WHAT IS BEHAVIORAL ETHICS NUDGING AND HOW IS IT USED TO BETTER ORGANIZATIONS?
Nudges are small interventions into existing processes, where choice can be influenced by creating defaults, framing, or simplifications.
Behavioral ethics nudges use choice architecture—the context in which choice is made—to help employees make ethical decisions.
Companies can use ethical nudges to foster better ethical decision making, lessen compliance risk, and build positive corporate culture. This approach is data-driven, rooted in behavioral science, and favored by regulators who are looking for demonstrated behavioral change.
There are hundreds of articles out there generally explaining how nudges work and various frameworks to create them, but only a handful of academics focus on behavioral ethics nudges. Prof. Haugh’s work was the first to catalogue ethical nudges and organize them into three simple-to-understand categories. He was also the first to consider the ethical ramifications of companies using these nudges on employees.
The three types of behavioral ethics nudging…
01. Deliberation Nudge
Choice architecture encouraging deliberative, reflective decision-making.
02. Harnessing Nudge
Choice architecture that takes advantage of our natural behavioral inertia.
03. Trigger Nudge
Choice architecture that seeks to elicit an emotional, non-deliberative response.
WHAT OUTCOMES CAN COMPANIES EXPECT FROM BEHAVIORAL ETHICS NUDGING?
Well-designed nudges have the power to change employee behavior in a measurable way. By targeting the specific decision points where unethical behavior occurs, and using proven behavioral science-based interventions, companies can help employees make the right choice. As these small ethical choices scale across the company, so does a positive corporate culture.
Prof. Haugh’s work and his Nudge Workshops have helped large and small companies remake their compliance and risk management programs to incorporate behavioral insights that create measurable change.
The Nudge Workshop walks company leaders through the process of creating ethical nudges.
“A company that has taken a thoughtful approach will focus on behavior and processes: why and how employees do what they do, and how [compliance] is designed to address those why’s and how’s.”
— Hui Chen, DOJ’s Compliance Counsel, 2015-2017
