When the concept of nudges were first proposed as a policy making tool, they were heralded as something of a silver bullet, but despite the fanfare, their success has been by no means guaranteed.  The failure of nudges is in part because they’re designed to reach people that are inherently hard to reach.

Recent research from Stanford’s Immigration Policy Lab explores whether nudges can help immigrants in the United States who wish to become citizens.  The research was born out of data showing that naturalization rates in the US are much lower than most other Western countries.

The researchers worked with New York’s Office for New Americans to evaluate NaturalizeNY, a scheme designed to help people financially and logistically with the naturalization process.  The analysis revealed that despite support existing that would allow the poorest immigrants to apply for free, many were not taking advantage of the service.

It emerged that there are around 9 million immigrants who are eligible for citizenship but who have yet to apply.  Of these, roughly half would have been eligible for a free application.  Despite this, just 20% actually did so.

A lack of information

The team hypothesized that the prime culprit was a fundamental lack of information, with the information that is available hard to track down.  Doing so takes time that not all immigrants have to spare.

The hypothesis was tested by tracking down over 1,500 participants who were eligible for the waiver.  When they signed up to NaturalizeNY, 75% of them were shown a notice informing them of the waiver, together with information on how they could get help with their application, with 25% receiving only the link to application assistance.

The immigrants were then checked in on a few months later to see if they’d applied or not.  It seems that the simple message had indeed made a difference, with those exposed to it 35% more likely to apply for citizenship than those who weren’t.  What’s more, most of the people who applied for the waiver only did so because this made the application for citizenship affordable.

The nudge had proved most effective for people who had lower incomes, less education and where English was not their first language.

“Previous research on other benefits programs has shown that the increase in usage may be concentrated among those with fewest barriers. In this case, the information helped those who might be considered to be most in need of assistance,” the authors say.