Behavioral Science Literature Research Articles

Investigating Latent Interaction Effects in Multiple-Group Analysis in the Structural Equation Modeling Framework

This study aims to address a gap in the social and behavioral sciences literature concerning interaction effects between latent factors in multiple-group analysis. By comparing two approaches for estimating latent interactions within multiple-group analysis frameworks using simulation studies and empirical data, we assess their relative merits. Our simulation study results demonstrated the superiority of the Latent Moderated Structural Equations (LMS) approach over the Unconstrained Product Indicator (UPI) method in power and providing more accurate estimates of differences in latent interactions between groups. Utilizing multiple-group analysis on real-world data, we evaluated its efficacy in identifying latent interaction differences between groups. Empirical data analysis did not reveal discrepancies between LMS and UPI in terms of detecting differences in latent interactions between boys and girls, although they indicated varying sizes of differences in interaction effects. The study concludes with recommendations for examining differences in latent interactions and suggests avenues for future research. Our findings aim to deepen the understanding of intricate relationships among variables, group differences, and the moderating effects of latent variables, ultimately facilitating the development of more accurate theoretical models.

Applying behavioral science to agriculture, food, and agri-environmental policymaking

This special issue aims to extend the active discourse on applying behavioral science-based tools to policymaking in the fields of food, agriculture, and agri-environmental issues. For this introductory article, we collected and analyzed data from the 91 submissions we received for this special issue to identify knowledge gaps and priorities for future policy research. In the submitted papers, the impacts of the behavioral interventions were small when implemented in isolation, but they were larger when coupled with other policy tools. Yet, we also found that most of the interventions that were evaluated in the submitted papers focused either on consumers or producers and thus offered little insight into other actors in the supply chain. Moreover, many of the submitted papers had shortcomings that are common in the behavioral science literature, including the use of hypothetical or low-stake incentives, a focus on short-term behavior change, and a lack of discussion about cost-effectiveness and mechanisms. We argue that better research designs and practices are needed to improve the credibility of behavioral science-based research in food policy. We conclude by presenting insights and recommendations for researchers and practitioners that arise from this special issue.

The Moderating Role of Perceived Reward on Leadership Style and Policy Involvement Effects on Job Performance Among Pharmaceutical Managers

Management and behavioral sciences literature has established a direct link between rewards and employee performance. However, limited research exists on the role of perceived reward on the effects of policy strategy involvement and leadership style on the performance of pharmaceutical managers. Intuitively, perceived rewards may have a potential impact on the behavior and attitudes of pharmaceutical managers toward work, and invariably job performance. Based on the incentive theory of motivation framework, the study explored the causal effect of leadership style, and policy involvement on job performance, and the moderating effect of perceived reward among pharmaceutical managers. Comparative differences in perception between operational and strategic managers were evaluated. A cross-sectional web-based questionnaire survey of a random stratified sample of managers (103 strategic and 138 operational) engaged in pharmaceutical marketing. Structural equation modeling was used to evaluate the developed model. Construct validity and fit measures of the hypothetical model were adequate. Policy strategy involvement and leadership style had a positive and significant influence on job performance. Moderation analysis showed that low perceived reward significantly weakened the impact of policy engagement on performance. Integrating improved managers’ involvement with policy and strategy development with commensurate rewards is an incentive strategy to improve managers’ job performance. The study was restricted to only two major managerial groups. More job-related behavioral constructs are required to improve the generalizability of findings, which is suggested for further research.

Functional contextual implementation of an evolutionary, entropy-based, and embodied free energy framework: Utilizing Lagrangian mechanics and evolutionary game theory's truth vs. fitness test of the veridicality of phenomenological experience.

