This notion is similar to the one in computer science where defaults are settings or values that are automatically assigned outside of user intervention.
In countries with the opt-in policy, all citizens are automatically considered as non-donors unless they actively register as donors.
In countries with the opt-out policy, all citizens are automatically considered as donors unless they actively seek to be struck from the register.
Potential characteristics that may be observed are demographics, past choices and real-time decisions that a customer makes.
The notion behind the persistent default is that a customer's future choice is best predicted by viewing their past preferences.
By constantly updating the profile of each customer based on live, real-time decisions which the individual makes.
A number of different explanations have been offered for how default setting causes a change in the choice distribution.
If an agent is indifferent or conflicted between options, it may involve too much cognitive effort to base a choice on explicit evaluations.
[10] Evidence supporting this cognitive effort account is provided in the realm of social default effects.
Increasing the number of snacks received as a function of the choice decreased this social default effect.
Under an opt-out policy, in contrast, choosing not to be an organ donor is perceived as morally more deficient.
[13] Alternatively, families may perceive those choosing to be an organ donor under an opt-out system as less committed than those in an opt-in system, and so refuse to allow their relatives organs to be harvested [14] These differences in evaluation might affect the rational choice over these options.