Default neglect in attempts at social influence

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Economics
• Social Psychology
• Decision Science

Background:

• Theoretical models predict individuals can exploit cognitive biases for social influence.
• The default effect, a bias favoring the status quo, has significant policy implications.
• Empirical evidence on people's ability to leverage the default effect is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether individuals understand and utilize the default effect to influence others.
• To examine the phenomenon of "default neglect" in various populations.
• To explore beliefs surrounding the default effect and its influence.

Main Methods:

• Participants (managers, students, US adults) played default-setting games.
• Default neglect was assessed in one-shot and repeated trials with feedback.
• Beliefs about the default effect were surveyed.

Main Results:

• Only 50.8% of participants systematically set the target option as the default.
• Default neglect persisted even with multiple opportunities for learning and feedback.
• Most participants underestimated the default effect, even when they used defaults themselves.

Conclusions:

• Individuals frequently fail to leverage the default effect for social influence, a phenomenon termed "default neglect."
• Default neglect has significant implications for understanding decision-making, social influence, and evidence-based policy.
• Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms and consequences of default neglect.