The Bayesian approach of cognitive science largely takes the position that evolution drives perception to produce precepts that are veridical. However, some efforts utilizing evolutionary game theory simulations have shown that perception is more likely based on a fitness function, which promotes survival rather than promoting perceptual truth about the environment. Although these findings do not correspond well with the standard Bayesian approach to cognition, they may correspond with a behavioral functional contextual approach that is ontologically neutral (a-ontological). This approach, formalized through a post-Skinnerian account of behaviorism called relational frame theory (RFT), can, in fact, be shown to correspond well with an evolutionary fitness function, whereby contextual functions form that corresponds to a fitness function interface of the world. This fitness interface approach therefore may help provide a mathematical description for a functional contextual interface of phenomenological experience. Furthermore, this more broadly fits with a neurological active inference approach based on the free-energy principle (FEP) and more broadly with Lagrangian mechanics. These assumptions of how fitness beats truth (FBT) and FEP correspond to RFT are then discussed within a broader multidimensional and evolutionary framework called the extended evolutionary meta-model (EEMM) that has emerged out of the functional contextual behavioral science literature to incorporate principles of cognition, neurobiology, behaviorism, and evolution and are discussed in the context of a novel RFT framework called "Neurobiological and Natural Selection Relational Frame Theory" (N-frame). This framework mathematically connects RFT to FBT, FEP, and EEMM within a single framework that expands into dynamic graph networking. This is then discussed for its implications of empirical work at the non-ergodic process-based idiographic level as applied to individual and societal level dynamic modeling and clinical work. This discussion is framed within the context of individuals that are described as evolutionary adaptive and conscious (observer-self) agents that minimize entropy and can promote a prosocial society through group-level values and psychological flexibility.

The Role of CSR Information on Social Media to Promote the Communicative Behavior of Customers: An Emotional Framework Enriching Behavioral Sciences Literature

Studies have shown that an organization's corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities affect customer behaviors such as loyalty and satisfaction. In spite of this, the role of social media in informing customers about a brand's CSR activities and in fostering customer advocacy behavior (CADB) has been underexplored. To fill this knowledge gap, this study investigates the relationship between the CSR-related communication of a banking organization and CADB. This study also examines how emotions such as customer-company identification (CCI) and gratitude as a mediator and a moderator. Using a self-administered questionnaire (n = 302), we collected data from banking customers. Hypotheses were evaluated by using structural equation modeling, which revealed that CSR positively predicts CADB, whereas there are mediating and moderating functions of CCI and GA. Theoretically, this study highlights the role of human emotions in behavior formation from the standpoint of social media. Practically, this study provides important insights for the banking sector's administrators to realize the important role of CSR communication, using different social networking websites, for converting customers into brand advocates.

Evaluation of the organizational commitment of librarians of libraries in Tehran

Purpose and background: Organizational commitment in management and behavioral science literature is an important factor in the relationships between organizations and individuals. The purpose of this research is to identify and evaluate the organizational commitment of librarians in libraries in Tehran based on 4 indicators of participation and teamwork spirit, conscientiousness, values, and administrative discipline. Financial and social took place. Research method: The current research was applied in terms of purpose and survey research in terms of method. In the present study, data were collected using standard questionnaires and interviews. The statistical population included all librarians of academic and public libraries in Tehran, numbering 780 people. In this research, using Cochran's formula, 257 people were selected as a sample population. Also, the snowball technique was used in the interview method to collect data. Findings: The results of the research showed that the public participation component is the most important component in the discussion of the organizational commitment of librarians in libraries in Tehran. And the components of central justice and responsibility are in the next ranks. Also, the results showed that the librarians of Iranian libraries are in the first rank in the index of participation and group spirit, the index of work conscience is in the second rank, and the index of administrative, financial and social discipline is in the rank of The third and the index of values are in the fourth place. Also, the results of the research showed that the level of adherence to organizational commitment in academic libraries and public libraries is not significantly different, but the condition of university library employees is slightly better than public library employees. Conclusion: It goes without saying that the ultimate goal of performance evaluation in any field is the exchange of information between the evaluator and the employees in order to prevent and correct undesirable performance and encourage the desired performance of employees. For this purpose, care should be taken during the evaluation session to move towards the conclusion of the topics.

A Synthetic Prediction Market for Estimating Confidence in Published Work

Explainably estimating confidence in published scholarly work offers opportunity for faster and more robust scientific progress. We develop a synthetic prediction market to assess the credibility of published claims in the social and behavioral sciences literature. We demonstrate our system and detail our findings using a collection of known replication projects. We suggest that this work lays the foundation for a research agenda that creatively uses AI for peer review.

