Research Program
Behavioral Sciences
Behavioral science combines insights from psychology, economics and other social sciences to understand how people make decisions relevant to their well-being. The Schaeffer Center applies the field’s knowledge to find ways to enhance that wellbeing.
For example, antibiotics prescribed inappropriately waste resources, can cause health complications and have helped give rise to antibiotic-resistant “superbugs,” while the opioid crisis claims more than 115 lives every day. Schaeffer experts have employed theories of behavioral sciences — or nudges — to influence provider prescribing behavior without reducing their autonomy in both of these areas.
Program Leadership
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Wändi Bruine de Bruin, MSc, PhD
Co-Director, Behavioral Sciences Program, USC Schaeffer Center
Provost Professor of Public Policy, Psychology, and Behavioral Science, USC Price School of Public Policy
Behavioral Scientist, USC Center for Economic and Social Research
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Jason Doctor, PhD
Co-Director, Behavioral Sciences Program, USC Schaeffer Center
Norman Topping Chair in Medicine and Public Policy and Professor, USC Price School of Public Policy
Chair, Department of Health Policy and Management, USC Price School of Public Policy
Featured Research and Perspectives
Americans More Likely to Choose Vegan Food if Labeled ‘Healthy’ and ‘Sustainable’
A new USC study suggests that changing labels of vegan food to focus on health and environmental benefits may encourage people to eat less red meat and dairy.
A Randomized Trial Looking at Planning Prompts to Reduce Opioid Prescribing
The study confirmed the benefit of planning prompts, and repeat letter exposure among clinicians with poor patient outcomes.
Why Higher Copayments for Opioids Did Not Reduce Use Among Medicare Beneficiaries
Greater prescribing of opioids by physicians is widely understood to be the primary driver of the opioid epidemic. Ironically, the introduction of Medicare Part D contributed to the epidemic.
Clinician Job Satisfaction After Peer Comparison Feedback
A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial
Want Safer Prescribing? Provide Doctors with a Plan for Helping Patients in Pain
Letters notifying physicians of patient overdose deaths and providing a plan for the future is an effective intervention, according to new USC Schaeffer Center research
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