conserve energy.

Nudges, with their simplicity and ease of implementation, are very appealing. However, to create meaningful and lasting behavior change, we need more than well-placed nudges. This goes beyond merely addressing cognitive biases and considers broader influences on behaviour such as individual factors and environmental, social, and systemic influences:

• Individual factors: Do employees know how to perform a behavior? Do they have the capability to do it? Are they motivated to engage in it?

• Environmental influences: The physical layout of a workspace can impact behavior. Are recycling bins easily accessible? Is the office designed in a way that encourages collaboration or productivity?

• Social influences: Social norms heavily influence our actions. If recycling is seen as the norm in the office, employees are more likely to comply. Using social proof, such as signs indicating that “90% of our employees recycle regularly,” can be a powerful motivator.

• Systemic influences: Organizational policies and culture significantly shape behavior. If employees see that leadership genuinely values well-being and sustainability, they are more likely to engage in these behaviors themselves.

Behavioral science tools

Behavioral scientists use a variety of tools and frameworks to understand behavior in detail, identify the barriers that prevent desired actions and design and develop more targeted and effective interventions that tackle the root causes of behavior.

Behavioral journey mapping, for example is an essential tool in this approach. It involves charting the journey an employee takes when engaging in a particular behavior, identifying steps, barriers, and opportunities for intervention. Consider a workplace safety initiative. By mapping out an employee’s daily activities and understanding where they might take shortcuts or neglect safety procedures, we can identify entry points for delivering behavioural interventions that could make the biggest difference. This detailed understanding goes beyond focusing on cognitive biases—it helps us appreciate the contextual and systemic influences that shape behavior. Perhaps the safety equipment is inconveniently placed, or the social environment doesn’t reinforce the importance of following protocols. Identifying these factors helps in designing interventions that address both individual and systemic issues contributing to unsafe practices.

In addition to journey mapping, we also probe into factors that influence behavior and that stem from various psychological theories of behaviours. For example, if an organization wants employees to adopt a more sustainable practice, like reducing paper use, we examine whether employees have the knowledge to perform the action, whether the environment supports this behavior, and whether motivational factors are influencing their actions.

This holistic approach ensures that we address the root causes of undesired behaviors instead of merely applying surface-level solutions. By understanding the interplay of various factors, interventions become more effective and sustainable

Steps to Create Effective Behavioral Interventions

The key takeaway for organizations is that while nudges are powerful, they are most effective when used as part of a broader strategy that takes into account the complex reality of human behavior. Here are some steps to consider when designing behavioral interventions:

1. Define the behavior: Start by clearly defining the behavior you want to change.

2. Identify barriers and enablers: Use different tools to understand what stands in the way of the desired behavior and what could help facilitate it.

3. Design interventions: Create interventions that target identified barriers.

4. Test and iterate: Behavioral interventions should be tested in a controlled manner before being scaled. Use A/B testing or pilot programs to understand what works and adjust accordingly.

Conclusion

Behavioral science has evolved far beyond simple nudges. By addressing environmental, social, and systemic influences, we can create interventions that are not only effective but also sustainable. Nudges are still valuable, but their true power lies in combining them with a thorough analysis of barriers preventing desired behaviors. This broader, nuanced approach leads to transformative changes that benefit both individuals and organizations, creating a better workplace for everyone.