AfricaOur Thinking / Voice on Growth Economies /
12 July 2017
Our behaviors impact our health: Preventable diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, certain cancers, chronic respiratory disorders and diabetes account for 70% of deaths worldwide.[1] These diseases are largely the result of lifestyle choices.
Employers are looking for solutions that will help keep their workforce healthy, and behavioral economics may provide the answer. Behavioral economics is an interdisciplinary field that explores the effects of psychological, social, cognitive and emotional factors on the decisions we make. When applied in the health benefits context, behavioral economics principles can help individuals make better lifestyle choices and can encourage them to adopt healthier behaviors.
In our latest thought paper, we explore how behavioral economics can help shape the way employees interact with their benefits for the better, helping organizations and their people create sustainable behavior change and achieve their health management goals.
[1] World Health Organization, “The Top 10 Causes of Death,” January 2017, available at http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs310/en/.
