Giving Incentives Their Due

“I’ve written often about how the use of financial incentives could result in unfair cost shifting, victim blaming, and generally evoking more harm than good. In 1992 I wrote the first of many articles on the foibles of “risk-rating” — what is now, errantly, referred to as “outcomes-based incentives.” I take no satis-faction in having foretold the dark side of incentives, given how poised the health promotion field seems to be for rapid learning in the smart use of incentives. Given maturation finally seems afoot, I find myself at odds with my respected editor, Dean Witherspoon, who pans incentives as “bribes and coercion.” In the last issue of Well-Being Practitioner, Dean’s article on a “common sense” well-being model held that “you really don’t care who or how many people sign up for your wellness pro-gram.” That makes little sense to me.”

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