Misbelief: What Makes Rational People Believe Irrational Things
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- Author：Dan Ariely
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Summary
The Path to Misbelief has descriptive copy which is not yet available from the Publisher。
Reviews
Sanwal
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Good
Emma
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Not on par with his previous work; it sounded like the author wrote a whole book sprinkled with some vaguely relevant research findings just to defend himself from his haters。 Not impressed。
Simonas
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Mėgiamas autorius ilgai laukiau ir。。。 gavosi panašiai kaip su "Wait but why"。 Ypatingai sudėtingai užvelta， daug filosofinio， o ne tyrimais paremto mąstymo。 Sakyčiau， gera įžanga ir stipri bei optimistiška pabaiga， o pats visos "Misbelief" teorijos dėstymas labai jau suveltas， kartoja tai tą patį per tą patį， tai nuekliauja į lankas。 Meh， kažkaip reikėtų aiškiau。 Mėgiamas autorius ilgai laukiau ir。。。 gavosi panašiai kaip su "Wait but why"。 Ypatingai sudėtingai užvelta， daug filosofinio， o ne tyrimais paremto mąstymo。 Sakyčiau， gera įžanga ir stipri bei optimistiška pabaiga， o pats visos "Misbelief" teorijos dėstymas labai jau suveltas， kartoja tai tą patį per tą patį， tai nuekliauja į lankas。 Meh， kažkaip reikėtų aiškiau。 。。。more
Lili Kim
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There were some interesting points， like covering malicious intent vs。 human fallibility or chance， as well as personality traits vs。 personality states。 However， the book overall seemed a bit drawn out。
Luanne Coachman
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A fascinating and thought provoking analysis of the factors that lead ordinary people into the throes of conspiracy thinking。 Very much like being drawn into a cult， misbelief， AKA conspiracy theorizing， is a way for folks who feel alienated or ostracized from mainstream society to find support， belonging， friendship。 The biggest ， and most challenging， takeaway from this book， for me， was the idea that distancing oneself from someone taken with misbeliefs is about the worst thing you can do if A fascinating and thought provoking analysis of the factors that lead ordinary people into the throes of conspiracy thinking。 Very much like being drawn into a cult， misbelief， AKA conspiracy theorizing， is a way for folks who feel alienated or ostracized from mainstream society to find support， belonging， friendship。 The biggest ， and most challenging， takeaway from this book， for me， was the idea that distancing oneself from someone taken with misbeliefs is about the worst thing you can do if you care about helping them back to a healthier perspective of how the world works。 Instead， extend the hand of friendship and find common ground。 。。。more
Lisa
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So interesting。
Gretta Vosper
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An excellent and "Dan-Ariely-Thorough" exploration of what has caused conspiracy theories to wildly take over the garden。 Ariely leads us through the funnel of disbelief， gently guiding us toward understanding and away from judgement and its not-so-subtle companion， the eye-roll。 Indeed， he challenges us to remain open and in conversation and has inspired me to try just that when next confronted with something so wildly out of the range of the plausible I'd rather just leave the room。 An excellent and "Dan-Ariely-Thorough" exploration of what has caused conspiracy theories to wildly take over the garden。 Ariely leads us through the funnel of disbelief， gently guiding us toward understanding and away from judgement and its not-so-subtle companion， the eye-roll。 Indeed， he challenges us to remain open and in conversation and has inspired me to try just that when next confronted with something so wildly out of the range of the plausible I'd rather just leave the room。 。。。more
Sarah
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A timely， lively， well-structured， and thoughtful exploration of the factors that drive people to become tempted by and enmeshed in conspiracy theories！ Dan Ariely writes from （unfortunate） firsthand experience about the dangers of what he dubs “misbelief”; he’s personally been the subject of vicious conspiracy campaigns on social media branding him as a psychopath and murderer for his work related to COVID-19。 His personal anecdotes were horrifying and made me extra-appreciative of the compassi A timely， lively， well-structured， and thoughtful exploration of the factors that drive people to become tempted by and enmeshed in conspiracy theories！ Dan Ariely writes from （unfortunate） firsthand experience about the dangers of what he dubs “misbelief”; he’s personally been the subject of vicious conspiracy campaigns on social media branding him as a psychopath and murderer for his work related to COVID-19。 His personal anecdotes were horrifying and made me extra-appreciative of the compassion he showed throughout the book: Ariely consistently encourages us not to ostracize and rather to build trust。 Super powerful stuff。The book is structured into 4 main sections: how emotion brings potential misbelievers into the funnel， how cognitive biases strengthen our beliefs， how personality differences affect what we’re susceptible to， and how social pressures make it hard to extricate from an established community of misbelief。 I liked this framework a lot！ In each section， Ariely was thorough in his supporting analysis while maintaining an engaging pace。 He also intersperses helpful tips for dealing with misbelievers throughout。 I appreciated these as someone with a Fox News Dad™️。Overall， I would highly recommend this book！ I think we can all benefit from learning more about misinformation and human psychology， and I thought this book packaged a lot of helpful information in a single place。 It also sparked thought-provoking takeaways for other arenas for me （e。g。 business and relationships）。 Great stuff！ 。。。more
