David Hagmann
| hagmann@ust.hk | |
| 2358 6356 | |
| LSK5053 | |
| Website | |
| @davidhagmann |
David Hagmann
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AREAS OF EXPERTISE
Behavioral Economics, Behavioral Public Policy, Experimental Economics
SHORT BIO
David’s research draws on experimental tools from psychology and economics to study how people engage with information and how this impacts their decisions. Errors in information processing can have large societal implications, including systematic discrimination against minority groups. His work finds that people actively avoid information, even when it could help them make better decisions. When people are unwilling to engage with opposing views, this can exacerbate conflict. David’s research shows that sharing self-revealing personal stories can reduce distrust and promote collaboration among people with different views.
David also examines how information can be used strategically to undermine collective action. His research shows that when people learn about “nudges”—small interventions designed to influence behavior without altering economic incentives—they often perceive them as "quick fixes" and become less supportive of more costly but impactful systemic reforms. Similar distractions arise when responsibility for systemic problems is shifted to individuals. For instance, campaigns that encourage individual actions to address systemic problems (such as reducing air travel to combat climate change) may unintentionally weaken public support for the broader structural changes needed.
Prior to joining HKUST, David was a Fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He received his PhD from the Department of Social and Decision Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University and was a visiting scholar at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
SELECTED PAPERS & PUBLICATIONS
- Hagmann, David, Emily Ho, and George Loewenstein. “Nudging Out Support for a Carbon Tax.” 2019. Nature Climate Change 9 (1): 484–489. - Honorable Mention for the Behavioral Science and Policy Association, 2022 Best Paper Award
- Hagmann, David, Yi-tsen Liao, Nick Chater, and George Loewenstein. “Costly Distractions: Focusing on Individual Behavior Undermines Support for Systemic Reforms.”
- Hagmann, David, Julia A. Minson, and Catherine Tinsley. Forthcoming. “Personal Narratives Build Trust Across Ideological Divides.” Journal of Applied Psychology.
- Minson, Julia A., David Hagmann, and Kara Luo. “Beyond Persuasion: Improving Conversational Quality Around High-Stakes Interpersonal Disagreements.”
- Golman, Russell, David Hagmann, and George Loewenstein. 2017. “Information Avoidance.” Journal of Economic Literature 55 (1): 96–135.
- Ho, Emily, David Hagmann, and George Loewenstein. “Measuring Information Preferences.” 2021. Management Science 67 (1): 126–145.
