On being a saver
On being a saver
How positive social identities can build financial wellbeing
We recently worked with the UK’s Money and Pensions Service to publish a report on the ways in which behavioural science can be used to improve financial wellbeing. We used a combination of expert interviews and desk research, to conduct a review of the available theories (ranging from nudges and defaults through to social identity theory) and intervention strategies to change behaviour, that could be relevant to how people interact with their money and pensions.
I would (naturally!) recommend it not only for those involved in financial services but generally I think it gives a good overview of many of the key principles of behavioural science.
One of the areas we cover (which in general feels as if does not always get enough air time) is social identity, some extracts from the report below:
There is a significant body of work that suggests our social context is a key component of the way in which we reflect on ourselves and our relationship with money. Research by Dr Heather Barry-Kappes at the London School of Economics (one of our interviewees) shows how our relationship with money is set at an early age and focuses on spending:
“Research with children about perceived wealth suggests this is highly related to spending money. The only reason not to buy something is if you cannot afford it.”
If behaviours associated with financial wellbeing (such as saving) are felt to conflict with our sense of self, then some people will not be self-motivated to engage in those behaviours or give them sufficient priority in their lives.
We argue that for lasting, large-scale behaviour change, norm internalisation and therefore motivation, is necessary. There is a need to develop attractive social identities around financial wellbeing, by identifying or accessing social identities that matter to people. By building on the normative behaviour associated with these, it is possible to build on these conceptions and persuade people to behave in ways that are consistent with both their identity and the norm.
There are success stories of where policy makers have changed or, perhaps more accurately, tapped into and influenced, people’s identity. In 2015, Sport England launched their seven-year ‘This Girl Can’ nationwide strategy and campaign, aimed at getting women and girls moving, regardless of their shape, size and ability. The campaign sought to challenge the conventional idea of what exercise looks like, in order to inspire more women to take action. The campaign has sustained changes in attitudes and behaviour. Within one year of its launch, 2.8 million 14-40-year-old women said they had done some form of activity as a result of seeing the campaign and it has successfully encouraged many women who previously failed to see exercise as part of their identity.
Picture of the week: Nicolas Polli plays with domestic still lifes, imagining a world – like many of us have throughout lockdown – in which objects are characters all their own (see Reads & Views below)
News round-up
I find that what Susan Michie says is worth listening to and this recent piece in The Guardian is no exception.
We talk a lot about the way in which we live in times that are uncertain or Liquid. This article on Karl Jaspers is interesting – he wrote about the way in which uncertainty ‘undergirds and shapes human existence’.
Building on this theme, here is a nice piece on the perils of prediction
Reads & views
Photographer and graphic designer Nicolas Polli transforms everyday objects into characters. As COVID-19 has changed the world, some of the ways we look at it have become less binary. Which seems to be reflected in this slight challenging of the object-subject divide.
Still on this theme, Other Minds explore the intelligent life of cephalopods. The books tracks how being up close to animal life gives us new insight into our own inner lives and the complexities of subjective experience.