CJ Spear
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This book has left me unsatisfied， but I may have just expected too much。'Misbelief' sits small in the shadow of 'Thinking Fast and Slow'， a book written by the irreproachable Daniel Kahneman。 'Misbelief' is not the culmination of years of work and studies， rather it is Dan Ariely's best attempt to gather the accumulated knowledge of the past few decades of behavioral psychology to create a scientific basis for why people fall into conspiracy theories。 He mentions many cognitive biases and refer This book has left me unsatisfied， but I may have just expected too much。'Misbelief' sits small in the shadow of 'Thinking Fast and Slow'， a book written by the irreproachable Daniel Kahneman。 'Misbelief' is not the culmination of years of work and studies， rather it is Dan Ariely's best attempt to gather the accumulated knowledge of the past few decades of behavioral psychology to create a scientific basis for why people fall into conspiracy theories。 He mentions many cognitive biases and references plenty of studies， but honestly I don't feel that I've learned too much of consequence。The political rise of RFK Jr。 has me thinking a lot about the nature of conspiracies and what motivates people to propagate them。 Sidney Powell， the attorney who spread disinformation about the 2020 election and once vowed to 'release the Kraken' of information that would prove Trump won， is a good example。 She never did release that Kraken。 I knew she wouldn't， and she knew it too because it was a lie。 We know this because her defense in court was that “no reasonable person would conclude that [her] statements were truly statements of fact。” Today she pleaded guilty to this crime and will likely testify against Trump himself in the coming months。 Ever since she first began doing this though I've always wondered why？ She was a successful attorney who didn't need Trump's validation。 Now she has thrown away her career and credibility and will be remembered as a villain of history （even worse， a foolish villain。） She never had a Kraken to release， so why did she say that she did？ Why？'Misbelief' doesn't tackle why the head honchos of conspiracy theories get the ball rolling， but merely why regular individuals believe them。 I， like many others， have been left shell-shocked by the wild turn to conspiracy that so many people took in 2020 and 2021。 This book just doesn't have the scope to cover the entirety of the conspiracy phenomenon。RFK Jr， a longtime vaccine skeptic， is now running for president in 2024 as an independent。 He is much smarter than Sidney Powell and doesn't propagate lies that are so easily disproved。 Right before starting this book I listened to RFK Jr's 3-hour podcast with Joe Rogan and I have to admit that I can't refute most of the claims he made。 He talks about things so far beyond the common man's understanding such as chemical compounds and their effects on the brain， and he cherry picks studies to support a narrative in a way that is difficult to disprove。 He's pretty darn convincing too。 I hoped this book might assist me in processing such information， but it didn't。 Am I just supposed to assume that RFK Jr's wild claims are untrue because everyone else does？ Am I supposed to go back to school and study vaccines for four years just so I can have an educated opinion on the topic？ Am I supposed to trust what pharmaceutical companies like Johnson&Johnson tell me after the Sacklers profited off addicting the nation to opioids for two decades and got away with it？ Why are none of these good options？The most interesting idea I learned from 'Misbelief' is the spectrum of 'Conviction to Intellectual Honesty'。 This wasn't even a full chapter， just an off-hand remark he made。 To be clear， I don't believe any of these conspiracies。 I believe Trump lost， vaccines are safe and effective， birds are real， and that JFK was killed by a wiggly bullet。 And yet， isn't my assumption of these truths a sign of intellectual dishonesty？Intellectual honesty is one's capability to change their mind when presented with new information。 Conviction is one's firmly held principles and beliefs。 The idea of the spectrum is that these two attributes are actually mutually exclusive。 While both are obviously good things， we can't adhere to both all the time。 There is simply too much information and data out there， enough to disprove all the beliefs we hold （if the data is manipulated properly）。 If we all had perfect intellectual honesty then our opinions may change on a daily basis， if not hourly。 With too much conviction we'd commit to believing the Earth is flat even when our own experiments disprove that reality。 We can't have a bunch of folks brimming with conviction yet scant on evidence for any of their beliefs， but we also don't want a country chock-full of spineless， milquetoast wafflers who answer every question with "I don't know， both could be true。 I'm not an expert！" I think I find myself closer to the latter end。 But what can I do when we live in such a subjective reality？ Even so， I choose to trust the institutions that prop up society since burning them down without any plan of replacement seems like a worse option to me。'Misbelief' ends with a chapter on trust and its importance to society。 It is so much easier to sow the seeds of doubt than it is to establish a societal foundation trust。 One man with a magnifying glass can poke holes in a few studies and cause hundreds of thousands to lose faith in something they don't understand。 Or， a government/company can get caught lying to the public and ruin trust that way。 Trust seems so fragile， yet it is the foundation that all society stands upon。The scope of 'Misbelief' is quite narrow。 This entire book should be condensed down into a single chapter of a larger book on conspiracy。 I'm unsatisfied， but I just expected too much。 Much like someone clinging to a conspiracy theory， I'm surrounded by uncertainty and I want someone to explain everything to me。This review has been a little overindulgent， and for that I apologize。 Thanks for reading till the end。 。。。more
