Default Effect
Whatever is pre-selected tends to stay selected; defaults are the strongest tool in behavioural science, with an average effect around d≈0.68, and whoever sets them decides for most people.
An everyday example
Opt-out organ donation countries near 99% consent; opt-in countries below 30%. The same asymmetry runs every pre-ticked box you meet.
What it can cost you
Choices made for you by inertia and implied endorsement; defaults set against your interest.
Warning signs
- I left it as it was.
- I assumed the default was recommended.
One thing to do
Treat every default as a decision someone else made for their reasons; change it once, deliberately, and set your own defaults where you can.
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