Effectiveness of Behaviorally Informed Letters on Health Insurance Marketplace Enrollment

Every year during the open enrollment period, hundreds of thousands of individuals across the Affordable Care Act marketplaces begin the enrollment process but fail to complete it, thereby resulting in coverage gaps or going uninsured. To investigate if low-cost ($0.55 per person) letters can increase health insurance enrollment. This intent-to-treat randomized clinical trial was conducted during the final 2 weeks of the 2015 open enrollment period among the 37 states on the HealthCare.gov platform. The trial targeted 744 510 individuals who started the enrollment process but had yet to complete it. Data were analyzed from January through August 2021. Study participants were randomized to either a no-letter control group or to 1 of 8 letter variants that drew on evidence from the behavioral sciences about what motivates individuals to take action. The primary outcome was the health insurance enrollment rate at the end of the open enrollment period. Of the 744 510 individuals (mean [SD] age, 41.9 [19.6] years; 53.9% women), 136 122 (18.3%) were in the control group and 608 388 (81.7%) were in the treatment group. Most lived in Medicaid nonexpansion states (72.7%), and a plurality were between 30 and 50 years old (41.0%). For race and ethnicity, 3.0% self-identified as Asian, 14.0% as Black, 5.1% as Hispanic, 39.8% as non-Hispanic White, and 38.2% as other or unknown. By the end of the open enrollment period, 4.0% of the control group enrolled in health insurance coverage. Comparatively, the enrollment rate in the pooled treatment group was 4.3%, which demonstrated an increase of 0.3 percentage points (95% CI, 0.2-0.4 percentage points; P<.001), yielding 1753 marginal enrollments. Letters that used action language caused larger enrollment effects, particularly among Black individuals (increase of 1.6 percentage points; 95% CI, 0.6-2.7 percentage points; P = .003) and Hispanic individuals (increase of 1.5 percentage points; 95% CI, 0.0-3.0 percentage points; P = .046) in Medicaid expansion states. This randomized clinical trial shows that letters designed with best practices from the behavioral sciences literature were a low-cost way to increase health insurance enrollment in the Affordable Care Act marketplaces. More research is needed to understand what messages are most effective amid the recently passed American Rescue Plan. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05010395.

Extending The Theory of Planned Behavior With Religiosity: Explaining Entrepreneurial Intention of Employees Students

Employees students face major threats related to the development and implementation of the industrial revolution 4.0. However, how employees students handle this situation scientifically is rarely found in the behavioural science literature. This study tries to fill this gap and at the same time extends the Theory of Planned Behavior by adding a variable of religiosity. A total of 421 Muslim students in Banten Province who are still working, were sampled using the purposive sampling method. Structural Equation Modeling is used to test hypotheses simultaneously. The results showed that all independent variables, namely religiosity, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control had a positive effect on the entrepreneurial intentions of employees students. That is, although the influence of religiosity is second only to perceived behavioural control, empirically, extending the theory of planned behaviour with religiosity is still acceptable. For policymakers, the results of this study can be used to make policies that can increase perceptions about the ease of doing business in Indonesia, especially for employees students. Keywords: employees students, the theory of planned behaviour, religiosity, industry 4.0, entrepreneurial policy

A review of the evidence on cigarettes with reduced addictiveness potential.

BackgroundIn May 2018, the Secretariat for the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control convened a meeting to discuss the potential for reducing the addictiveness of tobacco products. A central focus was to review research findings on the behavioral effects of reducing the addictiveness of cigarettes.MethodsThis manuscript reports the results of a review of the behavioral science literature, updated through April 2021, with special attention to both the potential benefits and unintended consequences of reducing nicotine in cigarettes.ResultsAvailable evidence suggests that reducing nicotine content in cigarettes to very low levels could benefit public health in three primary ways, by 1) decreasing uptake of regular smoking, 2) decreasing the amount people smoke, and 3) increasing the likelihood of smoking cessation. Current evidence also suggests that reducing nicotine in cigarettes may produce similar benefits across many important subpopulations of people who smoke, including those with psychiatric comorbidities, those who use other substances, those with low socioeconomic status, young people, people who smoke infrequently and people who prefer menthol cigarettes. Cigarette nicotine reduction could also lead to some undesirable outcomes, such as experiencing withdrawal, product manipulation, an illicit market, and harm misperceptions; strategies that may mitigate each are discussed.ConclusionOverall, behavioral research suggests product standards that limit the nicotine content of combusted tobacco products could render cigarettes and similar products less addictive. The availability of legal, non-combusted products that effectively substitute for cigarettes and the dissemination of public health campaigns that clarify misperceptions about the relationship between nicotine, tobacco and disease may facilitate the extent to which a nicotine reduction policy reduces smoking.