Andy Lee
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How can people take his work seriously when he was caught manipulating data for his research？
Ronald Rufrano
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This one was tough for me。。。somewhat interesting， academic but written in an easy to read style complete with personal experiences to highlight points。 I am in the process of finishing it， but I almost quit reading when it dawned on me。。。are we just making highly intelligent excuses for stupid people ？
Rob Nicholson
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The arguments and discussions in this book were lacking strength， and research support （which is expected given there is very little info known about the topic）。 I did find this book enjoyable enough， although it is hard to compete with his previous work， Predictably Irrational。I highly recommend reading Facts and Other Lies by Ed Cooper， before reading this book。 It will provide a good base for the arguments Dan presents in this book （Misbelief）。
Veronika Tait
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Everything you want in a book from Dan Ariely。 Loved it。
John Kaufmann
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Excellent book。 In my mind Dan Ariely hit the mark -- he provided one of the clearest and best explanations for why people believe irrational things that I've seen。 Not only did he explain， why people may fall for an irrational theory -- he also explained why people who adopt one irrational position/theory often adopt a whole constellation of them。 He was not， however， even by his own admission， able to come up with any satisfying means to address the problem， other than to try to catch people a Excellent book。 In my mind Dan Ariely hit the mark -- he provided one of the clearest and best explanations for why people believe irrational things that I've seen。 Not only did he explain， why people may fall for an irrational theory -- he also explained why people who adopt one irrational position/theory often adopt a whole constellation of them。 He was not， however， even by his own admission， able to come up with any satisfying means to address the problem， other than to try to catch people as they first start going down the rabbit whole， and to be gentle about it， not confrontational or demeaning。 Unfortunately， he's probably right about the difficulty of pulling someone out once they gone down the hole。 。。。more
Benas Aukštikalnis
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A book about conspiracy theories and how someone ends up in that path。 I enjoyed the book because it used studies to back up the author's claims。 Also， it has the usual Dan Ariely interesting explaining style which I like。 The only negative is that Ariely is currently being attacked often online for "making up data in a study about dishonesty"。 But this is not addressed in the book。 So I was interested to learn about the situation from his side but sadly he didn't even mention it。 Anyways。 I rea A book about conspiracy theories and how someone ends up in that path。 I enjoyed the book because it used studies to back up the author's claims。 Also， it has the usual Dan Ariely interesting explaining style which I like。 The only negative is that Ariely is currently being attacked often online for "making up data in a study about dishonesty"。 But this is not addressed in the book。 So I was interested to learn about the situation from his side but sadly he didn't even mention it。 Anyways。 I really enjoyed the book。 I would recommend it to anyone wanting to learn what leads others to belive in conspiracy theories。 。。。more
Wayne Woodman
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Excellent look at human personalities through the lens of a social scientist exploring our belief systems。 He really delves into the characteristics that can move us to believe something and why beliefs are so difficult to change。
Jan
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The author has a uniquely personal interest in conspiracy theorists and anti-vaxxers because one day he found himself the target of their scorn， bizarre theories and even death threats。 To his credit， he attempted to reach out to some， both to try to convince them he isn’t part of the Illuminati but also to try to understand why they think the way they do。 It isn’t very productive。 The one person who changes his mind realizing Ariely isn’t some evil cabalist is unwilling to say it to others in h The author has a uniquely personal interest in conspiracy theorists and anti-vaxxers because one day he found himself the target of their scorn， bizarre theories and even death threats。 To his credit， he attempted to reach out to some， both to try to convince them he isn’t part of the Illuminati but also to try to understand why they think the way they do。 It isn’t very productive。 The one person who changes his mind realizing Ariely isn’t some evil cabalist is unwilling to say it to others in his cohort， because he doesn’t want to lose any prestige in their eyes。 The author does an interesting job of putting together a model for how people descend into an embrace of absurd misinformation， going through the emotional， cognitive， personality and social quirks of our thinking that add up to a funnel of misbelief for some people。 It may not all be right， but it’s a valiant and thought-provoking attempt to understand this weird and disturbingly pervasive phenomenon of this age。 。。。more
Jana Bakunina
