Posted by Randy Barnett:
Should Policies Nudge People To Make Certain Choices?
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2007_05_20-2007_05_26.shtml#1180109986
The Wall Street Journal's [1]ECONOBLOG has a very interesting debate
between economists Mario Rizzo (NYU) and Richard Thaler (Chicago) on
the following question:
Driven by research in behavioral economics that suggests people
don't always act in their own best interests, some economists are
arguing for new policies that would challenge traditional "hard"
tools for changing behavior, such as sin taxes and outright bans.
Such policies would often rely on default options that nudge, steer
and coax -- but don't force -- individuals to make certain choices.
Is this sensible governance?
The debate concerns the merits of so-called "libertarian paternalism"
promoted by Thaler and Cass Sunstein. In the exchange, Mario questions
the merits of this approach as well as whether it is fair to
characterize it as "libertarian." You can comment on WSJ website
[2]here.
References
1.
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB117977357721809835-45dCZESztTYwbcmLpVZEpaSe790_20070531.html
2. http://forums.wsj.com/viewtopic.php?t=513
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