by Rebecca Nissan
Despite rapid growth in the adoption of behavioral science over the last decade, some have argued that the field may not be reaching its full potential. When behavioral scientists focus on identifying new applications for existing frameworks, we risk falling short of innovative growth into new technologies and approaches. There is certainly still room to […]
by ideas42
People often (erroneously) believe that a few leaders are responsible for the development of an emerging field, an idea, or event in history because of perceived “natural attributes” such as superior intelligence. This is known as “great man” theory–a flawed theory, of course, because in reality it is the tireless work of countless people that […]
by ideas42
It’s become tradition of sorts that each December, we reflect on the year behind us and celebrate the newest evidence and social impact generated by behavioral science. Of course, 2020 is a difficult year to look back on with much fondness. And yet, even in one of the more challenging years in living memory, we […]
by Elizabeth Weingarten and Omar Parbhoo
Silver linings are hard to come by in 2020. But from our perspective, there’s at least one: this is the year millions of Americans discovered their civic voices – speaking out in person and virtually, at the polls and in the streets, and by volunteering in their communities at historic levels. Voter turnout smashed records. […]
by ideas42
The heart of a functioning democracy is the integrity of its democratic institutions, most notably trust in elections and the process by which everyone can make their voice heard. In the 2020 U.S. election, voters made their voices heard at historic levels: turnout is projected to be at its highest in over a century, including […]
by ideas42
It’s November 4th, Day 2 of election returns in the United States 2020 election, and as was expected and planned for, the outcome is not yet decided. All the votes are usually not counted election night, but in the past, reasonable projections could be made the night of. This year, due to safety concerns amid […]
by Jazondré Gibbs, Tom Tasche, and Cassie Taylor
Nearly twice as many students voted in the 2018 midterm election as in 2014, raising turnout among student voters to a high-water mark. As recently as last fall, analysts confidently forecasted similarly record-breaking levels of participation in the 2020 presidential election. Fast forward 12 months and, needless to say, things have changed. The pandemic is […]
by Elizabeth Weingarten and Omar Parbhoo
A lesson one of us (Elizabeth) learned in journalism school: The best first sentences, also known as the lead, are vacuums. Great journalists use them to demand a slice of readers’ limited cognitive bandwidth and suck them into a story. If the story is well-written and interesting enough, your audience will read and understand it, lectured […]
by Maya Alper
At first glance, mail-in ballot numbers seem to presage a coming disaster: during the primaries more than 550,000 mail ballots were rejected, many disqualified for seemingly small errors, like envelopes sealed with tape. But these numbers don’t signal an inevitable November Nightmare. In fact, the science of human behavior can help explain both why these […]
by Elizabeth Weingarten & Omar Parbhoo
In May 2020, we began hearing a pattern of concerns from Secretary of State offices across the country. One office told us they were worried about voters completing and signing their mail-in ballots incorrectly. Other offices agonized about how a steep decline in poll worker volunteers, many of whom were in populations most vulnerable to […]
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