Some Notes on the Nudge: The Political Economy of Libertarian Paternalism in Democratic Societies

24 Pages Posted: 31 May 2011

See all articles by Jan Schnellenbach

Jan Schnellenbach

BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg, Institute for Economics, Chair for Microeconomics; Walter Eucken Institute

Date Written: May 27, 2011

Abstract

This paper discusses libertarian (or soft) paternalism, as proposed among others by Thaler and Sunstein (2008). It is argued that libertarian paternalism should not be understood as an efficiency-enhancing, but as a redistributive concept. The relationship between libertarian paternalism and social norms is also discussed. In particular, it is argued that libertarian paternalism increases the stability of given social norms, which in turn need not be efficient, or in the material self-interest of a majority of individuals. Soft paternalism is therefore argued to be an essentially conservative concept of policy-making and aimed at increasing the longevity of status quo social norms.

Keywords: libertarian paternalism, soft paternalism, social norms, informal institutions, behavioral political economics, expressive behavior

JEL Classification: H11, I18, D61, B52, Z1

Suggested Citation

Schnellenbach, Jan, Some Notes on the Nudge: The Political Economy of Libertarian Paternalism in Democratic Societies (May 27, 2011). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1854670 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1854670

Jan Schnellenbach (Contact Author)

BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg, Institute for Economics, Chair for Microeconomics ( email )

Erich-Weinert-Str. 1
Cottbus, 03046
Germany

HOME PAGE: http://www.b-tu.de/fg-vwl-mikro/team/prof-dr-jan-schnellenbach

Walter Eucken Institute ( email )

Goethestr. 10
Freiburg, 79100
Germany

HOME PAGE: http://www.eucken.de

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