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Really interesting with lots of food for thought but somewhat limited in how it can help people re-connect with misbelievers in practice beyond trying to find some common ground。 Yes， it’s a start but in reality it can be very difficult。
Gregg
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Dan Airely is better than this。 An internet troll took aim at him。 He responded by writing a book， which he can do given his platform， profession， and successful previous works。 However， he writes in first person and specifically defends his actions and his philosophy。 This book cheapened his previous works。 Airely should have followed the maxim， “never argue with an idiot， they will drag you down to their level and beat you with experience。
Scott Wozniak
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This book is thought provoking--and on a topic that is becoming more and more important: why do we come up with such radically different views on the world， and how do we engage with people who are going down that road？This one was heavier than his other books， but that's entirely because the topic was more personal and more serious。 Some of this was him sharing other people's discoveries on psychology， but a lot of it was original studies by him and his colleagues。 And I got some real insight o This book is thought provoking--and on a topic that is becoming more and more important: why do we come up with such radically different views on the world， and how do we engage with people who are going down that road？This one was heavier than his other books， but that's entirely because the topic was more personal and more serious。 Some of this was him sharing other people's discoveries on psychology， but a lot of it was original studies by him and his colleagues。 And I got some real insight out of it （e。g。 the precursor to believing a conspiracy theory is going through a major trust violation）。I wish none of us needed to read this。 But we all probably do。 It's a big problem and probably going to get bigger。 。。。more
Rhiannon Johnson
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I received a copy of this book from the publisherSometimes I just need to read about how other people are dealing with irrationality and combating the onslaught of misinformation to feel the tiniest bit better about the dumpster fire of the American news cycle。
Andrew Bulthaupt
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I listened to this book via Audible。Misbelief begins with Ariely recounting his experiences in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic when he became a target of accusations relating to his involvement with the response by the government。 It was very crazy to hear what he allegedly did according to these conspiracy theorists， and it sets the stage for the book。Ariely goes step by step in examining the so-called 'funnel of misbelief' whereby a person can go from a normal member of society to a co I listened to this book via Audible。Misbelief begins with Ariely recounting his experiences in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic when he became a target of accusations relating to his involvement with the response by the government。 It was very crazy to hear what he allegedly did according to these conspiracy theorists， and it sets the stage for the book。Ariely goes step by step in examining the so-called 'funnel of misbelief' whereby a person can go from a normal member of society to a conspiracy theorist。 It's scary and fascinating and eye-opening。 It helps explain trends in modern society that we see more and more on social media and in the news。 It certainly makes me glad that I've decided to limit my interaction on social media to the bare minimum， to avoid some of the things that can lead a person into the funnel and become radicalized in one way or another。 It also made me aware of some of my own biases and beliefs and how to be more cognizant of them while making decisions。As seems to frequently be the case with Dan Ariely's books， I heartily recommend Misbelief to anyone and everyone。 Add it to your to-read list today！ 。。。more
Brontedorothy
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Ariely's book often reads like my social psych and cognitive psych textbooks， citing many of the same studies and sources。 Ariely includes enough memoir elements and anecdotes from others to prevent the narrative from becoming too dry。 The book is well-organized and really lays out all facets of the layered cause-and-effect we are experiencing now in attempting to understand "post-truth" America。 Ariely's book often reads like my social psych and cognitive psych textbooks， citing many of the same studies and sources。 Ariely includes enough memoir elements and anecdotes from others to prevent the narrative from becoming too dry。 The book is well-organized and really lays out all facets of the layered cause-and-effect we are experiencing now in attempting to understand "post-truth" America。 。。。more
Cav
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"The journey of this book began with my own experience but it quickly became about a phenomenon that affects all of us。 It led me to venture into research areas that are new for me， such as personality， clinical psychology， and anthropology。 The spread of conspiracy theories and the scourge of misinformation are challenges that reach beyond the realm of social science and exceed the scope of my expertise and the capacity of any single book。。。"Misbelief was an interesting book。 I enjoy reading ab "The journey of this book began with my own experience but it quickly became about a phenomenon that affects all of us。 It led me to venture into research areas that are new for me， such as personality， clinical psychology， and anthropology。 The spread of conspiracy theories and the scourge of misinformation are challenges that reach beyond the realm of social science and exceed the scope of my expertise and the capacity of any single book。。。"