When Rules Backfire

The situation is simple. A daycare center has a problem with parents showing up late to pick up their children. Looking to solve the problem, the answer became clear: make a rule!

There’s an often referenced study from Haifa, Israel where economists tested the validity of a strategy that charged a “late fee” for parents who picked their children up from daycare after a certain time. The theory, of course, was that a fee would deter the tardiness. In reality, it backfired horribly. 

Parents came to view the fee as a payment of money that allowed them to be late. 

Tardiness increased with a financial penalty. (This is a bit awkward since we chose to enact late cancel and no show fees during the pandemic when late cancel and no shows were preventing others from having coveted gym space in class.)

Oftentimes the positive intent or “spirit” of a rule is lost and what’s left is a rule without true responsibility. Consider, for example, speed limits aren’t to keep cars going a specific speed but rather to encourage safe driving for example. 

What are areas where you’ve seen rules lose their efficacy somewhere along the way?