Frequency of enforcement vs Severity of punishment – Which is more effective
Texting while driving, jaywalking, littering, not wearing face masks, and neglecting to keep social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic are but a few examples of seemingly negligible violations that accumulate fast, with potentially dire social consequences and therefore must be enforced.
But what would be a more efficient approach to boost deterrence, frequent enforcement with small fines, or sever scarce fining which sets an example.
A research headed by Dr. Kinneret Teodorescu joint with Dr. Ori Plonsky, Prof. Shahar Ayal and Prof. Rachel Barkan shows that first approach was more effective than the second even when the severity of the fine was announced in advance to boost deterrence.
Article in N12 (Hebrew)
Technion Site (Hebrew)
