Whether or not they realise it, the Japanese designers of these towels are employing a technique called 'nudging'.

Coined by American college professors Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein, nudging is the practice of guiding people's choices on a subconscious level.

Though controversial, some experts see it as a way to positively influence people's behaviour for the better without threatening punishment.

One of the most famous examples comes from Amsterdam in the Netherlands. In 2003, the city's airport had a problem: the men's bathrooms were in need of constant cleaning because men were not aiming for the urinal bowl.

Instead of imposing a fine for such behaviour, airport officials decided to try a different tactic. Tiny images of flies were etched into the urinal bowls. With something for men to aim at when they urinated, spillage and cleaning costs were reduced by 80 per cent.

Nudging has also been used to improve the environment. In Britain and the United States, for instance, some local governments give restaurant vouchers to people who recycle a certain amount of items. Although this means people are recycling for the immediate reward rather than out of environmental consciousness, at least they are recycling.

One local green activist says Hong Kong could benefit if similar nudging tactics were used in environmental legislation.

The Hong Kong government tends to create schemes without providing citizens with enough incentive to follow them, says Mike Kilburn, an environmental programme manager at Civic Exchange.

For instance, Mr Kilburn says, the government recently spent HK$3 billion in subsidies for truck drivers to get them to upgrade their vehicles to cleaner, more environmentally-friendly ones.

However the take-up rate on this initiative is less than 10 per cent, largely because there is no economic incentive for drivers to spend more for these new vehicles.

School principals have used nudging techniques for decades. In some school cafeterias in Hong Kong, healthy food such as fruit and yoghurt is placed before junk food in the lunch line. Studies have shown that students will more frequently reach for the healthy food if it's the first thing they see.

Plate sizes in the United States are also shrinking to help people eat less: studies have shown that the bigger the plate, the more people eat. But this knowledge works both ways; at the other end of the spectrum, many fast food restaurants offer 'super value' meals which may encourage you to buy more food than you really want.

Critics of nudging call it a euphemism for 'social engineering', or brainwashing mass audiences to perform and think a certain way.

However, the authors of Nudge say there is a distinct difference: choice. For nudging to be socially beneficial, instead of harmful, Professor Thaler says people must be able to choose not to do what they are nudged into.

Which means, as unhealthy as it may be, it's important that school cafeterias make junk food available as well as healthier options.

Reading comprehension

1 In this article, what does 'nudging' mean?

a. to push gently

b. to elbow someone

c. to influence subconsciously

d. to get someone's attention on MSN

2 How do some restaurants nudge people to order more food than they want?

a. serve each course on several small plates

b. serve food on bigger plates

c. offer 'super value' meals

d. increase portion sizes

3 Why are bath towels being given out in Japan?

a. to prevent water dripping in the bathroom

b. to improve poolside etiquette

c. to encourage people to measure their waists

d. to swat flies

4 ... were drawn in the Amsterdam airport urinals.

a. a bullseye mark

b. a number

c. an arrow

d. a fly

Word power

Match the words with their meanings

1 subsidy

2 social engineering

3 euphemism

4 subconsciously

a. when your mind affects your behaviour without you knowing it

b. a polite expression used in place of an unpleasant one

c. manipulating people into behaving a certain way

d. financial assistance provided by the government

Fill in the blanks with the words you have learned

5 Due to high gas prices, the government will spend HK$100,000 on a fuel _______________ for truck drivers.

6 Hitler was accused of using _______________ techniques to turn one race against another.

7 Jon made Maria angry but _______________ she wanted to be his friend.

8 'Passed away' is a _______________ for 'died'.

Language focus

'Instead of' is a conjunction which combines two situations: one which happened and one which did not. Here is an example from the passage:

Instead of imposing a fine, airport officials drew flies in the urinals.

You could also say:

Airport officials drew flies in the urinals instead of imposing a fine.

Combine these sentences using 'instead of'.

1 We didn't rent a movie. We rented a video game.

2 Jeremy didn't take fencing lessons. He took ballet.

3 We didn't buy crisps. We bought crackers.

4 Mum didn't buy me a scarf. She bought gloves.

Think about

1 What are the similarities and differences between nudging and social engineering?

2 Can you think of an example of nudging you have seen recently?

3 How can nudging make people smoke less?

Answers

Reading comprehension: 1. c; 2. c; 3. c; 4. d;

Word power: 1. d; 2. c; 3. b; 4. a; 5. subsidy; 6. social engineering; 7. subconsciously; 8. euphemism;

Language focus: 1. Instead of a movie, we rented a video game. 2. Jeremy took ballet instead of fencing lessons. 3. We bought crackers instead of crisps. 4. Instead of a scarf, mum bought me gloves.