Loading...
Nudging pro-environmental behavior: evidence and opportunities
Byerly, Hilary Balmford, Andrew Ferraro, Paul J. Hammond Wagner, Courtney Palchak, Elizabeth Polasky, Stephen Ricketts, Taylor H. Schwartz, Aaron J. Fisher, Brendan
Byerly, Hilary
Balmford, Andrew
Ferraro, Paul J.
Hammond Wagner, Courtney
Palchak, Elizabeth
Polasky, Stephen
Ricketts, Taylor H.
Schwartz, Aaron J.
Fisher, Brendan
Citations
Altmetric:
License
© The Ecological Society of America
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
License
DOI
10.1002/fee.1777
Abstract
Human behavior is responsible for many of our greatest environmental challenges. The accumulated effects of many individual and household decisions have major negative impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem health. Human behavioral science blends psychology and economics to understand how people respond to the context in which they make decisions (eg who presents the information and how it is framed). Behavioral insights have informed new strategies to improve personal health and financial choices. However, less is known about whether and how these insights can encourage choices that are better for the environment. We review 160 experimental interventions that attempt to alter behavior in six domains in which decisions have major environmental impacts: family planning, land management, meat consumption, transportation choices, waste production, and water use. The evidence suggests that social influence and simple adjustments to decision settings can influence pro-environmental decisions. We identify four important gaps in the evidence that provide opportunities for future research. To address these gaps, we encourage collaborations between researchers and practitioners that look at the effects of embedding tests of behavior-change interventions within environmental programs.
Description
Date
2018-04-01
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Files
Loading...
fisher2018d.pdf
Adobe PDF, 3.44 MB
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Citation
Byerly H, Balmford A, Ferraro PJ, Hammond Wagner C, Palchak E, Polasky S, Ricketts TH, Schwartz AJ, Fisher B. Nudging pro‐environmental behavior: evidence and opportunities. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 2018 Apr;16(3):159-68.