The friction that makes it hard to access something that in theory is already yours.
Canceling a subscription requires calling by phone during a specific window. A social assistance process asks for the same document three times. Sludge is the unnecessary friction that makes an action harder than it should be, whether through institutional neglect or deliberate design.
A study evaluated what happened when free, hands-on help was offered to complete the U.S. college financial aid form (FAFSA), notoriously long and complex. Low-income applicants who received that help to get past the paperwork friction were significantly more likely to enroll in college the following year, compared with those who only received information about available aid without support to complete the forms.
Administrative friction acts as an invisible tax on accessing a right or benefit. Reducing it doesn't change the benefit itself, but it radically changes how many people manage to access it.
Source: Bettinger, E. P., Long, B. T., Oreopoulos, P. & Sanbonmatsu, L. (2012). The Role of Simplification and Information in College Decisions. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 127(3), 1205-1242.
A government process or a cancellation flow with redundant steps creates a bad experience and, moreover, disproportionately filters out people with less time, less cultural capital, or less ability to push back, exactly the people the service should be most accessible to.
Related concepts
