Best practices in nudging: Lessons from college success interventions
Katherine Meyer and Lindsay C. Page
November 17, 2022
Over the past decade, “nudging” has gone from novel concept to standard practice across many higher education institutions. What can we say about whether–and when–nudging works and should be deployed to improve student outcomes?
WHAT IS A NUDGE?
“Nudging” refers to a wide set of interventions that guide, rather than mandate, individuals to act in a certain way. Generally, nudging encourages actions that will benefit individuals (such as increasing retirement investing) or benefit society at no meaningful cost to individuals (such as increasing blood donations). Importantly, nudges always provide an individual the chance not to do an encouraged action. Brightly colored arrows painted on the ground leading commuters to take the stairs instead of the escalator constitutes a nudge–shutting off the escalator does not. “Nudging” encompasses many design choices, such as changing the default (e.g., changing the default loan amount offered to community college students) or providing an anchor (e.g., noting how much most students borrow). In many cases, the question is not whether to nudge but how–what default loan to offer students or what order to list schools in a school choice brochure.
