Challenge
At San Francisco State University, 18% of students drop out by the end of their first year, mostly for reasons unrelated to their academic achievements. The goal was to increase the number of first-year college students returning for their second year.
Design
To help first-year students understand that the challenges they faced were neither unique to them nor evidence of personal failure, all incoming first-year students at SF State were asked to watch a three-minute video in which…
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.
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Legend: Projects status
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We conducted a systematic search for an overview of reviews of scholarly evidence on scale up, and 11 practice interviews with behaviour science researchers and practitioners to identify the factors and activities that influence the scale up of behaviour change interventions, learn about scale up, its challenges, and useful frameworks, identify which behaviour to target with an intervention, assess the feasibility of different intervention ideas, and select a scalable behaviour change…
The Program of Applied Research on Climate Action in Canada (PARCA Canada) combines behavioural science (BeSci) insights and methods with robust policy analysis to promote climate action. One of the main areas of focus involves the launch of a longitudinal survey that will, over time, collect data on research questions of interest to the promotion of climate action in Canada (e.g. transportation, home energy use, waste management, engagement with nature, preparedness for extreme weather,…
In Indonesia, a replication of a Growth Mindset intervention had significant impacts on student academic performance – particularly in schools located in regions that could benefit the most. Student learning outcomes in Indonesia have remained lower than their regional neighbors and other middle-income countries, as suggested by the results of the Program for International Student Assessment – PISA. Aside from socioeconomic conditions and access to educational resources, student motivation…
BI Project
Enhanced cybersecurity of SMEs: Can a phishing test make companies less vulnerable to cyberattacks?
Small and Medium-sized Enterprises are particularly vulnerable to cyberattacks. A large-scale field experiment amongst SME employees showed that a phishing test is effective in the short term, but not in the medium or long term.
Why this experiment was conducted: SMEs are vulnerable to cyberattacks
Phishing is one of the most common types of cybercrime and is frequently the precursor to additional cyber threats, including malware and ransomware attacks. SMEs are vulnerable, with many of them…
Cambridgeshire Constabulary has noted that 1,650 hate incidents were reported within Cambridgeshire between 1st December 2019 and 28th February 2021 and the vast majority of reported incidents (1,344) were racially-based. The data indicates that since the pandemic (March 2020), incidents of Hate crime have increased for people with the following protected characteristics: disabled
people, LGBTQ+ people, race, religion. These groups are already disproportionately adversely impacted by COVID-19…
In partnership with Godot Inc. the Yomitan Village Office in Okinawa (Japan) conducted an AI-driven sludge audit of the medical check-up process. Since the 2022 financial year, the village office and Godot Inc. have been working together to apply behavioural science to medical check-up notifications delivered via SMS and postcards.
In 2021, Yomitan Village had the lowest general medical check-up rate among all 41 municipalities in Okinawa Prefecture. However, the application of behavioural…
In partnership with Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) and Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), the Impact and Innovation Unit (IIU) has launched a multi-year program of research on climate change. The Program of Applied Research on Climate Action in Canada (PARCA Canada) combines behavioural science (BeSci) insights and methods with robust policy analysis to promote climate action. One of the main areas of focus involves the launch of a longitudinal survey that will, over time, collect…
Normative messages have been shown to increase intention to do physical activity. Positive normative message say that most people like you are physically active. Negative normative message say that most people like you are NOT physically active. The study traces how “positive” and “negative” normative messages influence physical activity intention.
Behaviorally informed messages have had demonstrated success in increasing tax compliance in multiple regional settings. In Indonesia, which has the largest economy in Southeast Asia, a trial from the Directorate General of Taxes (DGT) and World Bank teams looked at whether behaviorally informed messages and materials can impact tax compliance and payment rates among small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The results showed, to get delinquent firms to pay their taxes, information is not enough -…