Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions

Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions
by Dan Ariely

Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions
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Book Summary Information

Author: Dan Ariely
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Format: Roughcut
Published: 2008-02-19
ISBN: 006135323X
Number of pages: 304
Publisher: HarperCollins

Book Reviews of Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions

Book Review: Important book but full of inexact/misinformed thinking
Summary: 3 Stars

This book covers an important topic -- humans seem to make systematic and therefore predictable errors and Dan Ariely attempts to flesh out some of these types of errors. Most of this will be things you know intuitively but it's all VERY interesting -- I promise.

The book loses stars for the authors exceptionally poor understanding of economics. Ariely claims economics assumes all actors are perfectly rational -- simply not true. One chapter discusses problems of will power and saving money. Ariely proceeds with the notion that saving money is in fact the most rational thing to do. He fails to account for the pervasive monetary inflation in the United States which makes the most rational course of action to trade your declining-in-value assets (dollars) for hard goods which (hopefully) will not decline in value (like real estate). People do not sit down and make rational decisions about inflation -- but they *DO* understand intuitively that a dollar today is worth 90c in a few years, and 50cents in 20 years. Spending every penny you can get your hands on *IN FACT* is the most rational thing to do in an inflationary economy.

I also found this book to be lacking in scientific rigor, but do not let me dissuade you, its a good read and well worth the price.

Summary of Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions

  • Why do our headaches persist after taking a one-cent aspirin but disappear when we take a 50-cent aspirin?
  • Why does recalling the Ten Commandments reduce our tendency to lie, even when we couldn't possibly be caught?
  • Why do we splurge on a lavish meal but cut coupons to save twenty-five cents on a can of soup?
  • Why do we go back for second helpings at the unlimited buffet, even when our stomachs are already full?
  • And how did we ever start spending $4.15 on a cup of coffee when, just a few years ago, we used to pay less than a dollar?

When it comes to making decisions in our lives, we think we're in control. We think we're making smart, rational choices. But are we?

In a series of illuminating, often surprising experiments, MIT behavioral economist Dan Ariely refutes the common assumption that we behave in fundamentally rational ways. Blending everyday experience with groundbreaking research, Ariely explains how expectations, emotions, social norms, and other invisible, seemingly illogical forces skew our reasoning abilities.

Not only do we make astonishingly simple mistakes every day, but we make the same types of mistakes, Ariely discovers. We consistently overpay, underestimate, and procrastinate. We fail to understand the profound effects of our emotions on what we want, and we overvalue what we already own. Yet these misguided behaviors are neither random nor senseless. They're systematic and predictable-making us predictably irrational.

From drinking coffee to losing weight, from buying a car to choosing a romantic partner, Ariely explains how to break through these systematic patterns of thought to make better decisions. Predictably Irrational will change the way we interact with the world-one small decision at a time.

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