Applying Behavioral Economics to Public Health Policy: Illustrative Examples and Promising Directions.
Behavioral economics provides an empirically informed perspective on how individuals make decisions, including the important realization that even subtle features of the environment can have meaningful impacts on behavior. This commentary provides examples from the literature and recent government initiatives that incorporate concepts from behavioral economics in order to improve health, decision making, and government efficiency. The examples highlight the potential for behavioral economics to improve the effectiveness of public health policy at low cost. Although incorporating insights from behavioral economics into public health policy has the potential to improve population health, its integration into government public health programs and policies requires careful design and continual evaluation of such interventions. Limitations and drawbacks of the approach are discussed.
Office of the Associate Director for Policy, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia. Electronic address: jmatjasko@chapinhall.org.
Jennifer L
JL
Matjasko
Department of Policy Analysis and Management, Department of Economics, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.
John H
JH
Cawley
Office of the Associate Director for Policy, CDC, Atlanta, Georgia.
Madeleine M
MM
Baker-Goering
Social and Behavioral Sciences Team, General Services Administration, Washington, District of Columbia.
David V
DV
Yokum
D003657:Decision Making; D060909:Economics, Behavioral; D006291:Health Policy / Q000191:economics*; D006801:Humans; D011050:Policy Making; D011634:Public Health / Q000191:economics*