The richness of personal interests: A neglected aspect of the nudge debate

Within the ‘nudge’ debate there is one assumption that goes unquestioned by advocates and critics alike: that people regularly and predictably make bad decisions. Policymakers necessarily substitute their own idea of what people’s interests are and then use nudges to steer the person in that direction. Mark White argues that only we can know when we’re making bad choices according to our own interests, and that it’s not ethical to use psychological tactics to steer people into making different choices