Published
Revised and Expanded Edition
by Harper Perennial (2010)
Paperback
384 pages
Buy your own
Amazon
Book Depository
Ratings
Content: ★★★★
Cover: ★★★★★
Summary
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.
Revised and Expanded Edition
by Harper Perennial (2010)
Paperback
384 pages
Buy your own
Amazon
Book Depository
Ratings
Content: ★★★★
Cover: ★★★★★
Summary
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.
I consider myself a very experienced reader, having read multiple hundred books in my 18 years. Usually that gives me a certain degree of knowledge; it gives me something to compare my experience against.
Reading this book was something entirely new. Not only is it nonfiction, a genre which I seldom read, but it is also about Economics, Sociology, and Business, topics I have very little knowledge about. Although it sounded interesting, I was expecting it to be boring and dreary, but I am happy to say I was pleasantly surprised.
I recommend this book to everyone. It is such an insight into our lives, exploring why we act the way we act instead of rationally. Ariely puts forward a theory, which he successfully—at least as far as I am concerned—backs up with experiments and observations throughout the book. He believes that everybody acts irrationally, but predictably so. Meaning that although our actions might not make sense in principle, they are still consistent and therefore to be expected.
Predictably Irrational is such an eye opening book for this very reason. It calls to attention that we don't know ourselves quite as well as we believe. It deals with everything from the placebo effect to our ingrained need to keep all our options open at whichever cost, then teaches us how to overcome our absurd behavior.
I recognized so many things about myself in this book, which made me very interested in finishing it. This, I think, makes Predictably Irrational a great introduction into this genre. I love connecting with the characters in the novels that I read, and this book has that to a certain extent. It also got me interested in reading more of his books, as well as other non-fiction, informative books.
Perhaps, after reading what I wrote above, you are wondering why I did not give this book five stars. I am not entirely sure my rating is proper. I deducted one star because I didn't have any of my "I-love-this-book" symptoms: it took me a few days to finish, it sometimes made me sleepy, and I am not utterly obsessed with reading reviews and talking about it.
This genre is entirely different from the ones I usually read, so I don't know if I have a good enough reason to take off one star, but until I get more experience in this genre, it will have to do. However, I acknowledge that perhaps it just isn't my type of book, and people that proactively seek this type of book might, in all likelihood, love it.
Still, like I said before, I think everyone should give it a try. Ariely's writing might just win you over, and what he has to say is unquestionably worth the read.
Do you think you will add Predictably Irrational to your TBR?
Reading this book was something entirely new. Not only is it nonfiction, a genre which I seldom read, but it is also about Economics, Sociology, and Business, topics I have very little knowledge about. Although it sounded interesting, I was expecting it to be boring and dreary, but I am happy to say I was pleasantly surprised.
I recommend this book to everyone. It is such an insight into our lives, exploring why we act the way we act instead of rationally. Ariely puts forward a theory, which he successfully—at least as far as I am concerned—backs up with experiments and observations throughout the book. He believes that everybody acts irrationally, but predictably so. Meaning that although our actions might not make sense in principle, they are still consistent and therefore to be expected.
Predictably Irrational is such an eye opening book for this very reason. It calls to attention that we don't know ourselves quite as well as we believe. It deals with everything from the placebo effect to our ingrained need to keep all our options open at whichever cost, then teaches us how to overcome our absurd behavior.
I recognized so many things about myself in this book, which made me very interested in finishing it. This, I think, makes Predictably Irrational a great introduction into this genre. I love connecting with the characters in the novels that I read, and this book has that to a certain extent. It also got me interested in reading more of his books, as well as other non-fiction, informative books.
Perhaps, after reading what I wrote above, you are wondering why I did not give this book five stars. I am not entirely sure my rating is proper. I deducted one star because I didn't have any of my "I-love-this-book" symptoms: it took me a few days to finish, it sometimes made me sleepy, and I am not utterly obsessed with reading reviews and talking about it.
This genre is entirely different from the ones I usually read, so I don't know if I have a good enough reason to take off one star, but until I get more experience in this genre, it will have to do. However, I acknowledge that perhaps it just isn't my type of book, and people that proactively seek this type of book might, in all likelihood, love it.
Still, like I said before, I think everyone should give it a try. Ariely's writing might just win you over, and what he has to say is unquestionably worth the read.
Do you think you will add Predictably Irrational to your TBR?