Private Truths, Public Lies: The Social Consequences of Preference FalsificationPreference falsification, according to the economist Timur Kuran, is the act of misrepresenting one's wants under perceived social pressures. It happens frequently in everyday life, such as when we tell the host of a dinner party that we are enjoying the food when we actually find it bland. In Private Truths, Public Lies Kuran argues convincingly that the phenomenon not only is ubiquitous but has huge social and political consequences. Drawing on diverse intellectual traditions, including those rooted in economics, psychology, sociology, and political science, Kuran provides a unified theory of how preference falsification shapes collective decisions, orients structural change, sustains social stability, distorts human knowledge, and conceals political possibilities. |
From inside the book
Results 1-3 of 27
... predicted . We know why and how the East Europeans toppled their communist regimes , even though the fall of the ... prediction . " A shift in public opinion brings to the surface infor- mation that is consistent with the shift , and it ...
... predictions based on perceptions of preference falsification may suffer from a problem absent from historical explanation . Pre- dictions interact with the phenomena they predict . A report that so- ciety is about to erupt may become ...
... predicting the election outcome , whereas the Sandinista - pen condition replicated the highly inaccurate preelection ... predict electoral outcomes will yield mis- leading forecasts unless the respondents feel comfortable expressing ...
Contents
Collective Conservatism | 105 |
The Obstinacy of Communism | 118 |
The Ominous Perseverance of the Caste System | 128 |
Copyright | |
10 other sections not shown