What’s the problem with using incentives?

It's an age-old question: how do we get people to do what we want them to do? Well, if you're the government, you might leverage the social security system and withhold payments as punishment, or as “encouragement”.

ANU social policy academic Dr Katie Curchin finds this method problematic, and argues instead for a social security system that treats people with greater respect and decency. She's looked in particular at the 'No Jab, No Pay' policy.

In this episode, Katie talks about ways that not only governments, but we as individuals, could have greater success promoting certain behaviours without using carrots or sticks. There are lessons for both improving vaccination rates, parenting – and much more.

...

Dr Katherine Curchin is a Lecturer in Social Policy within the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods and an Honorary Lecturer in the ANU School of Philosophy. Her research explores the extent to which policy can and should aim to change the behaviour of people living in poverty. Her published writing contributes to international debates on topics such as the ethics of welfare conditionality and nudging. From 2014 to 2018 she worked at the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research where she held an ARC DECRA which enabled her to examine rival visions of Indigenous Australians’ relationship with the Australian welfare state. She is an editor of the Australian Journal of Social Issues and she has published in international journals such as the Journal of Political Philosophy, the Journal of Social Policy, the International Political Science Review and Women’s Studies International Forum.

Read her Policy Space blog post ‘How Much Behavioural Conditionality is Too Much?’, which relates to this episode’s discussion.

…

The theme music for Better Things is “One More Time” by Fab Beat.

Better Things is a production of the ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences. It’s produced by Evana Ho.

You can find us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @ANUCASS.

Listen to our other podcast This Academic's Life: pivotal events and experiences that shaped the lives, careers and research of our academics.