Misbelief was an interesting book。 I enjoy reading about mindsets and psychology， and the conspiracy theorist is a fascinating case study into the human condition。 The book is my second from the author， after his 2008 book Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions， which I also enjoyed。 I'll say right up front that this book will likely garner very polarizing reviews。 COVID is a central theme of the book， and I don't think that Ariely covered it in as balanced and nuanced a manner as he should have。 This will likely piss a lot of people off。。。Author Dan Ariely is the James B。 Duke Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke University。 He also holds an appointment at the MIT Media Lab where he is the head of the eRationality research group。 He was formerly the Alfred P。 Sloan Professor of Behavioral Economics at MIT Sloan School of Management。 Dan Ariely: Just as in the other book of his that I read， Ariely writes with an engaging and lively style， and this one shouldn't struggle to hold the reader's attention。 The book opens with a decent intro， and Ariely mentions an email he received that accused him of being part of an Illuminati conspiracy。The quote from the start of this review continues: "。。。Technology， politics， economics， and more play a role in driving and accelerating these problems。 With the advent of advanced AI tools such as ChatGPT and its siblings and the ongoing polarization of everything， it’s hard to see from a societal and structural perspective how we might solve them anytime soon。 What fascinates me—and where I see leverage for positive change—is understanding why people are so susceptible。 Why do we not only believe but actively seek and spread misinformation？ What is the process by which a seemingly rational person begins to entertain， adopt， and then defend irrational beliefs？ Approaching these questions with empathy， rather than judgment or ridicule， is both illuminating and disconcerting。"He lays out the aim of the book in this bit of writing: "。。。In this book， I will use the term misbelief to describe the phenomenon we’re exploring。 Misbelief is a distorted lens through which people begin to view the world， reason about the world， and then describe the world to others。 Misbelief is also a process—a kind of funnel that pulls people deeper and deeper。 My goal in this book is to highlight how anyone， given the right circumstances， can find themselves pulled down the funnel of misbelief。 Of course， it’s easiest to see this book as being about other people。 But it’s also a book about each of us。 It’s about the way we form beliefs， solidify them， defend them， and spread them。 My hope is that rather than simply looking around and saying to ourselves， “How crazy are those other people？，” we will start to understand—and even empathize with—the emotional needs and psychological and social forces that lead all of us to believe what we end up believing。Social science provides us with a valuable set of tools for understanding the various elements of this process and for interrupting or mitigating it。 Much of the research I present in these pages is not new。 I have found myself returning to some of the cornerstones of the field in my quest to shed light on the emotional， cognitive， personality， and social elements that lead people into misbelief。 This isn’t surprising。 After all， a propensity for misbelief is part of human nature。。。"The book mentions many different conspiracy theories; including 9/11， The Denver airport， 5G harm， microchips in vaccines， the faked Moon landing， and many more。 Despite efforts by those on both sides of the political aisle to paint conspiratorial thinking as a partisan "them" issue， it is not， says Ariely， and drops this graph， which breaks down subscription to many different conspiracy theories by political belief: He puts forward some interesting ideas as to what's ultimately responsible for these mindsets。 He unfolds a theory here that includes chronic stress， helplessness， wanting feelings of control， and social pressure; among others。 Ultimately， these factors culminate into what Ariely calls a "funnel of misbelief。"The mechanisms for falling into this funnel are broken into four parts。 In the first， he talks about the emotional elements that contribute to this line of thinking。 In the second， he outlines the cognitive aspects。 In the third， the personality elements， and the fourth: the social elements。What is missing from this insightful writing on the complex machinations of personal psychology is the role of plain old-fashioned human stupidity。 Sure， a lot of what Ariely unfolds here sounds reasonable， and there is much thoughtful analysis， but quite a lot of this mindset can be correlated with a basic lack of intelligence。 Less intelligent people don't understand epistemology and the hierarchy of knowledge， or how to parse data。 They are also probably more susceptible to groupthink （although maybe not）。Ariely mocks many of conspiracy theories' low-hanging fruits， but never acknowleges that there actually are conspiracies。 Sure， we can make fun of David Icke's lizard people， chemtrails， and flat Earthers， but what about the CIA and their attempts at mind control？ Or the US Government's mass collection of internet data and spying on you through your cell phone？？ Those "conspiracy theories" turned out to be true。 Even the humble folks at Reader's Digest published this short list of 12 popular conspiracy theories that turned out to be true in the end。In this list， 11 different theories that turned out to be true are covered。To the above point， some of what Ariely lists here under the umbrella of "conspiracy" is questionable。 His "List of Conspiracy Theories" contains a few items that can only very tenuously be called conspiracy theories。 