This is a field I've been interested in for some time. Over the years, I can think of several books I've read that are generally related to behavioral science. These include the Freakonomics trilogy of books: Freakonomics, Superfreakonomics, and Think Like A Freak, by economists Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner. (In the past year I've also become a regular listener to the Freakonomics podcast, which has kept me interested during thousands of miles of travel.)
I'd also include the books The Tipping Point and Blink by Malcolm Gladwell in that list. Those books are more about social science, but they provide real insight about way people behave the way they do.
The most recent book I've read is called Thinking, Fast And Slow by Daniel Kahneman, who previously won a Nobel Prize in Economics. I thought the book would be good, but it was better than good. It was a tour-de-force about how our brain works, and the many biases that affect it.
How the brain works is basically a matter of two 'systems' that Kahneman called System 1 (instinctive and emotional) and System 2 (deliberative and logical). But after a few chapters about the science of that, the rest of the book focuses on psychological aspects of thinking -- the cognitive biases. These include terms / effects like loss aversion, framing, anchoring, overconfidence, and sunk-cost theory.
Once you read about what these biases are and how they affect thinking, it becomes clear how economic / financial decisions (or are they gambles?) are made and why. This is a good thing to know for me, both personally and professionally.
Thinking, Fast And Slow by Daniel Kahneman. Read it. Or don't, then I'll use it to my advantage.
The most recent book I've read is called Thinking, Fast And Slow by Daniel Kahneman, who previously won a Nobel Prize in Economics. I thought the book would be good, but it was better than good. It was a tour-de-force about how our brain works, and the many biases that affect it.
How the brain works is basically a matter of two 'systems' that Kahneman called System 1 (instinctive and emotional) and System 2 (deliberative and logical). But after a few chapters about the science of that, the rest of the book focuses on psychological aspects of thinking -- the cognitive biases. These include terms / effects like loss aversion, framing, anchoring, overconfidence, and sunk-cost theory.
Once you read about what these biases are and how they affect thinking, it becomes clear how economic / financial decisions (or are they gambles?) are made and why. This is a good thing to know for me, both personally and professionally.
Thinking, Fast And Slow by Daniel Kahneman. Read it. Or don't, then I'll use it to my advantage.
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