Charitable Incentives for Physical Activity: A Scaling Challenge
Analysis
This paper investigates the adoption of interventions with weak evidence, specifically focusing on charitable incentives for physical activity. It highlights the disconnect between the actual impact of these incentives (a null effect) and the beliefs of stakeholders (who overestimate their effectiveness). The study's importance lies in its multi-method approach (experiment, survey, conjoint analysis) to understand the factors influencing policy selection, particularly the role of beliefs and multidimensional objectives. This provides insights into why ineffective policies might be adopted and how to improve policy design and implementation.
Key Takeaways
- •Stakeholders often overestimate the effectiveness of charitable incentives.
- •Policy selection is influenced by a combination of factors, including expected outcomes and other objectives.
- •Adoption of policies with weak evidence can be explained by the beliefs of stakeholders and their multidimensional goals.
- •The study uses a combination of methods (experiment, survey, conjoint analysis) to provide a comprehensive understanding.
“Financial incentives increase daily steps, whereas charitable incentives deliver a precisely estimated null.”