QUIZ – 2017: Insights Current Affairs Quiz, 12 OCTOBER 2017

Solution: d.
In a 2008 book ‘Nudge’, Prof. Richard H. Thaler and Cass Sunstein show how behavioural economics can be used in policy-making to influence behaviours. It is here that they introduce the concept of libertarian paternalism, where “choice architects” influence the behaviour of individuals to make their lives “longer, healthier and better” but in a way that gives individuals the freedom to not participate in arrangements that are not to their taste.

Richard H. Thaler has incorporated psychologically realistic assumptions into analyses of economic decision-making. By exploring the consequences of limited rationality, social preferences, and lack of self-control, he has shown how these human traits systematically affect individual decisions as well as market outcomes.

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/the-architecture-of-choice/article19841036.ece;
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-opinion/well-deserved-nudge/article19836087.ece;
https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economic-sciences/laureates/2017/press.html;
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Solution: c.
The Constitution (Article 76) has provided for the office of the AG of India. He is the highest law officer in the country.

The Attorney General is not a full-time counsel for the Government. He does not fall in the category of government servants. Further, he is not debarred from private legal practice.

Refer Chapter, ‘Attorney General of India’, Indian Polity by M Laxmikanth;
Source/Improvisation: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/law-officers-can-take-up-private-practice-prasad/article19834795.ece
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Solution: b.
Say the problem at hand is unhealthy eating habits, which lead to obesity. An extreme solution would be strictly-enforced bans and diktats on food that can be consumed and that which is prohibited. A less extreme public policy would be a sin tax on fat or sugar. Nudge-type policies, on the other hand, would tend to include things like displaying the healthier food options relatively more prominently.

Nudging stems from the field of behavioural economics, examining how gut instincts can often overrule rational choices, in which Thaler is regarded as a pioneer.

A nudge, “…is any aspect of the choice architecture that alters people’s behaviour in a predictable way without forbidding any options or significantly changing their economic incentives”.

A nudge does not restrict choice; it implies the strategic use of some pattern of human irrationality (ex: cognitive biases) to influence decision-making in humans. (Typically, they prompt choices without motivating people to consider their options consciously, and therefore do not include openly persuasive interventions such as media campaigns and the provision of information.)

Thaler’s branch of economics has influenced UK PM Theresa May’s announcement of an “opt out” policy for organ donations where it is presumed that people wish to donate body parts unless they state otherwise. This move has been credited with encouraging 100,000 extra organ donations a year. (Countries all around the world, starting with the UK, have started behavioural insight teams, often referred to as nudge units. There was news, last year, of NITI Aayog planning to set up one for India.)

Behavioural economics is also used by retailers to increase sales. It is more likely that you will purchase a a pair of jeans costing Rs.1,999 than you would a pair that costs Rs. 2,000.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/09/nobel-prize-in-economics-richard-thaler;
http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/the-architecture-of-choice/article19841036.ece;
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Solution: d.
An Advance Directive is NOT a fundamental right (not yet, at least).

An Advance Healthcare Directive (or simply ‘Advance Directive’) also known as living will, is a legal document in which a person specifies what actions should be taken for their health if they are no longer able to make decisions for themselves because of illness or incapacity.

“Should the law allow ‘living wills’? These are advance directives that people can lay down while being sound of mind, on whether they should continue to get life-sustaining treatment after they reach a stage of total incapacitation, that is, a vegetative state.”

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/the-will-to-die/article19840981.ece;
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Solution: b.
BBC definition: According to one definition, a ‘gig’ economy is “a labour market characterised by the prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work, as opposed to permanent jobs”.

In the gig economy, instead of a regular wage, workers get paid for the “gigs” they do, such as a food delivery or a car journey.

Proponents of the gig economy claim that people can benefit from flexible hours, with control over how much time they can work as they juggle other priorities in their lives.

In addition, the flexible nature often offers benefits to employers, as they only pay when the work is available, and don’t incur staff costs when the demand is not there.

Workers in the gig economy are classed as independent contractors. That means they have no protection against unfair dismissal, no right to redundancy payments, and no right to receive the national minimum wage, paid holiday or sickness pay.

Due to the large numbers of people willing to work part-time or temporary positions, the result of a gig economy is cheaper, more efficient services (such as Uber or Airbnb) for those willing to use them.

Cities tend to have the most highly developed services and are the most entrenched in the gig economy.

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/regulating-the-gig-economy/article19841066.ece;
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/gig-economy.asp;
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-38930048;
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