The Government of Canada wants to support the transition from home heating based on fossil fuels (e.g., natural gas) to electric heat pumps. Here, we wanted to test different ways of framing the advantages of heat pumps and assess the benefit of providing a step-by-step guide to getting a heat pump.
Behavioural Insights Projects
Discover projects applying behavioural science to policy from around the world. Add your own projects, whether completed or still ongoing, to contribute knowledge on BI applications across different countries, policy areas, and topics of interest.
Number of BI projects:
0
Legend: Projects status
- Pre-registered project
- Completed project
This website, as well as any data and map included herein, are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area.
BI Project
Can interventions in supermarkets reduce household food waste? A randomised controlled trial of…
The study was conducted in collaboration with eight supermarkets from two of the largest Swedish supermarket chains. The stores provided the natural environment in which to conduct an experiment using real shoppers and real purchases, without shoppers being aware of the study. Four different interventions (different price displays) were designed, based on insights from behavioural science. These signs were tested in a randomised controlled study for two common and perishable vegetables –…
BI Project
Instilling the habit of more frequent hand washing in office settings: how to encourage proper and…
Washing your hands regularly with soap and water is an effective and easy way of reducing the risk of people falling ill with COVID-19, influenzas or a cold, or contracting other viral illnesses. Stickers and posters were developed focusing on reframing, nudging and habit stacking. Displaying the posters in the office environment led to an increase in handwashing amongst employees. Soap consumption went up.
Why this experiment was conducted: improved hygiene standards in the workplace is the…
BI Project
Increasing consumer engagement in the annuities market: can prompts raise shopping around?
In June 2016, Oxera and the Nuffield Centre for Experimental Social Sciences (CESS) published the results of an experiment testing the effectiveness of different ‘prompts’ in encouraging consumers to shop around. The study, commissioned by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), found that personalised messages were the most effective in stimulating product comparisons, while generic messaging appealing to social norms also had a significant impact.
BI Project
Broader job search: How can jobseekers be encouraged to explore fields and professions with better…
Some jobseekers remain unemployed because they focus on professions and felds in which the job prospects are not favourable. What happens when they receive personalised labour market information about more promising professions and positions that match their knowledge and skills? Compared to people who do not receive that information, they are more likely to move into professions that are completely different from the profession with poor job outlooks that was their first preference.
Why this…
This study aims to:
1) Use a Discrete Choice Experiment (or DCE) to explore and estimate Canadians’ preferences for different attributes of a potential ZEV purchase or lease.
2) Use an online RCT to explore the impact of varying messengers (government vs. personal testimonial) and varying messages (about driving range vs. affordability) on individuals' intent to switch to a ZEV
3) Explore Canadians’ knowledge of ZEVs
4) Generate baseline evidence other elements of decarbonized transport not…
The Environment Act 1986 established the Ministry for the Environment (MfE), which is the primary adviser of the New Zealand Government on environmental matters. The purpose statement for the MfE is “A flourishing environment for every generation – He taiao tōnui mō ngā reanga katoa [te reo version, the indigenous language of the Māori people].
MfE is actively engaged in reducing waste across the country, as illustrated by the recent Aotearoa New Zealand Waste Strategy. To lead by…
The study aims to identify barriers and trade-offs faced by consumers when deciding whether to engage in the circular economy. In particular, it explores decisions whether to buy a more or a less durable good, and whether to have a good repaired or to discard it and buy a replacement. It establishes the relative importance of economic, social and psychological factors that govern how consumers engage in the circular economy. Finally, it proposes policy tools to enable and encourage consumers to…
Despite email alert systems having a large reach, email can be a difficult platform to spread awareness. BETA partnered with the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) to find ways of boosting the impact of an email alert system. We applied behavioural insights to the email design to bolster its effects, and tested these different design aspects using a randomised controlled trial. Subscribers were randomly assigned to receive an alert with one or more of our new design features (or a…
The Ministry of Justice and Security developed a behavioural intervention aimed at inspiring individuals to adopt safe cyber practices: 'Valse email? Meld het via de meldknop' (Fake email? Report it using the report button). Thanks to this behavioural intervention, employees are ten times more likely to report suspicious emails internally. Moreover, click rates on links in suspicious emails have significantly decreased.
Why this experiment was conducted: One in five SMEs have been victims of…