The Behavioural Economics Team of the Australian Government has begun podcasting, easing into the format by posting an interview between a staff member and experimental economist Robert Slonim.
Slonim, an American professor at the University of Sydney, recently stepped into lead BETA for six months in place of Michael Hiscox, an Australian professor at Harvard University.
He says the term behavioural economics is a bit of a misnomer because in practice, it involves a lot of cognitive and social psychology.
Also referred to as nudge theory in the public sector, the field uses research about how real people behave to go beyond the key assumption at the heart of classical economics — that generally, the majority of people pursue their own best interests most of the time — which also has informed public policy for a long time.
Image: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
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