Behavioural Economics has a strong influence on Legal Design. Many design decisions are based on ‘choice architecture’ that designed with the users in mind. In Nudge (the Final Edition), authors Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein engage in a discussion about the various tools of the choice architect and advising us (thankfully) that ‘Fun’ is the final one of them.
In basic terms, Nudge, is about choices that designers of all kinds (products or services) can make to ‘nudge’ the consumer of the goods or service towards a desired action:
“As you know, the first mantra of nudging is to make it easy to take the desired action. A good complement to this advice is to make the desired activity fun.”
Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein, Nudge – The Final Edition (US: Penguin Books, 2021), p. 132.
Fun is the perfect motivator for users because it provides them with positive reinforcement. Often, if there is a desired activity you would like someone to participate in and including an element of fun helps to achieve this goal. Thaler and Sunstein use the example of Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand’s Prime Minister, as an example of someone faced with mandating and regulating people’s behaviour to deal with COVID 19.
Despite the weightiness of the topic and Ardern nudging people to stay at home, she still found a way to add a little ‘fun’ into her stay-at-home order declaring that the Easter Bunny was an essential worker and that such restrictions didn’t apply.
Aside from being an inspiring female leader, Ardern’s ability to integrate a little humour into a scary situation highlights that, when used tactfully, fun can provide positive reinforcement. Evidence suggests that New Zealand’s COVID 19 response, “the initial elimination strategy which has now transitioned to a mitigation strategy – has been one of the most successful in the world.” While it can be argued that Ardern had a compliant population on her side, the first 18 months of New Zealand’s COVID response allowed time for the vaccine to be administered widely and reduced death rates overall. But, this blog is not about COVID, it’s about behavioural economics and how fun can nudge people.
Legal Design can nudge the user through fun. There are several examples about how the choice architecture of can be infused in typical corporate culture. A prime example is by turning employee education and training based on legislative and regulatory requirements from potential ‘yawn-inducing’ to participatory and interesting. Our firm subscribes to the the Thaler and Sunstein principle – make it FUN – by creating animated videos with a narration that tells a story while explaining securities regulations. By infusing fun into compliance education, we aim to make it more memorable and interesting to watch but also provide an easy way to gain those Compliance Credits with self-regulatory organizations and securities regulatory authorities.
“The moral here is simple. Make it fun. And if you don’t know what fun is, then you are not having enough of it.”
Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein, Nudge – The Final Edition (US: Penguin Books, 2021), p. 136