Making Change Easy Is Not Always Good

Gilles Grolleau, Naoufel Mzoughi and Deborah Peterson

Review of Behavioral Economics, 2022, vol. 9, issue 4, 315–331

Abstract: A first order law of behavioral change is to make change easy. Nevertheless, this recommendation can sometimes backfire, at least for some subgroups. We examine mechanisms which may cause application of this intuitively convincing rule to be counterproductive, namely lack of meaning, the moral licensing effect, and the boredom threat. We suggest a number of hypotheses, based on our review of the behavioral literature in this area, which could be empirically tested in future research. We also propose some practical ways to avoid the “making things easy†trap and make environmental change more attractive.

Keywords: Behavioral change; environment; goals; public policy; public strategies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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