For example， he lists the theory that COVID-19 was created as a bioweapon in a Chinese or US laboratory。 However， the Chinese were working on gain-of-function research at the Wuhan laboratory。 Grant money for the controversial experiment came from the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases， which is headed by Anthony Fauci。 And while I don't know that it can ever be concluded with certainty that the virus originated in a Chinese lab， it's certainly not an outlandish theory。As mentioned at the start of this review， COVID-19 is a recurring theme of this book。 It probably should not have been， as Ariely did not do a good job in covering it here， IMO。 He lumps all the protestors together under an umbrella of no more than tinfoil-hat wearing nutjobs。 He doesn't seem to realize that sweeping draconian lockdowns， the removal of constitutionally protected basic freedoms， and government overreach are actually things that are valid concerns。 He seems ignorant to the fact that freedom is valuable， and having governments remove your personal freedoms at the stroke of a pen is something that is going to produce a lot of backlash。。。This also doesn't address the complete shit show and SNAFU that the governmental response to the virus ended up being。 Cramming old people into tight quarters in nursing homes， closing small businesses while funneling people into big box stores for restricted hours， marking lines on the floor of grocery stores， and arresting people for paddleboarding alone out in the Ocean are all examples of well-intentioned policies that were either completely ineffectual， or actually damaging and counterproductive。 In my opinion， Ariely should have steered clear of this minefield altogether。 Or failing that; try to see beyond his own narrow scope， and take some of the advice he dishes out here himself。。。Some more of what is covered by Ariely here includes:• The "Funnel" at Work• The "Scarcity" mindset• Martin Seligman's "learned helplessness"• Picking a Villain as a Way to Regain Control• OCD and its role; control• The proportionality bias• Motivated reasoning• The Dunning-Kruger Effect• Alien abductions• Superstitious rituals• Social proof• Cognitive dissonance• Zahavian （or "honest"） Evolutionary signaling********************Misbelief was a decent book that I enjoyed。 While it wasn't without its flaws， there was still some interesting material covered here。I knocked a star off for his unwieldy and obtuse handling of COVID。 He's smart enough to have dealt with that better。。。3 stars。 。。。more
BOOKLOVER EB
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Dan Ariely is a professor of psychology and behavioral economics。 In his book， “Misbelief，” Ariely informs us that various individuals have denounced him for such offenses as siding with government officials who supported mask mandates during the Covid-19 pandemic。 The author analyzes some of the psychological and emotional factors that foster a culture of “misbelief。” People who embrace this culture promulgate conspiracy theories and disparage elected leaders and others with whom they disagree。 Dan Ariely is a professor of psychology and behavioral economics。 In his book， “Misbelief，” Ariely informs us that various individuals have denounced him for such offenses as siding with government officials who supported mask mandates during the Covid-19 pandemic。 The author analyzes some of the psychological and emotional factors that foster a culture of “misbelief。” People who embrace this culture promulgate conspiracy theories and disparage elected leaders and others with whom they disagree。 Although Ariely has written lively and thought-provoking works of non-fiction in the past， this book is slow-going， jargon-filled， and repetitious。 The material he presents could have been summarized in an essay。 Ariely cites numerous studies that will not mean much to the average reader。 The professor suggests that such factors as stress， dissatisfaction with one’s circumstances， a need for control， and a suspicion that our leaders are out to harm us contribute to people’s hostile attitudes。 Most of us know that it is difficult to have a rational conversation with misbelievers。 Ariely urges us not to ostracize them， because doing so will push them farther down into what he calls the “funnel of misbelief。” On the contrary， I think that it is pointless to reason with relatives and acquaintances who make outlandish statements。 It is healthier to stay away from them or resolve （if possible） to avoid provocative issues that will lead to heated arguments。 。。。more
Richelle Moral Government
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Dan Ariely got caught red handed making up data。 It’s hard to know how many of his studies were faked， but it could be all of them。 There’s very little oversight in academia。 And now he’s out with a new book talking about why people believe in misinformation。 You know， like the misinformation he peddles in。 He’s an establishment shill reinforcing the narrative against people who don’t believe the official narrative as conspiracy theorists。 He even paints himself as a victim of misinformation。 It Dan Ariely got caught red handed making up data。 It’s hard to know how many of his studies were faked， but it could be all of them。 There’s very little oversight in academia。 And now he’s out with a new book talking about why people believe in misinformation。 You know， like the misinformation he peddles in。 He’s an establishment shill reinforcing the narrative against people who don’t believe the official narrative as conspiracy theorists。 He even paints himself as a victim of misinformation。 It’s amazing that when people like this are caught they still don’t suffer any consequences and are still able to make money off their books full of lies。 。。。more
Libriar
