Can Nudging Only Get You So Far? Testing for Crowd Out Effects

Abstract

There is an emerging body of evidence to suggest that nudges can motivate behaviour change. The
question as to whether using nudges in tandem “crowds out” the marginal effectiveness of each one has attracted little attention. Using a randomised survey experiment consisting of 1800 farmers, we tested the impact of two nudge-interventions (injunctive norm and social signalling) designed to encourage technology adoption. We subsequently tested the effectiveness of these nudges when implemented in combination. Our findings are indicative of limited crowd out effects, and more generally suggest that there may be considerable scope for employing non-monetary interventions in combination when it comes to encouraging technology uptake.

Keywords: farmer behaviour, nudges, social norms, status, crowd-out, combination nudge