Behaviour in Transitions

Transitions in society are very complex. Their trajectories are uncertain and require behaviour change from all actors involved. For example, in energy transitions, policymakers must design policies that push for technological, system, and social innovations, and citizens and organisations need to accept and use these innovations. For informed policy analysis and policymaking, it is necessary to formalise and model this multi-actor behaviour. However, knowledge about its underlying drivers and barriers is needed to model behaviour. This knowledge can be provided by the scientific field of psychology and other areas, including economics, sociology, and philosophy.

In this course, you will learn how behavioural insights (from various scientific disciplines) can help facilitate the formalisation and modelling of behaviour in transitions. More specifically, you will learn how behavioural perspectives, theories, and research methods can be applied to analyse the scientific understanding of multi-actor behaviour and the effectiveness of models. Application is challenging because human behaviour varies widely due to individualistic differences, biases, context and social interactions. Simply said, it is hard to translate behaviour into 'ones' and 'zeroes'. In this course, we take on this challenge.

The assessment of this course consists of two parts. Both grades make up 50% of the final grade and are registered separately in Osiris. Both parts must be graded with a minimum of 5.5. Once registered, the results are transferable to the next academic year. The average final grade is at least 5.75.

1. An individual digital exam - existing of open questions in ANS - assesses the acquired knowledge on behaviour in transitions. Model exam questions plus answers - will be provided at the start of the course. There is a resit possibility in Q4.

2. A group assignment in pairs results in a written report on a behavioural analysis. Students work on this assignment throughout the course during workshops. A detailed description of the assignment, plus the assessment form, will be provided at the start of the course. When a pair receives a grade lower than 5.5., they get one repair option to a maximum of 6. If they fail again (<5.5), they can hand in a new assignment - on a new topic - in Q4.