Changing human behaviour to improve animal welfare outcomes

Context Producers’ behaviour, attitudes, and ethics towards animal welfare emerge from a complex interplay of factors. Applying insights from behavioural science can therefore enrich our understanding of the myriad factors influencing animal welfare and can provide recommendations for creating a positive shift in producers’ behaviour. Aims The current paper documents a partnership between an organic beef exporter, OBE Organic, and a behavioural science company, Evidn. The partnership aimed to improve beef producers’ behaviours towards animal welfare by embedding behavioural science principles into producer feedback sheets that are completed post-slaughter by meat processors and beef exporters. Methods A five-stage approach was applied. Stage one involved a behavioural science ‘hackathon’ between OBE Organic and Evidn to refine project scope. Stage two reviewed producer communications at OBE Organic through five semi-structured interviews. Stage three analysed the behavioural science literature and other interventions relevant to animal welfare. Stage four pilot-tested recommendations with 10 stakeholders, followed by the re-design of producer feedback sheets throughout Stage five. Key results Qualitative results were collected from OBE Organic staff and producers to delineate the potential impacts of the re-designed feedback sheets on animal welfare. Results indicated that re-designed sheets reduced complexity, increased saliency of relevant information, and further motivated behaviour change by providing peer comparisons. Industry partners of OBE Organic responded positively to the company’s commitment to improving animal welfare, further enhancing their social licence to operate. Conclusions Behavioural science is a potentially useful tool for improving animal welfare by further enriching our understanding of the myriad factors influencing producers’ behaviour and providing evidence-based recommendations to enhance producers’ engagement with animal welfare information contained in producer feedback sheets. Implications Future work should focus on directly linking the re-designed feedback sheets to improvements in animal welfare (i.e. bruising, meat colour). This could involve a large-scale randomised controlled trial (RCT) to test the impact of re-designed communications on animal welfare outcomes. A large qualitative engagement project could also help understand the system of factors influencing producer behaviour and develop a behaviour change program to further improve animal welfare. Ongoing work is also needed to ensure that engagement with feedback sheets is maintained in the long term.

Public procurement in Malaysian local authorities: Antecedents of procedural rationality in decision making

The Malaysian public sector is oversaturated with comprehensive procurement procedures. These measures aim to deter unwarranted behaviours from public officers. Nevertheless, there have been recurring irregularities over the past decade in Malaysian local authorities, including work delays, non-compliance with regulations, wasteful purchasing, substandard workmanship etc. This study aimed to investigate factors undermining rationality in public procurement decision making from the cognitive perspective. The cognitive and behavioural science literature was reviewed systematically, focusing on procedural rationality to develop a predictive model of procurement irregularities. This research adopted a quantitative approach. A total of 289 datasets were collected from the procurement officers of Malaysian local authorities and analysed using the Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling technique. The empirical findings showed that work experience, prior knowledge, and accountability correlate directly with procedural rationality in procurement decision-making, which would impact the procurement outcome. The research offered insights into the decision-making behaviour of procurement officers from the cognitive psychology perspective. From the managerial standpoint, public procurement procedures should incorporate the elements of accountability, experience, and prior knowledge as part of the quality assurance and control measures.

Leveraging the Motivational Effects of Labels: Lessons from Retrofitting

Retrofitting—replacing obsolete home infrastructure with more energy-efficient substitutes—will be essential to reducing energy use and carbon emissions in the future. Yet European and American households have proved reluctant to undertake these changes. Evidence has shown that a home energy audit can motivate people to retrofit their homes. In this article, we show that including the EU energy label—which displays the property's energy-efficiency rating—in energy audit reports is a simple way to enhance the audit's effectiveness: When energy labels are required as part of the process of selling a property, home sellers become motivated to retrofit if doing so boosts their property into a higher efficiency category on the label. Drawing on insights from the behavioral science literature, we offer suggestions for how policymakers can leverage this motivation to expand household investments in retrofitting. Although our proposals focus on retrofitting, some of them could also encourage other actions that would reduce energy consumption.

