What motivates us to do… well, anything? Uri Gneezy is a behavioral economist who has changed our understanding of how incentives influence our decisions and actions. Adam and Uri take a deep dive into the psychology of rewards and punishments -- and when and why they backfire. Uri’s latest book “Mixed Signals: How Incentives Really Work” is out now. Transcripts for ReThinking are available at go.ted.com/RWAGscripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Uri Gneezy is a behavioural economist, a professor at the University of California and an author who's research focuses on human incentives.Incentives encourage humans to do things. But they're not as straight forward as you might think. They often have unintended and disastrous consequences for our personal lives, businesses and societies. Basically, a bad incentive is worse than no incentive at all. Expect to learn why paying citizens 10p for a rat tail is a bad idea, how fining parents for taking their kids on holiday results in more kids missing school, why the Toyota Prius won because of its strange design, how reframing discounts can rapidly change behaviour, why Peloton's sales went up when they increased the price, why Coke machines have an outdoors thermometer on them and much more...Sponsors:Get 83% discount & 3 months free from Surfshark VPN at https://surfshark.deals/MODERNWISDOM (use code MODERNWISDOM)Get $100 discount on the best water filter on earth from AquaTru at https://bit.ly/drinkwisdom (discount automatically applied)Get 20% discount on all Keto Brainz products at https://ketobrainz.com/modernwisdom (use code: MW20) and follow them on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/ketobrainz/Extra Stuff:Buy Mixed Signals - https://amzn.to/40pQ4Tj Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom-Get in touch.Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillxTwitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillxYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcastEmail: https://chriswillx.com/contact/  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Uri Gneezy, Professor of Economics and Strategy at UC San Diego, discusses the importance of understanding incentives in various contexts, including software services. They explore tailoring behaviors, credible signaling, unintended consequences of incentives and nudges, the value of a common sense officer in organizations, and the role of incentives in AI development.

Discussion on why Amazon paid staff $5,000 to quit, how to influence behavior using incentives, and the power of framing choices positively. Examples include Coca-Cola, AMC theaters, and unique employee retention strategies.

Uri Gneezy, a behavioral economist from UC San Diego, dives into the art of crafting effective incentive programs. He shares insights on how poorly designed incentives can backfire, drawing on personal anecdotes and case studies. Gneezy discusses the psychology behind incentive framing, revealing how loss aversion impacts motivation. He also highlights a study linking physical activity to improved academic performance, underscoring the benefits of integrating well-being into incentive strategies for sustainable behavior change.