Recent research in psychology and economics has uncovered important, and sometimes surprising, drivers of human behavior. ideas42 attempts to apply these insights to our understanding of the economic lives of people. Our innovations have produced new solutions in the areas of financial access for the poor, harvesting technologies in developing countries, the choice of health coverage in the United States, and educational opportunities in low-income communities.

Our design work therefore focuses on levers that traditional economics and policy approaches often overlook.

A major drive behind this project is the belief that current research and implementation efforts in the social sector are too often separated from each other. We use insights from research to generate practical and testable innovations, and then subject these insights to careful evaluation. The outcome of the work is both new scientific knowledge and workable new products and policies.

We interact extensively with partners, including large private firms, service oriented non-profits, government policy advocacy groups, and researchers located at academic, non-profit and international organizations. These partners help shape the work while providing: (a) guidance on which topical areas would most benefit from psychological and economic insights, (b) a channel to implement and test new innovations, (c) an important market test to ensure that our innovation efforts remain timely and feasible, and (d) a diffusion mechanism for successful innovations, both through their own operations and as advocates and thought leaders. As academics involved in policy, we have the dual goals of producing high quality research and diffusing our successes to the broader market-place of ideas, including in the policy and private sector arenas.

Our research spans both domestic and international projects. The ideals of the organization, including innovative design, rigorous testing of products, and dissemination of the resulting analysis, apply to both of these realms of research.

Related publications include:

• Jeffrey Kling - "Why Don't the People Insure Late Life Consumption? A Framing Explanation of the Under-Annuitization Puzzle"
• Sendhil Mullainathan - "Psychology and Economics: What it Means for Microfinance"

For more information about this program, please contact Cindy Smith.