Check out a very nice article in The New Yorker on geographic variations in utilization and spend — and how those variations are not associated with improvements in outcomes. Policymakers have worried that [controlling...
Neal Conan does a nice interview with economist Robert Frank, who is on the road promoting a new book. Lots of good stuff here about economic anomalies from everyday life, as well as how we deviate from the classic economic...
John Edgell, guest columnist at CQ Politics, reviews the importance of behavioral economics in the Obama White House, especially as it applies to healthcare reform: What perhaps matters more [than the daunting problems in the...
Clive Granger, Economist, Dies at 74 I preferred to use mathematics in some practical fashion and thought that meteorology sounded promising. In those days I stuttered somewhat and when my turn came to stand up, I tried to say...
The New York Times gives us an early peek at a soon-to-be-published paper in which researchers report that reminding people about opportunity costs (i.e., other things you could do with money not spent on an option you’re...
Another day, more behavioral economics in The New York Times. This one concerns Facebook’s approach to privacy, including the recent hiccup that occurred when FB attempted to change its terms-of-service agreement. But the...
More colleges are doing away with cafeteria trays, often for aesthetic reasons, but there’s also a wealth of behavioral economics benefits: eat less, weigh less, waste less food, and conserve water. More at The New...
I’ve had a longstanding hunch that there is a deep connection between behavioral economics and design. I was reminded of this possible overlap this afternoon as I was scanning John Sviokla’s blog, and noticed he has a...
Douglas Bowman recently announced he was leaving Google after three years as visual design lead. According to Bowman, the reason was Google’s relentless drive for evidence-based design, which collided with his drive for...
The Wall Street Journal reports a trend by employers to reduce the company match rate in 401(k) plans. The surveys varied widely in the magnitude of the fraction of employers eliminating or reducing the company match: T. Rowe...
