BX2015 DAY 1 Wednesday 2nd September 2015
PROGRAMME
Behavioural Exchange 2015, held in London brought together leading academics, policy-makers and practitioners from around the world to discuss how behavioural insights can help us create better policy and a better society.
08:00 - 10:00
Breakfast and registration
10:15 - 12:00
The world’s biggest challenges
Social issues such as poverty and inequality, are some of the greatest challenges in the modern world. The speakers in this session demonstrate why these challenges are fundamentally behavioural, and explore the emerging solutions that behavioural science can offer.
Speakers include: Richard Thaler, Rachel Glennerster, Eldar Shafir, Iris Bohnet & David Halpern
Chair: Sir Jeremy Heywood
12:00 - 13:00
Lunch
13:00 - 14:30
Words that matter
Communication, language and style matter in all areas of life.This session brings together two of the most highly acclaimed figures in the science of communication and influence; to talk about the science of style and persuasion.
Speakers: Steven Pinker & Robert Cialdini
Chair: Tim Harford
14:30 - 15:15
Move into parallel sessions
15:15 - 16:45
Parallel sessions
Introduction to Behavioural Insights
A short introduction to behavioural insights for those who are either new to the topic or need a refresher. Guaranteed to bring you up to speed on behavioural insights and ready to learn more.
Speakers include: Max Bazerman, Owain Service, Rory Gallagher
You are the doctor
Time to turn things upside down. No more long talks, but a session that allows you to see a hospital through a doctor’s eyes and get a chance to tackle the problems they face. Under the guidance of healthcare professionals, the audience is asked to actively participate in making decisions and finding solutions. Using video materials filmed in Imperial College London’s simulation centre, you will see how making decisions can be a matter of life or death - and how we can ensure they are made better.
Speakers include: Marjorie Stiegler, Dominic King, Peter Jaye, Michael Hallsworth
Bridging the savings gap
Savings and investment decisions are subject to a host of behavioural biases. These are evident in everything from how we save for a pension, to the kind of mortgage we take out. The UK government’s introduction of automatic enrolment is a shining example of the role that behavioural science can play in generating high-impact, cost effective policy solutions. However, since people are living longer and financially less secure lives, is this sufficient? Is there more we could draw from behavioural science to help people financially plan for the long term? This panel will put industry figures, consumer bodies and academics in a battle for the best new ideas.
Speakers include: Brigitte Madrian, Matthew Oakley, Paul Todd, Josh Wright, Charlotte Clark
Behaving digitally
As more and more human interaction and decision-making occurs in the digital environment, our understanding of human behaviour has begun to evolve. This session will focus on providing participants with key insights into how people behave differently in the digital and physical worlds. Participants can expect to see these insights in practice through a series of exercises led by world leading academic experts and practitioners.
Speakers include: Shlomo Benartzi, Johannes Eichstaedt, Nathalie Nahai, Hal Varian
Behavioural insights at work
This session explores how to improve the work environment and the activity of work itself. A panel of innovative academics and practitioners will use real case studies to pitch their best ideas on how to solve employee challenges of the next 10 years. Be inspired by this session on the future of work.
Speakers include: Francesca Gino, Oriana Bandiera, Michael Norton, Alex Edmans, Ian Wylie, Jo Casebourne
Fighting the job search grind
Looking for work can be a daunting task - job seekers rely almost entirely on themselves for organisation, motivation and guidance. They also expose themselves to rejection and humiliation if they are not immediately successful. This session will explore how small changes to welfare to work provision can make a substantial difference to job searching and employment outcomes.
Speakers include: Philipp Kircher, Ragnhild Schreiner, Florian Zimmermann, Kirsty Mchugh, Darren Coppin
16:45 - 17:30
Move into plenary session
17:30 - 18:15
Winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences and author of Thinking, Fast and Slow
18:15 - 18:30
Programme close and depart for drinks reception
BX2015 DAY 2 Thursday 3rd September 2015
08:00 - 09:00
Breakfast
09:15 - 10:45
Revealing preferences
This session explores two different ways to uncover what people actually think and do. Dan Ariely talks about how our intention to be honest is not always enough to keep us on the straight and narrow. Hal Varian shows that our Google searches can be used to estimate economic variables in real time.
Speakers: Dan Ariely & Hal Varian
Chair: Dave Ramsden
10:45 - 11:30
Break
11:30 - 13:00
Parallel sessions
Mind the (tax) gap
It’s often said that nothing is inevitable except death and taxes. But this is not the attitude of many individuals and businesses who are trying to cheat the state of revenue. The good news is that tax compliance has been an incredibly fertile area for applying behavioural insights. This session starts by taking a tour through the most powerful and innovative examples of how new thinking can increase compliance. Drawing on experiences of governments throughout the world, as well as a live experiment, this session aims to give attendees practical new ways of boosting honesty for social good.
Speakers include: Arne Kristian Aas, Erich Kirchler, Rohan Grove, John Panzer, Michael Hallsworth
Irrational consumer = irrational markets?
The rise of behavioural economics has given us a much better understanding of how people act. This has challenged some of the assumptions that regulators make when deciding if a market is working well. This session will consider if markets can deliver the best outcomes for consumers and the economy as a whole or whether behavioural economics provides a fundamental challenge to the idea that competition is good for consumers.
