Nudge (book)

Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness
AuthorRichard H. Thaler
Cass R. Sunstein
LanguageEnglish
GenreNon-fiction
PublisherYale University Press
Publication date
April 8, 2008
Pages312
ISBN978-0-300-12223-7
OCLC791403664

Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness is a book written by University of Chicago economist and Nobel laureate[1] Richard H. Thaler, and Harvard Law School professor Cass R. Sunstein, first published in 2008. In 2021, a revised edition was released, subtitled The Final Edition.

The book draws on research in psychology and behavioral economics to defend libertarian paternalism and active engineering of choice architecture.[2][3][4][5] The book also popularized the concept of nudge theory.[6] A nudge, according to Thaler and Sunstein is any form of choice architecture that alters people's behaviour in a predictable way without restricting options or significantly changing their economic incentives. To count as a mere nudge, the intervention must require minimal intervention and must be cheap.[7][8]

The book received largely positive reviews. The Guardian described it as "never intimidating, always amusing and elucidating: a jolly economic romp but with serious lessons within."[9] It was named one of the best books of 2008 by The Economist.[10]

  1. ^ "The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2017". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  2. ^ Sunstein and Thaler, p. 3-7.
  3. ^ Kiviat, Barbara (April 3, 2008). "Lured Toward the Right Choice". Time. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  4. ^ "Nudge The Gentle Power of Choice Architecture" - Capital Ideas Retrieved December 6, 2009
  5. ^ Reeves, Richard (July 20, 2008). "Why a nudge from the state beats a slap". The Guardian. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  6. ^ "This is what nudge theory means – and why you should care about it". The Independent. 2018-01-13. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  7. ^ "Nudge".
  8. ^ Thaler, Richard (2008). Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness. United States: Yale University Press. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-14-311526-7.
  9. ^ Edelstein, Jean Hannah (April 12, 2009). "Review: Nudge: Improving Decisions by Richard H Thaler and Cass R Sunstein". The Guardian. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  10. ^ "Pick of the pile". The Economist. December 6, 2008. Retrieved May 18, 2021.