Dr Magda Osman on Behavioural Interventions that Fail

What can we learn from Behavioural Interventions that fail? That's what my guest on this episode, Dr Magda Osman set out to discover in some recent research. We often hear about 'nudges' that work well to change behaviour, but what about those that don't? Might things that haven't gone according to plan, actually prove to be useful?

The answer is 'yes'. And that's what Magda and I set out to explore in our discussion. Her research ethos is to "take a critical eye to well-accepted views and challenge the status quo". As a result, her research interests cover a range of areas that include decision-making, learning, problem-solving, biases, risk and uncertainty, agency and control, and the unconscious.

As well as her research, we also talk about Unconscious Bias training and explore other areas where behavioural interventions might not be as effective as we might expect.

For a summary of the research I recommend this article: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2258396-what-can-we-learn-from-failed-attempts-to-change-peoples-behaviour/

You'll find the research here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2020.09.009

For more on Magda and her research, visit her website: http://www.magdaosmanresearch.co.uk/