
The art of shaping choice architecture.
Welcome to the “Becoming a B.S. Artist” series, where you will learn the fine art of using behavioral science tools to motivate action. You can catch up with the first post on Feedback Loops here.
You can click on the image below to read all four posts in the series.
This B.S. Tool: Choice Architecture.
“This term coined by Thaler and Sunstein (2008) refers to the practice of influencing choice by ‘organizing the context in which people make decisions.’” – Behavioraleconomics.com
What does it mean to “organize the context” in a way that influences choice?
Let’s start by taking a look around our homes. Have you ever done any of the following?
» Placed a full glass of water by your bed so you’ll drink it first thing in the morning to achieve your hydration goals.
» Stored sweets or indulgent food items in a difficult-to-see or reach place to avoid impulsive snacking.
» Laid out exercise clothes in a visible location to prompt yourself to work out that day.
» Put your reusable bags near the door so they are in the car for your next shopping trip.
If you have done any of these things or something similar, you have altered your space in a way that reminds, prompts, supports, and encourages the habits you want to adopt.
You choice architecture’d yourself – nice work!
The following quote sets the stage for why choice architecture in the context of conservation and sustainability – and any social good program – is needed:
“While it is tempting to think that choices can be presented in a “neutral” way (“Just the facts, Ma’am”), the reality is that there is no neutral architecture—any way a choice is presented will influence how the decision-maker chooses.” – Johnson et al., 2012
Every physical setting we enter, every decision-making juncture we encounter, has already been designed to influence us.
In some places, the context is designed to create an orderly process, like the queue ropes at banks that ensure we are served on a first-come basis.
Sometimes, the context is designed in a way that does not ultimately benefit the user, like the candy section at grocery store checkout aisles.
Even though it’s likely not done intentionally, poorly designed spaces and contexts leave us confused about what we should be doing or where we should be going.
We have an opportunity to incorporate elements of choice architecture into our programs to help guide, prompt, support, and encourage audiences to make sustainable choices.
Is choice architecture a good fit for your project?
Choice architecture is a potential fit for your project if the following elements are present.
Your audience will encounter one or more moments in their journey of change where they face various options about what they should do next, with some options being better than others.
The interests of the audience are aligned with the desired behavior or choice. Meaning you are not influencing a choice that would harm the decision-maker. Most people want to lead more climate-friendly lifestyles (Edelman, 2023) but are struggling due to information overload, a lack of guidance on the best actions to take, and low transparency about environmental impacts. Choice architecture can help lower these barriers.
You have some control over how options are presented to your audience by redesigning or adding cues to a physical space (e.g., a visitor center), reference materials (e.g., a restaurant menu), or a digital platform (e.g., a website or app).
If you don’t have any control over how options are presented to your audience, then choice architecture may not be the right tool for your program. But I encourage you to continue scrolling to see if there is a non-obvious place in the audience journey where you can help them make better decisions.
Why choice architecture works.
Let’s add a splash of behavioral psychology to the mix! Organizing, or re-organizing, the decision-making context motivates action in the following ways.
It reduces uncertainty about how to behave and which options to choose. This story about my first time eating at Panera Bread highlights how a lack of choice architecture and cues can prompt audiences to abandon their efforts altogether.
“People are often unsure about what option to choose. Whether to consent to organ donation or not, how much to save for retirement; those are difficult and important decisions, clouded by uncertainty. But this does not mean that people will always follow the easiest path. Instead, people may look for cues in the choice architecture that can help them come to a decision.” Behavioral Scientist
It prevents choice overload. I wrote about the behavioral bias of choice overload last year, which describes how difficult it is to make a decision when too many options are presented to us simultaneously. Choice architecture takes the potential of information overload into consideration from the start and crafts a decision-making process that does not overwhelm the audience.
It helps busy people make decisions. And guess what? We’re ALL busy! Our busy, tired, rushed minds are not great at making decisions that are in our best interest or making decisions at all. Think about how hard it is to decide what to eat when you’re exhausted at the end of the day. As a result, humans seek mental shortcuts and informational cues to make their decision-making process more manageable.
What you need to get started.
It’s time to gather the materials we need to architect and implement choice architecture. The three essential items you need are:
→ A decision-making setting (e.g., digital platform, physical space, or reference materials) you have permission to redesign or alter.
→ A detailed map (or journey) of the audience’s decision-making experience and where uncertainty, choice overload, or difficulties may occur.
→ A set of desired choices you want the audience to make.
How to implement choice architecture.
It’s like molding clay but a lot harder. Sorry!
Start by modifying the options.
We can modify the options by improving the ratio of good-to-bad options or reducing the number of “less good” choices. This step helps to shift the status quo toward sustainability.
Imagine if grocery checkout lines featured more grab-and-go fruit options than candy bars. It could result in more impulse banana purchases!
Here are a few other examples of modifying options:
» Restaurants and dining establishments can increase the number of plant-based options on the menu so there is a more even balance between plant-based and meat-based dishes.
» Offices can increase the size of available recycling containers to be much larger than landfill containers to signal that recycling is the priority and preference.
» Stores can change their default option to feature sustainable items, like reusable containers instead of disposable ones.
Here is an example of a nature trail that aimed to eliminate the option of someone not wiping their feet between trails by redesigning the exit so everyone walks across the cleansing mat.

