The Behavioral Code

Freakonomics for the law-a paradigm shifting examination of how law can use behavioral science to prevent misconduct

Why do some laws radically change behavior whereas others are consistently ignored and routinely broken? Our laws ban heroin and harshly punish drug offenders, yet the opioid epidemic rages on. Our laws set pollution standards for cars, and yet even after the VW emissions cheating scandal rocked the world, 97% of diesel cars still fail to meet the standards.

Drawing upon two decades of research, the authors reveal the behavioral code: the root causes and hidden forces that drive human behavior and our responses to society's laws. By utilizing the behavioral code in law creation, we can create a fundamentally different approach to injustice and crime that is based in understanding human instincts - rather than relying on punishment to shape behavior.

Through revelatory and counterintuitive examples, The Behavioral Code catalyzes the conversation about how the law can effectively improve human conduct and respond to some of our most pressing issues today, from environmental damage to corporate malfeasance. The authors ride on Dutch trains to see how classical music is used to reduce crime in the Netherlands and they go into corporate boardrooms at Volkswagen and Wells Fargo to understand how our response to massive corporate misconduct has actually increased illegal practices. The Behavioral Code presents the first accessible analysis of behavioral jurisprudence that will fundamentally alter how we understand the connection between law and human behavior.