Focusing Provider Attention: An Empirical Examination of Incentives and Feedback in Flu Vaccinations

Background. Influenza imposes heavy societal costs through healthcare expenditures, missed days of work, and numerous hospitalizations each year. Considering these costs, the healthcare and behavioral science literature offers suggestions on increasing demand for flu vaccinations. Yet, the adult flu vaccination rate fluctuated between 37% and 46% between 2010 and 2019. Aim. Although a demand-side approach represents one viable strategy, an operations management approach would also highlight the need to consider a supply-side approach. In this paper, we investigate how to improve clinic vaccination rates by altering provider behavior. Methodology. We implement and study a flu vaccine intervention among 145 clinics from nine different states. This intervention randomly assigned these clinics to a control group or one of two separate treatment arms that received either relative performance feedback or financial incentives. Results. We find clinics that received relative performance feedback outperformed all others: Our intervention led to a 12% increase in flu shots for this group of clinics. Moreover, we also find clinics in this group exhibit rank response behavior, specifically last-place aversion; in particular, clinics near last place outperform the corresponding control clinics by 23% points. Conclusion. Overall, we find that clinic-level performance feedback can effectively drive operational improvement. Even a small increase in the U.S. adult flu vaccination rate might confer hundreds of millions of dollars in societal benefits and prevents thousands of hospitalizations. We discuss the implications of our work for healthcare operations theory, healthcare providers, and healthcare administrators. This paper was accepted by Charles Corbett, operations management.

Using a randomized controlled trial to develop conservation strategies on rented farmlands

AbstractAddressing the environmental impacts of large‐scale agriculture requires innovative approaches to conservation program design and evaluation. We used a randomized controlled trial and a sample of 2225 landowners in the Mississippi River Basin to test a new conservation program that targets a growing but overlooked population—nonoperating landowners (NOLs). To spur adoption of conservation practices on farmland rented out by NOLs, the program provided NOLs with ready‐to‐use lease language and a financial incentive. The program's design was informed by field work, the behavioral science literature, and the social science literature on barriers to conservation on farmland. We cannot detect an effect on conservation practices from the lease language or the incentive. The take‐up rate for the incentive was one‐tenth the expected rate based on NOL responses to a hypothetical offer in a survey. The results underscore the importance of assessing program performance by rigorously testing programs in real conservation settings.

Adapting Safety Check as a Universal Suicide Prevention Strategy in Pediatric Primary Care

The presence of unlocked firearms in the home is associated with increased risk of suicide and unintentional injury in youth. We adapted an evidence-based program for promoting safe firearm storage, Safety Check, to enhance its acceptability as a universal suicide prevention strategy in pediatric primary care. We applied ADAPT-ITT, an established adaptation framework, to guide iterative program adaptation with ongoing input from key stakeholders. The present study describes 2 phases of ADAPT-ITT: the Production phase (generating adaptations) and the Topical Experts phase (gathering stakeholder feedback on adaptations). After generating proposed program adaptations based on 3 inputs (stakeholder feedback collected in a prior study, the behavioral science literature, and best practices in pediatric medicine), we elicited feedback from stakeholders with firearm expertise. The adaptations included changes such as clarifying firearm ownership will not be documented in the medical record and offering follow-up reminders. We also crowdsourced feedback from 337 parents to select a new name and program logo. Saturation was reached with 9 stakeholders. Feedback confirmed the value of adaptations that: 1) considered context (eg, reason for ownership), 2) promoted parent autonomy in decision-making, and 3) ensured privacy. The most preferred program name was Suicide and Accident prevention through Family Education (SAFE) Firearm. Guided by an established adaptation framework that prioritized multistage stakeholder feedback, adaptations to the original Safety Check were deemed acceptable. We plan to test the SAFE Firearm program as a universal suicide prevention strategy in pediatric primary care via a hybrid effectiveness-implementation trial.