Draw attention to the better options.
You can use signage, guide markers, special displays, and colors to reduce overload and chart the audience’s path forward. When B.S. Artists talk about “nudges,” they’re most often referring to this type of intervention.
Placement is important for this step if you can control how a space is designed and arranged. For example, where the recycling bin is located within a room or building can impact if it’s used with frequency and accuracy.
I recently attended a conference where choice architecture practices were featured prominently throughout the presentations. Yet, the dining area’s composting, recycling, and landfill bins were scattered randomly around the room. I found myself circling the room to find a compost bin, which could have been highlighted and placed in more prominent locations.
Here are a few more examples of how to draw attention to better options. A Marketing for Change campaign used signage in a grocery store to help shoppers quickly identify and select healthier beverages.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, places used floor decals and other markings to help people stay six feet apart (since humans are terrible at estimating distances).

Drawing attention to the desired behavior can also include an element of fun, like this hopscotch pattern leading to a trash can.

Present the options in an appealing way.
We can design the options to showcase recommendations and highlight the benefits of the better choices. For example, a restaurant can draw the audience’s attention to its plant-based options but present them in an unappealing way that doesn’t entice the audience to actually order one (e.g., “healthy start breakfast” versus “cozy cinnamon oatmeal with berries”).
This step is especially important if there are many options for the audience to choose from, even after you’ve whittled down the list in step one. I can imagine this technique being used on a website to highlight which native wildflowers and plants are recommended for my region, with additional details on caretaking and environmental benefits to help guide my decisions.
During these moments of more intentional consideration, as opposed to impulse decisions, providing additional information on impacts and benefits is helpful for the audience.
Create some promotion and buzz around making better choices.
Choice architecture can exist solely within its intended domain, but I’m a big fan of adding more communication to motivate and reinforce the desired behavior. Consider creating a mini (or big) campaign that motivates the audience to try something new and different.
If you need ideas for starting a promotional effort, check out the Terms of Engagement series I published earlier this year.
A caveat and a warning.
Good choices and good habits are not always one and the same. While choice architecture techniques can successfully influence someone’s actions at that moment, the same behavior is unlikely to carry over to other settings automatically.
For example, a dining hall may be able to guide its customers to eat more sustainably through its choice architecture, but that doesn’t guarantee that those same eaters will replicate their choices at home or in other dining establishments. This is one of the reasons why I recommend adding a communication campaign to the effort, as that can go a step further to motivate audience members to adopt the behaviors in other aspects of their lives.
Choice architecture must be implemented ethically. Shaping how people make decisions and which decisions they make is powerful and, unfortunately, often used with mal-intent to benefit someone other than the decision-maker. The checkout line candy stash comes to mind here.
It’s critical to ensure our audiences always retain agency over their own decisions and are never coerced into doing something they don’t want to do. The Behavioral Scientist’s Ethics Checklist is a helpful reference guide when designing and implementing choice architecture for your projects.
You’re now on your way to becoming a certified B.S. Artist!
→ You can visit all 4 B.S. Artist posts here at any time.
Additional learning resources:
Chandon, P., & Cadario, R. (2019, July 7). Seven ways restaurants can nudge people to eat more healthily. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/seven-ways-restaurants-can-nudge-people-to-eat-more-healthily-119315
Columbia Business School. (2023, March 13). Choice Architecture: How to Improve Decision-Making [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxE8-sZlHbI
Johnson, E. J., Shu, S. B., Dellaert, B. G. C., Fox, C., Goldstein, D. G., Häubl, G., Larrick, R. P., Payne, J. W., Peters, E., Schkade, D., Wansink, B., & Weber, E. U. (2012). Beyond nudges: Tools of a choice architecture. Marketing Letters, 23(2), 487–504. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-012-9186-1