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This was an interesting book that looks into why people end up believing in conspiracy theories as well as more mundane misbeliefs。 Ariely started the research and writing for this book after he became the target of COVID-19 conspiracy theorists - something that upended his life。 Although the book gets into a bit too much detail for me， most of the chapters were enlightening and also made me reflect on some of my own beliefs and how they were formed。 ARC courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley。
Vlad
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PreviewI find it strange that the title and synopsis makes it sound like he thinks most people are rational to begin with。 You've literally got droves and droves of people who spend half of their day consuming mindless social media content。 Who will immediately believe whatever they see on Facebook， Tik Tok， Instagram or the one news channel they spend 2/3 of their free time watching。 No matter how ridiculous it is。If people were all that rational to begin with， a book like this wouldn't even ne PreviewI find it strange that the title and synopsis makes it sound like he thinks most people are rational to begin with。 You've literally got droves and droves of people who spend half of their day consuming mindless social media content。 Who will immediately believe whatever they see on Facebook， Tik Tok， Instagram or the one news channel they spend 2/3 of their free time watching。 No matter how ridiculous it is。If people were all that rational to begin with， a book like this wouldn't even need to be written。You've got a society of sheep that spend more time worrying about how they can blow the paycheck they just spent 40+ hours earning and what senseless app they want to bounce to next for their minutely dopamine fix。 But hey， that's "rational" people for yah。 Predictably Irrational was pretty good so I'll see how this one fares and I'll probably leave a proper review。Review:This Has NOTHING To Do With Rational PeopleIt turns out what I initially stated above （before the book was released） and in the comments turned out to be true。 The subtitle is complete and utter nonsense。 He says he wonders why "seemingly rational people" believe， actively seek and spread misinformation。 Yet he gives absolutely no criteria for what a rational individual consists of。 Again， just like I stated prior to having read the book， he just labels everyone as "rational"。 Why？！ Well because if you were to ask them， they would say they are。 It's like writing a book titled "Why Smart People Make More Money" and then arbitrarily tossing a blanket over the entire population and labeling everyone "smart"。 What kind of metric is that？？The whole premise of the book is based off this incredibly inaccurate assumption。Imagine fully assuming you could trust everyone just because you know most people would blindly answer "Yes" if you were to ask them if they are trustworthy。He tells a story about how a number of buffoons were online spreading lies about him and then goes on to just randomly attribute these people as being “rational” individuals simply because they are human beings？？ This incident was the sole cause he wrote this book。 His goal is to show how anyone given the right circumstances can be pulled down the funnel of misbelief。He brings up countless of the most absurd conspiracy theories and those who believe them…。and then he turns around and labels these same people as being “rational” individuals。 He says the most common type of misbeliever is the “naive person who has no interest or agenda and just wants to understand the world around them。 They don’t want to invite hate or confusion。 In this regard these people are all of us”。The irony is that that is such a naive view （the author has） in and of itself。 If their goal is truly to try and understand the world then why would they be so eager to spread information at all？ Especially newly formed ideas that have not been rigorously tested。 Why would they cling to their beliefs so vehemently like people cling to their political parties？ Why would they be so focused on spreading information when there is so much more out there that they do not understand at all？ Why are they the loudest proponents of misinformation if all they seek is an understanding of the knowledge？ The First Example:The first example the author lays out is of an emotionally charged stressed out single mom focused on her subjective experience and wanting to be "right" about something。 And it is not a representation of rationality。Women are more subjective than men。 Women are more emotional than men。 Women seek external validation far more than men。 Unhealthy women also like to act like they are the victim rather than ever take responsibility for their life。 Along with all that， Jenny's whole motive for traveling down the conspiracy rabbit hole stemmed from her being butt hurt that her son had to leave the class because he did not follow the rules that were clearly （and fairly） laid out。Jenny didn't like that her son wasn't given special treatment。 Jenny didn't like that the teacher followed the rules set forth to protect ALL students。 Jenny didn't like that her and her son were held accountable for not being prepared。 Jenny didn't like that the teacher put the wellbeing of her entire class above the feelings of her son。Because of this， Jenny spent her time looking up contradicting information in order to make herself feel better about it all。 Essentially her form of coping = seeking validation from others She had an overly subjective perspective， was emotionally AF and was completely incapable of taking accountability for her and her son's actions， yet Dan Ariely labels this woman， "your average rational individual"。There is nothing rational about this grown woman not wanting to accept the fact that rules apply to her offspring too。 The teacher showed Jenny the world doesn't revolve around her and Jenny couldn't take it so she looked for "yes men" online so that she could go back to playing make believe and being the center of everything once again。