Speakers include: Amelia Fletcher, Daniel Gordon, Stefan Hunt, Paul Heidheus, Felicity Algate
Back to the classroom
This session transports you to the school classroom through interactive theatre. You get to explore first-hand a behavioural take on the classroom environment and what we find about learning. Prepare to study, be studied and take part in one of the most unusual classes you will ever attend.
Speakers include: Geoff Cohen, Anna Vignoles, Zhi Soon, Fiona Morey
Altruism, cooperation, and happiness
Unlike the perfectly rational, self-interested agents of classical economic theory, people donate money and time to charity, cooperate with each other, and engage in millions of tiny acts of kindness every day. At the same time, far from being motivated purely by the acquisition of material wealth, people seem to care more about something less tangible but just as real - happiness. In this session, we bring together leading researchers on kindness, cooperation and happiness from around the world, as well as practitioners looking to place happiness at the heart of government policy. So why not come along to this, the nicest session of BX2015.
Speakers include: Elizabeth Kessick, Elizabeth Dunn, Nichola Raihani, Andrew Oswald
Trials and tribulations
RCTs are the gold standard of evidence and their results are simple to interpret compared to other evaluation strategies. However, even with the most meticulously prepared plans, such valuable knowledge can be hard to acquire. In this session for policy makers, Michael Sanders and Raj Chande will share anecdotes from trials run by BIT and some of the world's most distinguished researchers that turned out to be more complicated than anyone could have possibly imagined. Policymakers will learn lessons on RCT implementation that can't be found in any textbooks.
Speakers include: Raj Chande & Michael Sanders
21st century crime fighting
In an era where police forces and the wider law enforcement community strive for greater efficiencies, how can low-cost behavioural science interventions help would-be offenders, citizens and law enforcement agents make better choices? The session will introduce some of the Behavioural Insights Team’s latest, unpublished findings in the areas of crime prevention, police efficiency, cybercrime and illegal immigration. This will include presentations from police officers, policy makers, and academics.
Speakers include: Alex Murray, Angela Sasse, Lawrence Sherman, Daniel Effron, Simon Ruda
13:00 - 14:15
Lunch
14:15 - 15:45
Parallel sessions
Ambitions for reducing emissions
Join prominent experts to discuss the use of behavioural insights to help organisations move away from fossil fuels, as well as change demand. The session will focus on the visualisation of energy; both from a financial transparency perspective, and on household level. See, hear, and touch; how can we make energy use real for organisations and individuals.
Speakers include: Lord Nicholas Stern, Charlie Wilson, Simon Hill, Gabrielle Walker, Andy Baynes
Nudging for international development
Most global aid programmes attempt, in some way, to change behaviour. Development practitioners want people to use anti-malarial bed nets, drink clean water, and send their children to school. This session will include talks from policy makers and academics with recent examples of how insights from the behavioural sciences have been used to tackle world development problems. This is followed by a discussion on the possibility of incrementally testing small changes to development projects in order to increase their impact.
Speakers include: Dan Ariely, Stefan Dercon, Marco Hernandez, Nava Ashraf, Renos Vakis, Ana Revenga, Alex Opruenenco, Nick Dyer, Simon Ruda
Institutionalising behavioural insights
This session explores the best ways for governments to apply behavioural science in policy making. Government representatives from across the world will present case studies from different policy areas. Key figures will discuss the common challenges faced when institutionalising a new approach, trying to win political and public support, and working with academics.
Speakers include: Maya Shankar, Gus O'Donnell, Varun Gauri, David Halpern, Faisal Naru, Ping Soon Kok, Amity Durham, Sim Sitkin
An appetite for change
The dominant narrative around obesity that we hear from most politicians, journalists and experts is wrong. Hundreds of behavioural studies have shown that eating is a much more automatic and unconscious process than we like to think. The failure to recognise this fact has driven millions of people towards ineffective dieting strategies. This session brings together international experts with high-profile policy makers to formulate a plan of how we can change the debate around how and why we eat.
Speakers include: Brian Wansink, Alison Tedstone, Jerril Rechter & Sam Kass
Education RCTs: Past, present and future
What do we really know about why some children do better at school than others? What are the world's leading education researchers currently working on? In this session, academics from the US and UK will give presentations of their work and the narrative that drives it, before considering where future efforts should be applied.
Speakers include: Todd Rogers, Simon Burgess, Anna Vignoles, Sally Sadoff
Behavioural scientists of the future
Join the top emerging scholars and practitioners to discuss their cutting-edge research within the field of behavioural science and policy. This session celebrates and recognises young researchers in the early stages of their careers who have already made a valuable contribution to the field with their research. Speakers will include the BX2015 Award for Outstanding Research by a Doctoral Student winner, as well as a number of runners-up.
Speakers include: Michael Sanders, Mark Easton, Philip Newall, Jana Gallus, Hengchen Dai & Ashley Whillans
15:45 - 16:30
Break
16:30 - 17:00
Join us in discovering some of the most innovative recent research in the application of behavioural insights. Winners will be announced live at the Awards.
Presenters: Max Bazerman & Owain Service
17:00 - 17:45
The future of behavioural insights
The closing panel will reflect on the areas covered throughout BX2015 with panel members discussing key areas where behavioural insights should be developed. Members will outline particular challenges, opportunities and the increasing appetite around the world for this approach.
Speakers include: David Halpern, Ana Revenga, Jang Ping Thia and Andrea Schneider
Chair: Mark Easton
17:45 - 18:00
Closing remarks
This programme is subject to change.
This programme is provisional and subject to change.