A government public health campaign aims to reduce sugar consumption. Instead of imposing a tax, they mandate that supermarkets display fresh fruit at eye-level near the checkouts, while sugary confectionery is moved to the bottom shelves at the back of the store. Consequently, sales of fresh fruit rise by 25%.
Which aspect of behavioural economic theory best explains the success of this policy?
Mandated choice, because consumers are forced to make an active decision between fruit and confectionery at the point of purchase.
The availability heuristic, because consumers make food choices based on how easily they can recall recent high-profile health campaigns about sugar.
Nudging through choice architecture, which exploits bounded rationality and cognitive inertia without restricting consumer freedom of choice.
Bounded selfishness, because consumers choose the healthier option to align with societal expectations of altruism.
45 exam-style questions on AQA A Level Economics 1.2 Individual economic decision making (A-level only), covering 1.2.1 Consumer behaviour, 1.2.2 Imperfect information, 1.2.3 Aspects of behavioural economic theory, and 1.2.4 Behavioural economics and economic policy. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.