The behavioral revolution in economics has demonstrated that human beings often have difficulty making wise choices. The most widely chronicled difficulties arise for decisions made under conditions of uncertainty, those whose consequences unfold over significant amounts of time, and decisions...

These are brief comments on an excellent paper by Jeffrey Liebman and Richard Zeckhauser, prepared for a conference sponsored by the Urban Institute and Brookings on tax and health care policy. Liebman and Zeckhauser summarize the complexities involved in making optimal health insurance...

In this paper we illustrate, using a simple model of monetary policy, the welfare costs of the private sector and/or the central bank being uncertain about the natural level of output. It turns out that monetary policy strategies that put less weight on output stabilisation can offset some of...

Choice-based health insurance systems allow individuals to select a health plan that fits their needs. However, bounded rationality and limited attention may lead to sub-optimal insurance coverage and higher-than-expected out-of-pocket payments. In this paper, we study the impact of providing...

The use of behavioural science to inform policy is one of the main developments in the social sciences over the last several decades. In this book, Adam Oliver offers an accessible introduction to the development of behavioural public policy, examining how behavioural economics might be used to...

Preface -- Acknowledgements -- Assuming rationality -- Challenging rationality -- Describing risky behaviours -- About time -- Experiencing and remembering -- Motivational crowding -- Nudges -- Shoves and budges -- Give and take -- Summing up -- Note on references -- Bibliography -- Index