About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

3 Eur. J. Risk Reg. 3 (2012)
'Nudging' Healthy Lifestyles: The UK Experiments with the Behavioral Alternative to Regulation and the Market

handle is hein.journals/ejrr2012 and id is 9 raw text is: Symposium on Nudge - 'Nudging' Healthy Lifestyles I 3 'Nudging' Healthy Lifestyles: The UK Experiments with the Behavioural Alternative to Regulation and the Market Adam Burgess* This article critically reflects upon the introduction of behavioural, 'nudging' approaches into UK policy making, the latest in a series of regulatory innovations. Initiatives have focused particularly upon correcting lifestyle risk behaviours, marking a significant conti- nuity with previous 'nannying' policy. On the other hand, nudging represents a departure, even inversion of previous approaches that involved the overstating of risk, being based partly upon establishing a norm that bad behaviours are less, rather than more common than supposed. Despite substantive similarities, its attraction lies in the reaction against the former approach but must also be understood in the context of the economic crisis and a diminished sense of liberty and autonomy that makes intimate managerial intervention seem unproblematic. Problems are, in fact, substantial, as nudging is caught between the utility of unconscious disguised direction and the need to allow some transparency, there- by choice. Further, it assumes clear, fixed 'better outcomes' but encourages no develop- ment of capacity to manage problems, contradicting a wider policy intent to build a more responsible and active citizenry. More practically, nudging faces considerable barriers to becoming a successfully implemented programme, in the context of severe, Conservative- led austerity with which it is now associated. I. 'Nudge' crosses the Atlantic A new Conservative-led Coalition government came to power in May 2010 in the UK. They have initiated a programme of 'nudging' individuals into making better choices through manipulating their environ- * Reader in Social Risk Research, University of Kent. Thanks to the anonymous reviewer who provided detailed and very useful criti- cism of the original article. Also to Tracey Brown, Jerry Busby and Helen Reece for helping think through some of the issues. 1 See speech by David Cameron, David Cameron attacks UK 'moral neutrality, Daily Telegraph, 7 July 2008, available on the Internet at <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/conserva- tive/2263705/David-Cameron-attacks-UK-moral-neutrality---full- text.html> (last accessed on 11 January 2012). 2 For a mapping of the Conservatives' agenda see Nick Boles, Which Way's Up? (London: Biteback Books, 2010) by a leading modern- iser and Cameron advisor. ment, as part of a radical programme of transfor- mation. Alongside wellbeing, transparency and decentralisation this experiment with behavioural economics is one of the new emphases in govern- ment thinking. All this is underpinned with the pro- motion of an ethos of promoting greater personal responsibility.1 Conservative Party leader, David Cameron, has been engaged in a long term project of creating a modern, liberal conservatism. Now in power, and despite the limited mandate of a minority govern- ment, the Coalition have quickly moved to attempt a transformation of institutions, and the individuals' relationship to them. Power and responsibility are to be devolved to the local level, in an oddly entitled project to establish a 'big society'2 Even critics are agreed that one thing the programme does not lack is ambition; it is widely seen as nothing less than a cultural revolution in a country historically defined EJRR 112012

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most