{"id":4631,"date":"2021-01-18T19:17:11","date_gmt":"2021-01-18T19:17:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mersanlaw.com\/?p=4631"},"modified":"2025-06-30T22:19:26","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T02:19:26","slug":"covid-19-and-the-social-nudge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/blog\/el-covid-19-y-el-nudge-social\/","title":{"rendered":"COVID-19 and the Social Nudge"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Written by Romina Cardozo Le\u00f3n, Associate<\/h3>

\u2709\ufe0f rominacardozoleon@mersanlaw.com<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\u201cKeep your distance,\u201d \u201cdon\u2019t touch your face,\u201d \u201cwash your hands when entering and leaving a place,\u201d \u201cdon\u2019t share your work supplies,\u201d \u201cuse hand sanitizer,\u201d \u201cdon\u2019t touch, don\u2019t touch\u201d \u2026 These are the new rules to follow when leaving home.<\/p>

Researchers have questioned the effectiveness of using certain \u201cnudges\u201d or even legal requirements to change attitudes or behaviors related to COVID-19.<\/p>

After nearly a year of living with COVID-19, numerous government awareness campaigns have sought to ensure compliance with recommended health protocols: reducing capacity in public spaces, and the general availability (and shortages) of masks and hand sanitizer. However, part of the authorities\u201c struggle to \u201draise awareness\u201d about the virus stems from a lack of reflection on two concepts whose meanings are easily confused: \u201cconciencia\u201d and \u201cconsciencia.\u201d.<\/p>

Conscience refers to \u201cthe knowledge of right and wrong that enables us to make moral judgments about reality and our actions.\u201d At this point, we all know that not wearing a mask is wrong and that maintaining social distance is right, for example.<\/p>

Let\u2019s take it a step further, then. Let\u2019s talk about consciousness. This concept refers to \u201cthe ability to recognize the surrounding reality and relate to it.\u201d It goes beyond the moral distinction between good and evil; it has more to do with our relationship with our environment.<\/p>

Thus, even if we are aware of this and know how to behave, we may still act unconsciously.<\/p>

Indeed, in 2008, with these concepts in mind, authors Thaler and Sunstein established the \u201cnudge theory\u201d (the former would go on to win the Nobel Prize in Economics years later), which, given the current situation, can serve as a framework for defining effective ways to implement public health safety protocols. But first, let\u2019s look at what a \u201cnudge\u201d is.<\/p>

Social science studies have shown that, in many situations, we make bad decisions\u2014unconsciously. We often find ourselves in moments when we cannot think carefully about every choice we make, and therefore resort to forms of rapid thinking that sometimes lead us astray.<\/p>

To help us overcome these cognitive limitations, Richard Thaler and Cass Sustein propose the \u201cnudge theory.\u201d It involves \u201csmall nudges\u201d aimed at modifying people\u2019s behavior in a predictable way, without eliminating any alternatives or affecting free will, simply by changing the way possible options are presented when a decision is being made.<\/p>

For example, most people automatically choose the \u201cdefault\u201d option (which is what happens when we click \u201cAccept\u201d during a software\u2019s default installation), so the strategy involves changing the way the choice is presented in order to influence\u2014subconsciously\u2014people\u2019s behavior in a positive way, without making it mandatory. These are, therefore, voluntary initiatives that aim to guide people in directions that will improve their lives.<\/p>

In the case of diseases that are transmitted through universal and common behaviors\u2014as is precisely the case with COVID-19\u2014the most obvious response seems to be quarantining or isolating those who are infected in order to prevent them from spreading the disease to others. This solution, rather than a \u201cnudge,\u201d is in fact a restriction on individual freedoms, justified on the grounds of safeguarding public health.<\/p>

In both cases, however, it may be necessary\u2014and more efficient\u2014for authorities to use behavioral science techniques to try to understand how we can guide the public to make the right decisions, or to dissuade them from making the wrong ones. For example, if we consider the measures adopted by the government\u2014such as social distancing and handwashing before entering public spaces\u2014has this approach always worked? Definitely not in every case. Even quarantine restrictions are regularly flouted by some people. But why?<\/p>

First, each person has their own \u201crationality\u201d and set of attitudes toward illness; and these attitudes are inevitably shaped by a certain mindset. One of the most common behavioral biases is the belief that bad things \u201conly happen to others, not to me\u201d\u2014a bias that becomes much more evident in the case of new diseases. For its part, one of the premises of behavioral science is the \u201cavailability heuristic,\u201d which suggests that we misjudge risks based on how easily we can imagine a scenario, and it is difficult to imagine ourselves in a situation where we are contracting a disease we have never seen before.<\/p>

Second, people in general are social beings who live in social environments. There are no behaviors more difficult to change than those of this nature. As social beings, we seek interaction with others; in fact, we need it. According to various studies, the forms and rituals of that interaction are the result of prolonged conditioning. Welcome rituals include handshakes, kissing each other on the cheeks, bowing, or saying certain phrases. These gestures are automatic. Not doing them seems strange\u2014this is the definition of a habit for a behavioral scientist.<\/p>

Unfortunately, these habits\u2014particularly those involving physical contact\u2014serve as vectors for the spread of viral pathogens such as the novel COVID-19. So, how can we change these behaviors?<\/p>

Cass Sustein argues that, to be effective, communication campaigns and messages must follow the EAST framework (developed by the Behavioral Insights Team (BIT)). This framework emphasizes the importance of (i) Easy\u2014messages and nudges must be simple; (ii) Attractive\u2014messages must capture the recipient\u2019s attention; (iii) Social\u2014they must highlight existing social norms that promote the desired behavior; and (iv) Timely\u2014messages must be delivered at the right time, ideally when the person is most likely to change their behavior.<\/p>

In the context of a pandemic, where people are already stressed and bored enough, it\u2019s important to add the letter F to this framework and turn it into \u2018FEAST.\u2019 The \u2018F\u2019 stands for adding \u2018fun\u2019 to the formula. Messages or small changes that inject fun into daily life can help make measures like physical distancing more sustainable over time. The New Zealand government introduced this new element during Easter, adding fun to the public narrative by declaring the Easter Bunny an \u2018essential worker\u2019 and encouraging families to continue the celebration at home. The \u201cfun theory\u201d has been applied in various interventions aimed at changing behavior. It is important to note that one of the greatest challenges of this type of strategy is maintaining high levels of \u201cfun and surprise\u201d over time, which is key to the sustainability of behavioral change.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Escrito por Romina Cardozo Le\u00f3n, Asociada \u2709\ufe0f rominacardozoleon@mersanlaw.com \u201cMant\u00e9n la distancia\u201d, \u201cno te toques la cara\u201d, \u201cl\u00e1vate las manos al ingresar y salir de alg\u00fan sitio\u201d, \u201cno compartas tus elementos de trabajo\u201d, \u201cutiliza alcohol en gel\u201d, \u201cno toques, no toques\u201d \u2026 \u00c9stos son los nuevos mandamientos a la hora de salir de casa. Los investigadores…<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4635,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_theme","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4631","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4631"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4631\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4635"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mersanlaw.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}