Predictably Irrational, Revised and Expanded Edition: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions

Front Cover
Harper Collins, Apr 27, 2010 - Business & Economics - 384 pages

Why do our headaches persist after we take a one-cent aspirin but disappear when we take a fifty-cent aspirin?

Why do we splurge on a lavish meal but cut coupons to save twenty-five cents on a can of soup?

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

In this newly revised and expanded edition of the groundbreaking New York Times bestseller, Dan Ariely refutes the common assumption that we behave in fundamentally rational ways. From drinking coffee to losing weight, from buying a car to choosing a romantic partner, we consistently overpay, underestimate, and procrastinate. Yet these misguided behaviors are neither random nor senseless. They're systematic and predictable—making us predictably irrational.

From inside the book

Contents

The Truth about Relativity
1
CHAPTER 2
25
The Cost of Zero Cost
55
CHAPTER 4
75
CHAPTER 5
103
CHAPTER 6
119
CHAPTER 7
135
CHAPTER 8
167
CHAPTER 10
199
CHAPTER 11
225
CHAPTER 12
251
CHAPTER 13
271
CHAPTER 14
295
Beer and Free Lunches
309
Thanks
323
Notes
335

Keeping Doors Open
183

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About the author (2010)

Dan Ariely is the James B. Duke Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics at Duke University, with appointments at the Fuqua School of Business, the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, the Department of Economics, and the School of Medicine. Dan earned one PhD in cognitive psychology and another PhD in business administration. He is the founder and director of the Center for Advanced Hindsight. His work has been featured in many outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, and others. He lives in Durham, North Carolina, with his wife, Sumi, and their two creative children, Amit and Neta.

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