Behavioural Science – What are the changes according to you that should be include in it include

UpdatedDecember 11, 2024

Q.1 Case study
Four years ago, the Texas Office of the Attorney General (OAG), which is the state’s child support enforcement agency, began mailing letters to a small
number of incarcerated noncustodial parents (NCPs) with information on how to apply for a modification of their child support order. NCPs often
become unable to make their monthly child support payments when they are incarcerated, and, if they do not request and obtain a downward order
modification, they may leave prison with significant child support arrearages that follow them for years. To understand Behavioural Science – what are the changes in response rates and application accuracy, the BIAS team partnered with OAG to determine whether the tools of behavioral economics can be used to increase the overall response rate of incarcerated NCPs, as well as the accuracy and timeliness of their application materials.

BIAS and OAG analyzed every step in the modification request process from the wording of the outreach letter and application to the actions the NCP
must take within the prison to get an application notarized by a law librarian and returned to OAG by mail. The team identified several potential “bottleneck” points at which NCPs may not follow through with the process. But what are the changes, according to Behavioral Science, which could be made to these steps?

The NCP may receive the letter but decide not to open it. Because the NCP likely associates OAG with child support enforcement, seeing a letter from
this agency may stimulate a negative affective response and the ostrich effect1 (the tendency to “put one’s head in the sand” and avoid undesirable information). Or, the NCP may perceive the deliberation costs in time and mental effort to be too high to fully examine the letter. According to Behavioral Science – What are the changes that may address this issue?

The NCP may not decide to act on the letter. The letter mentions the NCP’s incarceration several times, identifying him as a prisoner rather than a
parent. This increases the saliency of their prisoner identity,2 which may reduce their motivation to act. Here lies an insight from Behavioral Science – What are the changes needed to shift focus from imprisonment to parenthood?

The NCP may not follow through. Even if the NCP is interested in applying for a modification, he may procrastinate3 in completing the application or
forget to request an appointment with the law librarian because this is not part of his everyday routine. Behavioral Science – What are the changes that could reduce procrastination?

The NCP may not successfully submit the application. After the NCP attends the appointment, the law librarian may find that the application is
incomplete and the NCP will need to complete the application and return it at another time. The NCP may forget to request notarization or even forget to
drop the completed application in the mail. The NCP may see the future when they are released from prison as too distant to plan for. NCPs may exhibit some degree of present bias — overweighing the present with respect to the future. When the projected release date is psychologically distant, the NCP may think about it abstractly, and neglect to consider the negative effects of accrued arrears. The team has redesigned the materials that are sent to incarcerated NCPs to address these bottlenecks in ways that are informed by behavioral economics. They are beginning to see what the changes can be through Behavioral Science – What are the changes you suggest?

What are the changes according to you that should be include in it include based on Behavioural Science?
How should an email to be managed through Behavioural Science principles?

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