There is a new movement called libertarian paternalism, which is not attractive. Both words are characterised by stereotypes from popular culture and politics that make them unappealing to many. Even worse, the concepts seem to be contradictory.

If the terms are properly understood, both concepts reflect common sense; they are far more attractive together than alone. According to the libertarian strategy, people should be free to do what they like and to opt out of undesirable arrangements if they want to do so. The libertarian paternalists urge that people should be free to choose, and policies are designed to maintain or increase freedom of choice.

The paternalistic aspect lies in the claim that it is legitimate for choice architects to try to influence people's behaviour in order to make people's lives longer, healthier and better. Institutions in the private sector and also the government should make conscious efforts to steer people's choices to improve their lives.

A policy is paternalistic if it tries to influence choices that make choosers better off, as judged by the people themselves. It is a fact that individuals often make pretty bad decisions, decisions they would not have made had they paid full attention and possessed complete information, unlimited cognitive abilities and complete self-control. Libertarian paternalism, however, is a relatively weak, soft and non-intrusive type of paternalism, because it does not force people away from taking bad decisions.