Behavioural Insights Projects

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, guests were required to wear face masks on entering and while moving inside hospitality venues. To promote this behaviour, self-persuasion and salience techniques were used in this experiment - with notable success. Following the announced relaxation of face mask requirements, there was a decrease in face mask usage, although this was significantly less in hospitality venues that saw interventions than in venues that did not experience interventions. Why this…

Among the education and psychology literature that looks at the role of beliefs and school outcomes, Growth Mindset theory (GM) posits that by helping students shift their theory of learning to one where intelligence isn’t a fixed state – but rather, that it’s malleable, and something you can improve and grow over time – students can become self-motivated to improve both academic effort and outcomes. Teaching youth how to foster a GM doesn’t just offer a potential solution at low cost…

Institution: World Bank

Team: eMBeD, Mind Behaviour and Development team

Five large cities in Noord-Brabant and the provincial authorities investigated how to improve cycling safety through behavioural interventions. They placed signs and markings along cycle routes in 's-Hertogenbosch, Breda, Eindhoven, Helmond and Tilburg. Half of the interventions had an effect; the number of dangerous situations decreased. Why this experiment was conducted: redesigning road layouts is not always possible Six locations in towns and cities in Noord-Brabant were identified as…

Institution: Noord-Brabant

Parents within the Child Support Program can apply for a Change of Assessment (CoA) when they experience a change in their circumstances that might affect their child support payments or entitlements. This is done by lodging an application with the Department of Human Services (DHS). The aim of the study is to examine whether providing timely and salient information about the receipt and process of a claim improves process transparency and saves client time and effort by reducing the need for…

Institution: Prime Minister and Cabinet (PMC)

Team: Behavioural Economics Team of the Australian Government (BETA)

BETA partnered with the Australian Energy Regulator to apply behavioural insights to the design of energy bills. We conducted a literature review to identify key research questions. We used 2 online samples involving over 6,300 and 7,800 Australians, respectively to a survey and 6 randomised controlled trials (survey experiments). They investigated the possibility of cognitive overload, and the impact of various bill components on comprehension and intentions.

Institution: Prime Minister and Cabinet (PMC)

Team: Behavioural Economics Team of the Australian Government (BETA)

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 collect data over time 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, disaster recovery, etc.) using a large and nationally…

Institution: Impact and Innovation Hub (IIU)- Impact Canada

Team: Impact and Innovation Unit (IIU)

The Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) seeks to remove barriers to apprenticeship enrolment, training, and program completion as part of their mandate to increase the skilled trades workforce in the province. Amongst other strategies, these efforts have led to an expansion of existing grant schemes that aim to offset some of the costs of training and encourage training completion. In collaboration with MLITSD, the Ontario Behavioural Insights Unit…

Institution: Ontario Public Service (OPS)

Team: Ontario Behavioural Insights Unit

The Health Quality & Safety Commission (‘the Commission’) uses data from the National Adult Inpatient Experience Survey to understand patient experience and evaluate quality of patient care in hospitals. Two questions (See Appendix 1A) pertaining to patients’ understanding of medication side-effects and condition management have consistently received low scores on the survey every quarter. Ogilvy conducted Phase 1 of ‘Raising the Bar’ research for the Commission, investigating these…

Institution: Health Quality Commission New Zealand

Team: Health Quality & Safety Commission New Zealand

In connection with the 2022 county elections, an experiment was conducted in Finland for the first time to examine the impact of text message reminders on the voting turnout of young people. In the experiment, young people (aged 18 to 29) were messaged twice about the schedule of the county elections and their right to vote. The aim of the study was to find out whether a text message reminder increases voting turnout. The experiment was carried out in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and…

Institution: Prime Minister's Office - Finland

Team: Finnish Behavioural Policy Unit

Air pollution is a serious health and environmental problem in many cities, including Pristina, Kosovo, where poor air quality is a frequent issue. Private cars and taxis are a major mode of transportation in Pristina, contributing significantly to both pollution and congestion, which is most problematic at peak traffic hours when individuals commute to and from work. To tackle this issue, ideas42 partnered with the UNDP Kosovo to design a behavioral intervention with the unifying slogan, "Give…

Institution: Ideas42

Team: Ideas42