In
recent years, 'Nudge Units' or 'Behavioral Insights Teams' have been
created in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and other
nations. All over the world, public officials are using the behavioral
sciences to protect the environment, promote employment and economic
growth, reduce poverty, and increase national security. In this book,
Cass R. Sunstein, the eminent legal scholar and best-selling co-author
of Nudge (2008), breaks new ground with a deep yet highly readable
investigation into the ethical issues surrounding nudges, choice
architecture, and mandates, addressing such issues as welfare, autonomy,
self-government, dignity, manipulation, and the constraints and
responsibilities of an ethical state. Complementing the ethical
discussion, The Ethics of Influence: Government in the Age of Behavioral
Science contains a wealth of new data on people's attitudes towards a
broad range of nudges, choice architecture, and mandates.
