Timeline for Should I make my research students' pay contingent on completion of tasks (such as reading/summarizing papers)?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
7 events
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| Jul 31, 2020 at 10:47 | comment | added | Especially Lime | @NuclearWang I think the issue with bags is that (at least where I am, in the UK) it didn't go from single-use bags being discouraged, but not charged for, to being discouraged and charged for. They went from practically being encouraged to being discouraged. I suspect the main reason the bag charge was effective was that it forced shops to change their practices in this regard. | |
| Jul 31, 2020 at 6:10 | comment | added | justhalf | Thank you Nuclear Wang for the counter-example! Definitely human behavior is a complex thing. I guess it depends on when the decisions are made. In the plastic bag case, it is quite simple to just bring your own bag before going for groceries. For the parents being late case, surely they were late because they were doing something else. With the incentive, they could think to themselves, "Well, I could still finish this thing a bit more, then later pay a small fee for being late." So I guess it also depends on how important it is the other thing that prevents the good thing from happening. | |
| Jul 30, 2020 at 17:17 | comment | added | Nuclear Hoagie | @Matt The bag fee is an external indicator that bags are bad, which was enough to change people's behavior - it's not about the money, it's about doing the right thing. The daycare fee is also an external indicator that lateness is bad, and also is a pittance - it's also not about the money, but it didn't get people to do the right thing. They're opposite outcomes from the same incentive structure, so I don't see how both can be supportive of this answer. We have one scenario where the incentive worked, and another where it didn't, but this answer just suggests they don't work. | |
| Jul 30, 2020 at 17:00 | comment | added | Matt | @NuclearWang: I think the example of plastic bags actually supports this answer. The 5-10 cent fee for bags is hardly an important budgetary consideration for most customers. But it reminds them that bags are considered bad, which is far more influential for many customers. (It also prevents the store from just automatically giving bags to everyone whether they want one or not, which is probably another major reason for the marked decrease in usage, but that aspect of the bag analogy is not relevant to this answer.) | |
| Jul 30, 2020 at 15:03 | comment | added | Azor Ahai -him- | For other readers, 10 shekels is about $3 ... so a very small fine | |
| Jul 30, 2020 at 14:46 | comment | added | Nuclear Hoagie | As a counterexample, I'll mention plastic bag "bans" that have been implemented in many places. By charging a nominal fee (typically 5-10 cents) for each plastic bag used, many places have seen a marked decrease in usage. This seems like a successful implementation of commodifying the environmental/moral issue of sustainability, with the exact opposite result as the daycare example. I generally agree with you that the OP's proposed system is a bad idea, but providing monetary reward for moral choices can in fact be effective. | |
| Jul 30, 2020 at 5:25 | history | answered | justhalf | CC BY-SA 4.0 |