Nudge Theory
Posted:
2017-04-18
Can an intentional nudge influence decision-making towards choosing a healthier dietary option? A recent study, The Efficacy of Nudge Theory Strategies in Influencing Adult Dietary Behaviour: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis in BioMed Central (BMC) Public Health, says it can. Nudge theory, or 'nudge' proposed by Thaler and Sunstein (2008) in their book, Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth and Happiness, is based on providing indirect suggestions that guide voluntary shifts in behaviour towards choosing the healthier option. The BMC review assessed nudge effectiveness as a strategy in influencing adults (a generic population of men and women; 18-65 years) to change their dietary choices from unhealthy (foods high in fat, salt or sugar) for healthier ones (more nutrient dense, i.e. the consumption or purchase of more vegetables, fruit and whole grains; and lower in calories, salt, sugar, cholesterol or fat). The researchers systematically searched and quantitatively assessed (meta-analysis) 42 studies (31 RCT; two cohort; and nine cross-sectional) aimed at influencing behaviour related to food consumption. The interventions involved knowledge-based changes (e.g. menu labelling), availability of food (e.g. convenience or adjusting portion size), changes to the social environment or emotional priming. Most of the studies took place in a lab setting (48%) or in a cafeteria (17%) and were conducted predominantly in the U.S. The studies were analyzed based on their percent change in frequency of a choice or in the consumption/purchases made (outcome categories were calories, grams or purchases; either quantity purchased or monetary amount). The researchers found that, on average, nudge interventions lead to a 15.3% (95%CI, 7.6 to 23%) increase in healthier consumption/nutritional choices, as measured by the frequency of healthy choices or by overall intake of healthier food. While the generalizability of the findings is limited by the wide variety of interventions included and nudge-related research in more geographically and varied populations is needed, this paper provides some of the basics and justification for implementing nudging strategies into practice.