Nudges for Voters

Abstract

Policy makers are increasingly relying on the insights from behavioral economics, and behavioral science more generally, to address a variety of social concerns. Guided by the prevalent focus of much of that literature, their efforts have largely concentrated on mitigating the effects of individuals’ cognitive and motivational biases on individuals’ own private matters; such as those having to do with savings and personal health. The possibilities for mitigating the external effects of individuals' biases in the realm of collective choice have not yet been exhaustively explored. This article suggests some possible applications of “choice architecture”, or “nudges”, to minimize the impact of voters’ biases and limitations on the quality of democratic choice.