Why big ideas fail to scale—and how to fix it with John List (Ep. 87)
Economist discusses the secrets of using science to scale promising social programs.

Solving problems like poverty, education inequality or discrimination require policy interventions that can scale, but they rarely do. Why do some scale, while others have little success? It's not luck, it's not skill, it's actually a scientific method—at least, that's how Prof. John List describes it.

A world-renowned economist at the University of Chicago, List has helped scale some big policies and technologies as a former White House chief economist and the chief economist for both Uber and Lyft. Through his experience, he's observed a thing or two about what not to do.

In his new book, The Voltage Effect: How To Make Good Ideas Great And Great Ideas Scale, List lays out five key factors that people should consider when thinking through any idea, policy or product. He explains how shifting from policy-based evidence to evidence-based policy can solve some of the world’s more pressing issues.

Show notes, related links and full transcript: https://news.uchicago.edu/why-big-ide...

Listen / Subscribe to Big Brains on...

The Web: https://news.uchicago.edu/podcasts/bi...
Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0...
Apple Podcasts: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b...
Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/uchi...
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2uYYyD1...

Have a great idea for a Big Brains podcast episode? Pitch it to us: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FA...

➡ Subscribe: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGOytSubscribe

About #UChicago:
Since its founding in 1890, the University of Chicago has been a destination for rigorous inquiry and field-defining research. This transformative academic experience empowers students and scholars to challenge conventional thinking in pursuit of original ideas.

#UChicago on the Web:
Home: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-homepage
News: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-news
Facebook: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-FB
Twitter: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-TW
Instagram: http://bit.ly/UCHICAGO-IG

University of Chicago on YouTube:
   / uchicago  

***

ACCESSIBILITY: If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please email [email protected].