Overcoming status quo bias: Nudging in a government-led digital transformation initiative

© 40th International Conference on Information Systems, ICIS 2019. All rights reserved.While Singaporean citizens are keen on using e-payments in retail shops, they still prefer cash payments in hawker centers and coffee shops, i.e., traditional open-air complexes selling inexpensive cooked food. A government-led initiative seeks to tackle the situation, known as status quo bias. The key actors involved in this initiative are public agencies, the central bank, and a private Singaporean electronic payment service provider. Working with these partners, we investigate the process designed to nudge citizens to use e-payments for micropayments in hawker centers and coffee shops. We employ a design ethnography methodology and adapt an existing nudging framework. Early findings reveal contingency factors that shape the nudging approach. Through this study, we expect to contribute to the theoretical development of nudging theory to overcome status quo bias in government-led digital transformation initiatives.