Positive Friction to Improve Judgment, Decision-making, and Behavior

This online public lecture will be given by Ruth Schmidt of the Institute of Design on the topic, “Positive Friction to Improve Judgment, Decision-making, and Behavior"

Achieving seamless, frictionless experiences, in which taking intended actions is easy and efficient, is usually a desirable design strategy. In many settings, however, the addition of “positive friction”—the insertion of deliberate delays that increase reflection, prevent individuals from resorting to automatic or biased behaviors, or spark opportunities to make unexpected discoveries—can be genuinely beneficial. This may be especially pressing given the recent popularization and availability of AI on a widespread scale, where a lack of friction can lead to deceptive, unintended, and even harmful outcomes. This talk will explore different kinds of positive friction and discuss when, why, and how inserting reflection or pause points can improve judgment, decision-making, and behavior.

This lecture will be moderated by Todd Haugh, ICGE Director, Kelley School of Business.

Lecture date and time: Thursday, 5 February 2026 | 12:00 – 13:00 EDT (18:00 – 19:00 CET)

The public lecture series is organised by the Kelley School of Business Institute for Corporate Governance (ICG+E), in partnership with Ethical Systems and ECGI.