Choice architecture

Building persuasive contexts

Layout makes all the difference

Choice architecture
noun
"organizing the context in which people make decisions"
Robert H. Thaler & C. Sunstein, The Behavioral Foundations of Public Policy

Think back to the last time you ate at a restaurant. You looked down at the menu and probably imagined that you were choosing your own meal based on what you felt like eating that particular day.

Or think about when you were picking up your groceries. Deciding what to buy was, presumably, a conscious decision based on personal preference, taste and brand choices. Or was it?

Choice architecture theory states that it's the way things are presented to us, and the context they are in, which nudges us in a particular direction. This is used by marketers to steer everything from food choices in restaurants to healthier choices in supermarkets.

Just as a building architect must eventually build some particular building, a choice architect must choose a particular arrangement of food options at lunch, and by so doing she can influence what people eat. She can nudge.

― Richard H. Thaler, Cass R. Sunstein

A cafeteria owner realizes that the way they order the items on a menu affects the choices people make. Options at the beginning and end of the menu are chosen more, along with choices at eye-level.

This means that the owner can be a 'choice architect' and layout the menu based on which decisions they want their customers to make. If they want to encourage healthier options, they can put these as first and last on the menu.

The default option

One of the easiest ways to put choice architecture into practice yourself is by making the most out of the default option.

It's a staple of choice architecture that people are more likely to accept the default option than any custom option available. This is not only the simpler option, but in most cases, means that the user doesn't have to weigh up the benefits and risks of each choice themselves.

Successful choice architecture

In 2010, the British government established its Behavioural Insights Team, which was responsible for helping the public make more responsible decisions.

The Behavioral Insights Team - or the Nudge Unit as it was commonly known - was informed by Richard Thaler that people have a tendency to accept default settings. Based on this, the government changed the default settings from opt-out to opt-in on company pensions.

As a result, saving for pensions has become commonplace, and it's now a new normal for people to have savings into retirement. Successful choice architecture in practice.