Behavioral Public Policy and Economics GmbH
We are pleased to announce that our director Dr. Julia Stauf has been appointed Professor of Economics at the Westphalian University of Applied Sciences in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, where she will pursue her passion for teaching, helping students use different lenses to better understand why economies, markets and people behave the way they do.
Sociologists have observed that humans tend to value symmetric social relations. That is, when we think of someone as a close friend, we also believe that they consider us as theirs.
Of course, not every social relation is symmetric. The other person might think differently about us. However, we tend to overlook such differences and, instead, overgeneralize our view.
In many areas of personal growth, the goals we set are coupled with discomfort and pain that challenge our perseverance and initial motivation. But what if we could embrace the pain as a positive indicator for progress instead of a negative sign of difficulties?
We are currently conducting a study on personal values and political preferences. The study aims to provide policy makers with insights into people’s attitudes and opinions towards a variety of important policy areas.
People are naturally attracted towards beauty in many areas of life. What may be less apparent, however, is that beauty can produce overgeneralizations: when we think something is beautiful, we also tend to believe that it has better qualities.
Are you interested to know how behavioral insights can be used to encourage pro-environmental behavior? Inspired by two workshops given by our Dr. Julia Stauf, a new article by Thüringer Agentur für die Kreativwirtschaft (THAK) shares tips on how to apply nudges efficiently and gives some creative examples of how green nudging can help us act more sustainably.
The facts we take to be true build and shape our perception of reality. The importance of factuality for society comes into play especially during crises and conflict resolution. When we have fundamentally different perceptions, we can’t agree on a solution and as a result, the stability and cohesion that society requires to power through crises is compromised. That is why fake news can have devastating effects on societies.
Can cultural participation make us more resilient during times of crises? In a recent study, Annie Tubadji (2021) tries to shed light on this question. Using data from an online survey conducted in the first year of the pandemic in several countries, she examines the relationship between culture, happiness and pro-sociality.
Can prompting self-reflection help young job seekers find a job faster? If so, how much impact can we expect from such interventions?
Have you ever wondered how exposure to fake news could affect your behavior? It might be deeper than you think.