Money or vouchers beat usual care for healthy behaviour.

The review

1. 01

   Who took part

   The studies tested adults not in treatment: ten on quitting smoking, five on vaccinations or screening, and one on physical activity. All 14 studies that named a location were in the USA.

2. 02

   What they did

   Most studies paid cash or vouchers for the healthy behaviour, and two used deposits that people got back only if they succeeded. The other group got usual care or nothing extra. Smoking programmes lasted from two weeks to two years.

3. 03

   What happened

   Rewards made people about 2.5 times as likely to quit smoking in the first six months, and 1.5 times later. They were about 1.9 times as likely to go to vaccinations or screening, and 1.6 times across behaviours. Some limited evidence showed the gain shrank over time.

What the review found

1. Helped

   Money or vouchers helped more people quit smoking than usual care, when checked within six months.

   • Rule: Get a reward or payment for doing ittested

   Pooled analysis of 8 studies · vs people who got usual care or nothing extra · ⚠ whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited

2. Helped

   Money or vouchers still helped more people quit smoking than usual care, when checked after more than six months.

   • Rule: Get a reward or payment for doing ittested

   Pooled analysis of 6 studies · vs people who got usual care or nothing extra · ⚠ the studies disagreed a lot; whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited

3. Helped

   Money or vouchers helped more people go to vaccinations or screening than usual care did.

   • Rule: Get a reward or payment for doing ittested

   Pooled analysis of 4 studies · vs people who got usual care or nothing extra · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ the studies disagreed a lot; whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited

4. Helped

   Money or vouchers helped people change healthy behaviour more than usual care did.

   • Rule: Get a reward or payment for doing ittested

   Pooled analysis of 15 studies · vs people who got usual care or nothing extra · ⚠ the studies disagreed a lot; whole programmes were tested, so no single part can be credited

Source