Default Option Essay

Words: 1272
Pages: 6

Regarding the concept of following the heard, individuals may also make choices that require the lease effort, for some that may be by just following the heard or going with the groups decision. For instance, Thaler and Sunstein talk about the default option in regards to choice architecture. This concept is when people make the decision as the “default option”, being that they just make the decision of whatever is easiest without taking into consideration if it is good for them or not (Thaler & Sunstein, 2009, p.85). Furthermore, this is easily seen throughout this explanation and exploration of the impact of deviant peers and an individual’s deviant activity. Many are just doing what their peers are doing because it is the easiest option. …show more content…
Thus far, it has been identified that by having deviant friends one is more likely to engage in deviant behavior and learn that behavior with explanations from group decision making, social learning theory, and social nudges. It has been identified how social nudges play a role in this issue of making deviant decisions, as well as in group decisions. Before suggesting that my nudge would work best, it would be useful to explore other strategies that might be able to be employed to stop one from engaging in deviant behavior and identify flaws they may have and useful takeaways that could be implemented in my nudge. For instance, one avenue that could be suggested in regards to deterring individuals from engaging with deviant peers would to just be telling one to resist the temptation to engage with these peers. When it comes to resisting temptation Thaler and Sunstein give clear understanding that even though an individual prefers choice A to B, they are likely to later choose choice B over A, essentially because they are underestimating the effects of their arousal (2009, p. 40-41). Say an individual does want to stop engaging in deviant