U.S. Health

Giving Childhood Vaccinations a Boost

by Arielle Gorstein

Vaccines are one of the most powerful and cost-effective public health interventions in the history of medicine. Each year, vaccines save millions of lives and billions of dollars in indirect costs. Yet in the U.S. alone, about 42,000 adults and 300 children die of vaccine-preventable diseases (not including COVID-19) each year. And underserved populations, such […]

Honoring Black Behavioral Scientists and Examining the Psychology of Race in History

by ideas42

People often (erroneously) believe that a few leaders are responsible for the development of an emerging field, an idea, or event in history because of perceived “natural attributes” such as superior intelligence. This is known as “great man” theory–a flawed theory, of course, because in reality it is the tireless work of countless people that […]

Our Top Behavioral Science Highlights of the Year (Goodbye, 2020)

by ideas42

It’s become tradition of sorts that each December, we reflect on the year behind us and celebrate the newest evidence and social impact generated by behavioral science. Of course, 2020 is a difficult year to look back on with much fondness. And yet, even in one of the more challenging years in living memory, we […]

Spreading Fear: Public Charge Rule Announcement Reduced Enrollment In Child Safety-Net Programs

by Jeremy Barofsky, Ariadna Vargas, Dinardo Rodriguez, and Anthony Barrows

On February 24, 2020, the Trump administration’s expanded “public charge” rule took effect.  Afterward, the Department of Homeland Security could reject an immigrant’s application for permanent residence for using safety net programs such as Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly called food stamps). The rule’s adoption was the culmination of a years-long […]

Ethical Machine Learning

by ideas42

  Applied together, it is fair to say that machine learning and behavioral science have the potential to significantly magnify social impact. Yet, as machine learning algorithms become more prevalent in the systems people use to make important decisions, there is deep, and not unfounded, concern that algorithms – even those designed with social impact […]

What Behavioral Science Can Teach us 4+ Months into the COVID-19 Pandemic

by Lois Aryee & Mukta Joshi

As economies enter various phases of ‘opening back up’ and countries gradually ease COVID-19-related lockdowns and restrictions, many people find themselves constantly navigating ambiguity and uncertainty around how this should affect their everyday decisions and actions.  Two ideas42 team members, based in different parts of the world, share their experiences and offer helpful insights based […]

ideas42 Stands for Racial Justice

by ideas42

We are disgusted by the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. We are angry about the ongoing racism faced by Black people. This anger is not new in the US, as Black Americans have faced a long history of racist violence driven not by a few bad actors, but by systemic racism […]

Designing for Effective Physical Distancing in Essential Public Spaces

by Alissa Fishbane, Jana Smith & Piyush Tantia

This is part of a series of posts about behavioral science and COVID-19. Click here to read about some of the most important behaviors during this pandemic—like seeking medical help, responding to humanitarian crises, and adapting to remote work in a global outbreak. Social distancing, or physical distancing, as we have started referring to it […]

Behavioral Insights for Keeping Your Sanity While Working at Home with Kids

by Allie Yates-Berg

This is part of a series of posts about behavioral science and COVID-19. Click here to read about some of the most important behaviors during this pandemic—like healthy distancing and seeking medical help, and responding to humanitarian crises in a global outbreak. Greetings from the Wild West of parenting while working from home. How are […]