Although humans are capable of logical thought, that doesn’t mean they are logical. Despite understanding what’s “good for them,” they often behave in ways that are precisely the opposite.

If you dont have time to read this months blog – listen to my AI alter ego summarise the key points.

Let me give you some examples, someone who might genuinely want to lose weight still stops for a McDonalds on their way home, even though they know it’s way too high in calories. And what about the smoker who says they are committed to giving up smoking, while smoking! These aren’t simply lapses, they’re snapshots of the ongoing tension between logic, belief, impulse, and self-control. (See cognitive dissonance). Human behaviour is often governed by the need for pleasure whilst avoiding pain, even when it might be to the detriment of something that is hugely important to them – such as being fit and healthy or passing an exam.

Nudge theory
The reason for highlighting the irrational behaviour of humans is by way of introduction to something called Nudge, a theory from behavioural economics that explores how subtle changes in the way choices are presented, known as choice architecture, can influence people’s decisions.

The term was popularised in 2008 by Richard Thaler, a behavioural economist, and Cass Sunstein, a legal scholar, through their influential book called Nudge. Rather than dictating behaviour, nudges gently steer individuals toward better choices by subtly altering the environment or the way options are presented.  Many nudges involve small, inexpensive changes that can have a significant impact. For example, putting a tiny image of a fly in a men’s urinal strategically placed just above the drain resulted in an 80% reduction in spillage! and a substantial cost saving in terms of cleaning.

But how do we know these seemingly small tweaks actually work? This is where we look to our scientific colleagues, who use Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) to provide the necessary evidence of efficacy. Simply put, an RCT involves taking a group of people and randomly dividing them into two groups, the “treatment group,” and the “control group”. By comparing the behaviours of these two otherwise identical groups, researchers can confidently measure whether the nudge made a difference.

As Interesting as this might be, you could well be thinking, what has this got to do with learning…….

EduNudge – Nudge applied to learning
One of the core purposes of education is to help students unlock their full potential. Yet each day, they grapple with behavioural barriers that make learning more difficult than it should be. In 2021 Mathias Decuypere and Sigrid Hartong began exploring how nudge theory might work in an educational setting, and in so doing coined the term “edunudge.”

The idea has huge potential in education precisely because effective learning often requires students to take proactive steps, reading, revising, answering questions, seeking feedback. Yet despite knowing that these activities are beneficial they fail to do what will help them the most. Not because of a lack of intelligence or motivation, but because of subtle, often unseen barriers, inertia, self-doubt, or simply competing priorities that get in their way.

Nudge doesn’t force change it encourages it, shifting behaviour by reconfiguring the decision-making landscape, almost without effort.

In practice a nudge approach might help……

• Boost student engagement by sending out timely reminders via email or text, encouraging students to complete assignments or attend class.
• Maintain and improve progression by showing students a visual tracker as to what they’ve accomplished so far, along with nudges like “You’re just one topic away from completing this unit!”
• Encourage specific learning activities by reducing the choices available, perhaps three personalised options instead of ten generic ones. Fewer, more relevant choices reduce decision fatigue and result in greater uptake.
• Increase the attendance at valuable study sessions by enrolling students automatically, unless they opt out.
• Motivate by sharing anonymised statistics like “80% of students in your course completed this module last week.” The implication being, you should do the same.  

These are just a few examples of how nudges can enhance student learning. There are many others ways in which nudging can be used and applied. For example, gamification techniques, such as streaks, points, badges, and leaderboards, are rooted in the principles of nudging. By subtly guiding behaviour using small rewards, social comparisons, and progress tracking, gamification taps into the nudge magic to encourage students to engage in good learning behaviours.

Problems with Nudge
While nudging students can be hugely helpful, it’s not without problems and has its critics.

One of the core challenges in applying nudges within education is distinguishing between desired outcomes and the behaviours that drive them. Take, for instance, the year-long study by behavioural economists Ghazala Azmat and Nagore Iriberri in which Spanish high school students were shown their marks relative to their peers. The result, a 5% increase in student performance. But once the nudge was removed, the improvement quickly faded. It was argued the intervention focused too much on the end result, in this instance increasing the mark without addressing the underlying behaviours that lead to learning. There are also ethical concerns, some argue nudging can be manipulative, steering choices without explicit consent. In education, this raises questions about autonomy, especially when nudges target vulnerable groups. And partly because nudging is relatively new in education there is limited evidence as to its success, with only a small number of studies set in an educational context, and with mixed results.

The main benefit of Nudge – Evidence based practice?
While nudging is often framed as a tool for shaping behaviour, it’s possible its real educational value is not in the behavioural tweak itself, but in the way it promotes evidence-based practice. Most nudging interventions rely on Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs), which offers a rigorous, empirical framework. As such it invites educators and policymakers to confront a question that is too often overlooked or worse, ignored – Is what I’m doing actually working?

Perhaps the real value and power of nudge is not in shaping behaviour directly, but in its capacity to foster a culture of reflection, evidence, and continuous inquiry. Which may be the most meaningful nudge of all!

Further reading

• Nudging in education – This research concludes that nudges work best for people who face the biggest obstacles e.g. nudges dont impact everyone equally.
• Nudging in education from theory towards guidelines for successful implementation – This research suggests that when you use “nudges” in education, you should think beyond the result you want e.g. improving marks. And better understand how the nudge affects a student’s thinking and what specific small actions it makes them more likely to do.
• More on Edunudging: the future of learning?
• The first Randomised Control Trail – conducted by James Lind in 1747 that helped save thousands of lives by finding a cure for scurvy.