
- 05 Jan 2021
- Cold Call Podcast
Using Behavioral Science to Improve Well-Being for Social Workers
For child and family social workers, coping with the hardships of children and parents is part of the job. But that can cause a lot of stress. Is it possible for financially constrained organizations to improve social workers’ well-being using non-cash rewards, recognition, and other strategies from behavioral science? Assistant Professor Ashley Whillans describes the experience of Chief Executive Michael Sanders’ at the UK’s What Works Centre for Children’s Social Care, as he led a research program aimed at improving the morale of social workers in her case, “The What Works Centre: Using Behavioral Science to Improve Social Worker Well-being.” Open for comment; 0 Comment(s) posted.

- 28 May 2019
- Working Paper Summaries
Labor Market Shocks and the Demand for Trade Protection: Evidence from Online Surveys
This paper provides evidence on the role played by different kinds of labor-market shocks in shaping individuals’ policy preferences. Specifically, it studies how people’s opinions about trade protectionism and compensatory financial transfers change when presented with six different types of shocks, all of which have the same effect on local labor markets.

- 20 May 2019
- Research & Ideas
Activist CEOs Are Rising Up—and Their Customers Are Listening
Are product sales affected by the CEO's stance on political and social issues? Michael Toffel and Aaron Chatterji study how consumers react to vocal chief executives. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

- 06 May 2019
- Research & Ideas
Consumers Blame Business for Global Health Problems. Can Business Become the Solution?
Millions of people have been harmed by cigarettes, defective merchandise, pollution, addiction and other business by-products. now, pioneering companies are exploring healthier ways to operate, say Amy C. Edmondson and Dr. Howard K. Koh. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

- 09 Oct 2017
- Research & Ideas
Fearing Fox News, Democratic-leaning Companies Delayed Negative Announcements
Jonas Heese and Vishal P. Baloria explore strategies used by companies to reduce the risk of potentially negative press, focusing on Fox News and the 2000 presidential election. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 20 Apr 2016
- Research & Ideas
When CEOs Become Activists
More and more, CEOs are promoting social causes that lie far outside their core business interests. Research by Mike Toffel and Aaron Chatterji explores the rise of CEO activists and the effects on their companies. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.

- 15 Jan 2016
- Working Paper Summaries
Incentives for Prosocial Behavior: The Role of Reputations
This study documents how small monetary incentives discourage volunteering when they are public and thus introduce a “greedy” signal. The discouragement from this greedy signal, however, is less pronounced among volunteers with public reputations, or those who are likely known not to be too greedy.
Persuasion by Populist Propaganda: Evidence from the 2015 Argentine Ballotage
This paper studies data generated prior to the 2015 Argentine presidential ballotage, when a government propaganda campaign was used to attack the opposition candidate and influence voter preferences. Results show the propaganda was persuasive.