We are CINCO - a pioneering behavioral insights unit at the Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services, established in 2023. Our mission is to assist policymakers in finding creative solutions to policy challenges by applying tools from behavioral sciences.
There is a frequent gap between government policy formulation and the actual behavior of individuals. Often our intentions do not align with effective actions.
Instead of expecting people to completely reorganize their lives around government policies, our approach promotes a behavior-centered design, which considers human habits, their needs, and their surrounding environment. The goal of CINCO is to support the development of high-impact policies, striving to make public services simpler, more accessible, transparent, and more efficient.
Behavioral insights units around the world have been aiding government agencies in designing and implementing policies that better suit the needs of both users and implementers. This has been achieved through evidence-based approaches, yielding better outcomes, equity, and optimized resource allocation.
Our work at CINCO involves understanding the problems, the nature of services and solutions offered by the government from the perspective of those directly involved: Users and service providers at the forefront. These inputs may impact the redesign of public policies through a process that encompasses several steps, such as (1) identifying behaviors; (2) exploring barriers, enabling factors, and formulating insights; (3) generating ideas for behavioral interventions; (4) testing and refining interventions, and eventually (5) evaluating outcomes and scaling successful approaches.
In practice, it means promoting initiatives to simplify processes, improve communication, eliminate unnecessary steps, and encourage desirable behaviors. These are small changes that can yield significant results in the formulation and implementation of innovative public policies.
