The SIMPLER framework describes the behavioral principles applied across the 15 tests in the Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency (BIAS) project, which was the first major effort to apply behavioral insights to the human services programs that serve poor and vulnerable families in the United States. Each intervention was highly tailored to the particular site’s problem and context using a systematic approach called “behavioral diagnosis and design.” However, a retrospective look at the tests across BIAS program areas identified common bottlenecks that various human services settings may share and, as a result, commonalities across interventions, even though implementation varied at each site.

SIMPLER was developed to summarize several key behavioral concepts that may be relevant for a variety of programs. In the figure below, each behavioral term is followed by a definition and an example of how this concept was applied in a BIAS site. While SIMPLER is not meant to encompass the full range of available behavioral techniques, practitioners may find it useful as they think about how to apply behavioral insights to their program areas.

FOR MORE DETAILS, SEE THE FINAL REPORT OF THE BIAS PROJECT:

Nudging Change in Human Services: Final Report of the Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency (BIAS) Project