[OECD Report] Use of Behavioural Insights in Consumer Policy

Use of Behavioural Insights in Consumer Policy
OECD
20 Jan 2017
48 pages

Over the past decade, behavioural insights have helped make consumer policies more evidence-based and effective. This report examines how behavioural insights have been used by governments and other public policy organisations to develop and implement consumer policy initiatives, primarily through the use of experiments and surveys. Behavioural insights have informed enforcement actions, new regulations, consumer empowerment initiatives and consumer education. Behavioural insights provide grounds and justification on why governments need to take actions and, helping identify how the impact of behavioural biases on consumer choice can be mitigated, for example through effective labelling and information disclosures. The report also identifies challenges to applying behavioural insights to consumer policy, relating to the conduct and interpretation of behavioural experiments as well as organisational and stakeholder issues.