The Toolbox

Behavioral Economics

An elephant has a mind of its own.

“Behavior is what a man does, not what he thinks, feels, or believes”

Emily Dickinson¹

Reaping habits

As social change agents, we must deal with the human mind as it is, not as we wish it to be.

Let us begin with a metaphor. Imagine an elephant with a human rider. Together, they travel down a pathway. A skilled rider can indeed influence where the elephant goes. But basic physics suggests that the elephant has an immense advantage.

In this metaphor, the rider represents the conscious, rational mind. The elephant is the unconscious, emotional mind. The pathway is the context in which the mind acts.

This chapter will explore how social change agents can navigate the dynamics of the human mind.

We’ll start with ten biases—think of them as the elephant’s natural tendencies.

Building on these biases, we’ll explore seven illusions—broader phenomena where conscious understanding often misses a deeper truth.

The next section offers five solutions, effective ways to respond to the reality of the mind as it is. We’ll focus on interventions that change the context of human behavior: the path on which the elephant treads.

The elephant metaphor oversimplifies centuries of philosophy and cognitive science, but it serves our ...