The Effect of Gain-loss Framing on Climate Policy Preferences

We designed a discrete choice experiment testing valence-based framing of climate policy outcomes for future generations, a moral good involving altruistic trade-offs. Specifically, we explore how a gain and loss framing influence social preferences for the distributional outcomes of climate policy. Respondents are asked to consider climate policy alternatives with two main outcomes affecting three regions of the world: Income effects for future generations caused by climate change, which the respondents may not be affected by, and a present generation co-benefit from mitigation efforts, which could benefit the respondents directly. Using a sample of the Danish population, we find a significant difference in the estimated preference structure for climate policies when future income effects are framed as losses in income for future generations relative to when framed as regained income. However, the welfare measures reveal that the framing did not generate significantly higher value estimates for the framed income effect attribute. Instead, the framing resulted in increased willingness to pay for additional climate policy initiatives per se, and higher value estimates for the unframed, present generation co-benefit. We interpret these results drawing on the behavioural science and economic literature on framing and reference point dependent preferences.

The Effect of COVID-19 on the Hospitality Industry: The Implication for Open Innovation

The current coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has led the world toward severe socio-economic crisis and psychological distress. It has severely hit the economy; but the service sector, particularly the hospitality industry, is hard hit by it. It increases the sense of insecurity among the employees and their perception of being unemployed, adversely affecting their mental health. This research aims to contribute to the emerging debate by investigating the effect of economic crisis and non-employability on employees’ mental health through perceived job insecurity under the pandemic situation. It empirically examines the underlying framework by surveying 372 employees of the hospitality industry during COVID-19. Results indicate that perceived job insecurity mediates the relationship of fear of economic crisis, non-employability, and mental health. Furthermore, the contingency of fear of COVID-19 strengthens the indirect relationship of fear of economic crisis on mental health through perceived job insecurity. The findings will provide a new dimension to the managers to deal with the psychological factors associated with the employees’ mental health and add to the emerging literature of behavioral sciences. The study also highlights the increasing need for investment in the digital infrastructure and smart technologies for the hospitality industry.

Harnessing motivation for sustainable practice change: From passive receivers to active co-creators.

The challenges of implementing clinical practice changes are well recognised. Prevailing approaches to tackling them have largely relied on increasing control and standardisation, but with limited impact. We examine research from the behavioural sciences in an attempt to (a) build a clearer understanding of why the implementation of change in clinical settings has proved so elusive and (b) provide practical guidance on how organisations can create a climate that can nurture sustained behavioural change in their workforce. We undertook a review of the behavioural science literature to gain a better understanding of the circumstances under which staff might willingly pursue goals that are externally generated. Three studies, derived from the mental health literature, are outlined to illustrate how the manner in which change is introduced can have a significant effect on its uptake and sustainability. Research suggests that human behaviour is not as unpredictable as it might at first appear; rather, there are some deeply rooted, psychological processes at play. Self-Determination Theory, a theory of human motivation with an extensive body of research supporting its effectiveness, suggests that the manner in which change is introduced and implemented is critical. While improvement methodologies and the use of implementation strategies are necessary, experience would suggest that by themselves they are not sufficient. Overcoming the challenges of implementing change will require a significant shift in our thinking about organisational leadership and the way that change is introduced. Some practical ways leaders can foster staff buy-in for organisational change are proposed.

Blue-Collar Workers Entrepreneurial Intentions and The Extended Theory of Reasoned Action: Incorporating SEM and Person-Item Map Analysis

Introduction/Main Objectives: Blue-collar workers face major threats related to the development and application of Industry 4.0. Unfortunately, research on how they deal with this situation is scarce in the behavioral science literature. In this study, we attempt to fill this gap by emphasizing a methodological aspect of combining structural equation modeling (SEM) and person-item map analysis to the extended model of the theory of reasoned action. Novelty and Methods: We offer the notion of combining SEM and Rasch model analysis to explain the extended of theory of reasoned action. The respondents were blue-collar workers from Indonesia who have not yet started a business. Finding/Results: In line with our goal of applying intersubjective certification to the extended theory of reasoned action (TRA) model in the context of blue-collar workers, our results suggest that religiosity affects entrepreneurial intentions, both directly and indirectly, through attitude. The subjective norms have also been shown to influence the intention of blue-collar workers to become entrepreneurs. The extended TRA model has been proven empirically to have good predictive power, with a total effect of 83%. Conclusion: Regarding the sample issue, the person-item map is excellent for explaining our SEM-based findings. The idea of combining the Rasch model property, which is a persons-items map, requires more empirical support to promote its ability to illuminate SEM-based research explanations.