Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions

Logic and analysis is how we rationalize our irrational choices in life. Success, I believe, comes from providing that rationale while feeding the irrational.

If you work in any industry that requires reaching out to other people and convincing them to do something they wouldn't otherwise do (and who on LinkedIn doesn't), I think this book is a must-read. In a series of chapters that can quite comfortably be read independently, Ariely lays bear some of the myths of the rational, thinking consumer...the consumer to whom we lay out all of our wonderful arguments and then struggle to understand why they don't see the world the way we do.

At the moment, my main occupation is medical advertising, with a focus on healthcare specialists (less on patients and consumers). These are highly trained medical practitioners who have spent their lives understanding the intricacies of the biological condition. And yet, the amazing thing I've seen is that no matter how many rational arguments I (or my clients) make for the use of a drug, if our promotional efforts fail to touch these specialists at an emotional level, the effort fails.

How could people so highly trained behave so irrationally?

In our case, I believe the chapter in Ariely's book on the fear of making a bad decision...of limiting options...addresses much of what we face in my industry.

For others, it may be the inherent power of "Free" or the little devil that sits on our shoulder telling us that our dishonesty hurts no one.

Gladwell has covered similar topics in his many books, but where Gladwell recounts experiments done by other people, Ariely discusses experiments he himself conducted with colleagues. This adds a layer of conviction to the arguments and a bit of insight that Gladwell can't provide. In that sense, I believe the authors complement each other.

An easy read. An invaluable read."

Interesting insights.

I love science. I love experiments. Just that I didn't know before, until now, that using scientific methods to learn about the irrationality of the human mind could be so much fun! Dr. Ariely takes us for a fun ride touring his various research projects - a common quest to understand how human make decisions and perceive values. When we claim to be using our rational mind in making the best educational choices, we may actually be skewed by our illogical nature and form biased and irrational judgments. Take home message: we have to be vigilant in raising our awareness against what seems to be a natural tendency to irrationality, ah well, even when that is part of being human.

found this book to be fascinating. Even though this is a scholarly work, it is very readable and easily understood. The finding of Mr. Ariely and his associates are well illustrated by an assortment of simple experiments that were conducted at several well respected Universities.

Before I started reading, I felt that I made quite rational decisions and that I was not unduly swayed by advertising and other outside influences. I now suspect that this might not be true. I was surprised to find how much we are all influenced by our surrounding and those around us.

Whether it affects our decision of how long a magazine subscription to select, whether I need a medication or will a placebo suffice, is a free item really free, or even if we have ordered what we truly desire in a restaurant or did we make our choice so it will be different that everyone else at the table.

I was further surprised to find that even our level of honesty can be influenced by a variety of circumstances.

Mr. Ariely does not leave us without hope. He does assure the reader that he can make rational decisions.

I would highly recommend this book to any who are a student of understanding human nature. Now I am wondering how I can use my new found knowledge to get my children to do what I want them to do without them realizing how much I have influenced their decision.