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The Cobra Effect: why smart people pay for the wrong thing
Why paying for results so often backfires: Delhi's cobras, Hanoi's rat catchers, a bank's fake accounts, and the question that catches it in ten seconds.
Why fines backfire: the daycare that made parents later
A daycare fined parents who came late and got more late parents. What a fine, a fee or a payment can quietly switch off, and how to keep it on.
Why a bigger bonus can make you worse at your job
Researchers in India offered villagers up to a month's spending to win simple games. What the biggest prize did, and when big rewards help or hurt.
When pay for performance works: the windshield test
One company paid installers per windshield and output rose about 44 percent. Why it worked when bounties, fines and big bonuses backfired.