Nudge: The Final Edition
Ratings73
Average rating3.7
I don't need a new book to read, but this just looked so interesting. During the introduction, the authors bring in the concept of Libertarian Paternalism, which they are going to define and recommend during the course of the book. I'm skeptical, yet interested.
I was torn on whether to give this 3 or 4 stars. I had already read Thaler's other books so much of this was not new. That said I would recommend it to someone who had not yet read his work, particularly if you are a decision architect.
All about how to make it easier for people to make decisions beneficial to themselves, without telling them what to do. Might sound dull, but lots of applications in everyday life, so an interesting read.
Basically, if you've read “Thinking Fast and Slow,” you don't need to read this book.
It's mostly a catalogue of ways that biases and pre-suggesting can change outcomes. Not really especially memorable or super insightful, but I think that this impression is more a result of the breezy, friendly, optimistic tone it has.
It might be suitable for high school students, or perhaps a college freshman class.
Maybe.
I found the examples dated. The world of the early 2000s seems very strange now.
I thought it was about improving personal decision making skills. But it's more about designing choice architecture for other people. It's more useful for policy makers & businesses.
First 100 pages were interesting but after that, the examples were irrelevant and difficult to read. Also, concepts were heavily repeated and some chapters felt out of place.
The practical(*) side of [b:Thinking, Fast and Slow 11468377 Thinking, Fast and Slow Daniel Kahneman http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1317793965s/11468377.jpg 16402639]. This is what the future should be like: recognizing that there is just Too Damn Much for us all to know, and that proper Choice Architecture can help us.The (*) asterisk next to “practical” is, alas, due to unfortunate realities in the USA. It may be a while before our dysfunctional government accepts these realities. Thankfully other countries are more intelligent.
I know what I should call myself now, Libertarian Paternalist! Not too liberal, not too restricting and most importantly, non-manipulative!
I like the book and I like the idea of nudging people into better decisions.
... and yet in Iran, we are far from nudging. Government and private sector alike (though in different directions) are shoving people into decisions, which are not necessarily good for them.
3.5 stars - I wouldn't recommend you go out and read it, but it's not complete trash either.
The book covers the concept of nudges - how small changes to the way people are presented choices will change their decisions. The key point being you aren't removing the ability to choose or removing certain choices, just the way they are presented.
E.g. adding health warnings to cigarette packs or making organ donation opt-out rather than opt-in.
However the book also does a lot of pondering on the way American society could be improved by these nudges (e.g. healthcare) and even gets side tracked onto the topic of changing how marriage works.
As a non-American and non-politician, a lot of this felt irrelevant to me. The authors made good suggestions but at the same time they're just telling me things that I'm not going to be able to do anything about anyway.
It's also a bit dated. At one point the authors make a joke that women in Sweden were more likely to choose a portfolio because the authors' wives are organised (idk, some sort of stereotype about women? Felt weird to read).
Originally posted at www.emgoto.com.
I think this is one of those books that is slightly overrated. It is often touted as seminal work in the world of behavioral economics. It, however, doesnt delve into the underpinnings of human cognition to the extent that I would have liked. Yes, there are plenty of example for you to fill in the blanks in but it doesnt do it justice in terms of why things are the way they are and how/why we allowed it to get to this point.