Step 3: Use Evidence for Better Outcomes

This section offers an inventory of successful interventions that may be relevant for your work. Use them to replicate evaluative practices, learn about how they improved policy outcomes, and consider the role of behavioral science in your practice.

Identifying & Adapting Evidence Based Programs

This guide helps you identify what works and adapt it for your city.

Identifying & Adapting Evidence Guide

Identifying & Adapting Evidence - Completed Example

Replication Guides and Case Studies

These worksheets are designed for you to try running the evaluation in your city.

Must Read: Replication Guides Overview (BIT)
A collection of resources designed by The Behavioral Insights Team to provide cities with step-by-step guidance for adapting & adopting successful evaluation projects and trials conducted in the WWC network. In this suite of replication guides, you will find examples from cities unpacking what these evaluations can look like along with detailed instructions on how to administer similar efforts in your city.

Landlord Rental Unit Registration Letters - Newark, NJ
This trial encouraged landlords to register their rental units. Use this worksheet to develop your city’s Trial Protocol – the document that will guide your evaluation.

Text Messaging for 211 Services - Tulsa, OK
This trial encouraged residents at risk of eviction to call a helpline. Use this worksheet to develop your city’s Trial Protocol – the document that will guide your evaluation.

Email Reminders for Waste Disposal Compliance - Charlotte, NC
This trial reminded resident’s of their scheduled heavy trash pickup appointments. Use this worksheet to develop your city’s Trial Protocol – the document that will guide your evaluation.

Mailing Inserts to Increase Paperless Billing Uptake - Scottsdale, AZ
This trial encouraged residents to sign up for paperless billing. Use this worksheet to develop your city’s Trial Protocol – the document that will guide your evaluation.

Evidence on Economic Mobility

See how 9 different US cities used evaluation and improved economic mobility

Detroit: Helping Affordable Housing Residents Achieve Financial Stability

Newark: Prioritizing affordable housing

New Orleans: Paving the way to promising careers

Racine: Helping residents get the credentials they need for high mobility jobs

Rochester: Incentivizing savings to boost financial stability

Dayton: Improving the promise of preschool for all young learners

Cincinnati: Tackling business challenges by adopting inclusive practices

Tulsa: NextUp helps young people take the next step

Lansing: BOLD partnership emboldens Lansing students

Behavioral Science Resources

Rooted in behavioral science, these tools can help you brainstorm ways to shift resident behavior and create interventions to test.

Must Read: Behavioral Insights for Cities Report (BIT)
This report is a celebration of the city, a review of what we’ve learned from over 25 applied behavioral insights projects in cities as different as Chattanooga, San Jose, Louisville, and Denver, and food for thought on how these insights might be applied to improve government and its services next.

EAST Report (BIT)
A simple, pragmatic framework for applying behavioral science to policy: the EAST framework. EAST stands for Easy, Attractive, Social and Timely. Though we do not claim that EAST is a comprehensive summary of all there is to know about behavioral science, we do think that for busy policymakers, the EAST framework is an accessible, simple way to make more effective and efficient policy.

EAST Communication Design Checklist (BIT)
This 1 page checklist can help you easily integrate behavioral science in your next letter, email, SMS, or other communication.