claim: A small group of hyper-persistent consumers, dubbed "nudniks," play a crucial role in market discipline by actively challenging seller misconduct, benefiting all consumers. However, sellers increasingly use big data to identify and neutralize these nudniks, undermining accountability. Arbel calls for legal strategies to protect this vital "nudnik-based activism" and preserve its positive spillovers, shifting focus from mythical contract-readers to these real-world enforcers of market norms.

evidence_quote: [p. 2] 1_Arbel Shapira (Do Not Delete) 5/12/2020 5:51 PM 930 VANDERBILT LAW REVIEW [Vol. 74:4:929 can solve consumer collective action problems, leading to broad market improvements. Second, the Article spotlights a disconcerting development: sellers’ growing usage of big data and predictive analytics allows them to identify specific consumers as potential nudniks and then disarm or avoid selling to them before they can draw attention to sellers’ misconduct. The Article therefore captures an understudied problem with big data tools: sellers can use these tools to shield themselves from market accountability. Finally, the Article evaluates a menu of legal strategies that would preserve the...

citation: Yonathan A. Arbel & Roy Shapira, Theory of the Nudnik: The Future of Consumer Activism and What We Can Do to Stop It, Vanderbilt Law Review (2020).

confidence: machine-linked

limitations: Machine-linked claim. Use the evidence quote and PDF before treating it as a quotation or as a complete statement of the paper's position.


claim: "nudniks" are hyper-persistent consumers with idiosyncratic utility functions who challenge seller misconduct *ex post*, even when costs outweigh benefits, acting where most remain passive.

evidence_quote: [p. 1] 1_Arbel Shapira (Do Not Delete) 5/12/2020 5:51 PM VANDERBILT LAW REVIEW VOLUME 73 MAY 2020 NUMBER 4 ARTICLES Theory of the Nudnik: The Future of Consumer Activism and What We Can Do to Stop It Yonathan A. Arbel* Roy Shapira** How do consumers hold sellers accountable and enforce market norms? This Article contributes to our understanding of consumer markets in three ways. First, the Article identifies the role of a small subset of consumers—the titular “nudniks”—as engines of market discipline. Nudniks are those who call to complain, speak with managers, post online reviews, and file lawsuits. Typified by an idiosyncratic utility function and certain unique personality traits,...


claim: Distinct from passive consumers or pre-purchase focused "shoppers," nudniks are driven by fairness, spite, or ideology, often being derided despite their crucial role.

paper_title: Theory of the Nudnik: The Future of Consumer Activism and What We Can Do to Stop It

evidence_quote: [p. 3] 1_Arbel Shapira (Do Not Delete) 5/12/2020 5:51 PM 2020] THEORY OF THE NUDNIK 931 D. On Optimizing (Rather than Maximizing) Nudnik Behavior ................................................................... 985 CONCLUSION ................................................................................... 986 INTRODUCTION Can consumers hold sellers accountable and enforce market norms? This Article spotlights the disciplinary power of a small subset of consumers, who we dub “nudniks.”1 Nudniks are those consumers who call to complain, complete satisfaction surveys, demand to speak with managers, post detailed online reviews, and file lawsuits. They usually have an innate sense of...


claim: Nudniks act as engines of market discipline, generating positive spillovers by publicly airing grievances, litigating, and creating reviews, thus deterring unfair practices and enforcing market norms benefiting all.

evidence_span: [p. 1] 1_Arbel Shapira (Do Not Delete) 5/12/2020 5:51 PM VANDERBILT LAW REVIEW VOLUME 73 MAY 2020 NUMBER 4 ARTICLES Theory of the Nudnik: The Future of Consumer Activism and What We Can Do to Stop It Yonathan A. Arbel* Roy Shapira** How do consumers hold sellers accountable and enforce market norms? This Article contributes to our understanding of consumer markets in three ways. First, the Article identifies the role of a small subset of consumers—the titular “nudniks”—as engines of market discipline. Nudniks are those who call to complain, speak with managers, post online reviews, and file lawsuits. Typified by an idiosyncratic utility function and certain unique personality traits,...


claim: Their actions solve collective action problems, provide monitoring for sellers, and can compel broad policy changes, enhancing both legal and reputational deterrence for the passive majority.

evidence_span: [p. 2] 1_Arbel Shapira (Do Not Delete) 5/12/2020 5:51 PM 930 VANDERBILT LAW REVIEW [Vol. 74:4:929 can solve consumer collective action problems, leading to broad market improvements. Second, the Article spotlights a disconcerting development: sellers’ growing usage of big data and predictive analytics allows them to identify specific consumers as potential nudniks and then disarm or avoid selling to them before they can draw attention to sellers’ misconduct. The Article therefore captures an understudied problem with big data tools: sellers can use these tools to shield themselves from market accountability. Finally, the Article evaluates a menu of legal strategies that would preserve the...


claim: Firms leverage detailed consumer data to predict complaint likelihood and then disarm nudniks through tailored remedies, by muffling their voices, or by avoiding or "gagging" them.

evidence_quote: [p. 37] 1_Arbel Shapira (Do Not Delete) 5/12/2020 5:51 PM 2020] THEORY OF THE NUDNIK 965 These emerging technological capabilities allow firms not just to identify nudniks early but also to disarm them effectively, an issue that we turn to now. 2. Disarming Nudniks A seller who identifies a nudnik would want to minimize the nudnik’s impact as quickly as possible.149 Sellers have always employed a wide array of disarming tactics, such as settling outside the courthouse, delivering private apologies,150 or offering complimentary services.151 But here as well, big data and predictive analytics are transforming nudnik-disarming tactics. They are doing so along three key dimensions: selective...