That is what you get when you deal with people who are so fixated on their insanely limited subjective experience AND like to play the victim。 These are the LEAST rational people around。 There is nothing rational about how Jenny handled her situation and using her as a poster child for a rational individual is outrageously absurd。__________________________The Affects Emotions Play:● Many people don't often know where their feelings are coming from （why they feel the way they do）● We can take a negative feeling and reattribute it to something positive and vice versa● Stress increases the likelihood we will misattribute our emotions● When we experience stress we might attribute it to the wrong cause which leads us down the wrong path to relieving it● A scarcity mindset （financially， time， multitasking， pain， food etc。） is a form of stress that reduces our capacity to reason， think plan and make good decisions。How he can label people completely unaware of this "rational" is beyond me。 On at least some level you must know yourself to know how best to make logical decisions。How clueless do you have to be to not realize that you spend more and make worse purchasing decisions if you go to the grocery store starving？ That you won't be as sharp during your presentation if you only get 2 1/2 hours of sleep？ That asking someone for a favor after they just finished an intense argument full of screaming and flying objects isn't likely to end well for you？ People who can't pick up on these VERY basic and incredibly obvious factors that influence their decision making are very much unaware and irrational people。Even a basic car from the 1930s could tell you when it was not operating at optimal capacity。 If you're a human and can't even do that， then guess what？ Chances are you're operating off a set program。 And it's not one where you are making rational， well thought out decisions。His 2nd Example of a "Rational" Individual1st words out of Eve's mouth: "My friends warned me not to see you because they said you put a spell on me。" 😑😑😑Really now。。。。。in a book about RATIONAL people are we REALLY including someone who fears witchcraft as our shining example of a LOGICAL thinker！？！？？Do you know what the opposite of scientific reasoning is？ Belief in the super natural！！！ The only way he could have picked a WORSE example would be if this lady was locked up in a psych ward for believing she was a teletubby。 After her talk with the author she leaves not even knowing her stance on the matter anymore。 Months pass。 She reaches out to Dan solely to ask for money。 He says no and she gets her feelings hurt and whines that he truly is an evil man。 Highly rational alright 🙄While some of our psychological tendencies that he describes from a scientific standpoint are insightful and good to know， virtually all of the examples he uses to try and support his stance that "absolutely anyone is alarmingly susceptible to becoming a misbeliever" are just horrendous。 （These insights are pretty much the only reason why this book isn't 1 star）Along with the others I previously mentioned， he uses people like "flat earthers" and acts as if they are no different from an actual rational thinker。 Every example he speaks of in this book is of a highly irrational person。This book would have been much better if he hadn't tried to spin the narrative that 1。 most people are rational thinkers 2。 that the examples he uses are of rational people。 Had he just stated the facts/psychological tendencies that we engage in， the book would have had much more credibility， flowed better and have made sense。 Instead， he contradicts himself with every example he uses by citing how irrational people believe irrational things they read online。 I mean who would've guessed？He rates people as "rational" as freely as a child would rate candy as tasting "yummy"。 If they've got a pulse then apparently they are rational。 The subtitle is just a complete lie， and I'm not a fan of lying so I'll have to pass on future books from this author。 The Type of People Actually Discussed in the BookWhat he describes are people who lack self-awareness and are entirely ego driven。 They don't want to understand the reality of things， they want to be "right" so they can feel good about themselves and boost their self-esteem。 It's completely fine （and normal） to （to some degree） share many of the psychological tendencies that he mentions。 But when you find yourself solely operating off these tendencies on autopilot and you fail to understand or see how these tendencies affect your behavior， then how in the world can you be making rational decisions？ That's like saying you're a top tier expert in sports when you don't even know the rules of the game。You can't be a rational decision maker when you don't even understand how your mind works to begin with。 When you want to be right （ego driven） more than you want to simply understand， learn and grow。 Then you can't be thinking rationally。If all you want to do is be "right" than you end up being no different than the child who makes a statement and then immediately blocks out his ears and starts babbling to make sure he can't hear a single word you say。By the time I reached the last 1/5 of the book it all felt incredibly boring。I really enjoyed "Predictably Irrational" （another book of his） when I first read it， but this book was a massive disappointment given his focus on discussing irrational， unaware， ego driven people and acting as if they were rational human beings。 。。。more
Steve
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I loved this book。 Dr。 Ariely frames the discussion around his personal encounters， giving the book a biographic feel and great vibrancy。 The writing is well-paced and from time to time I got to see some of his sense of humor。 Other aspects of the book I loved were: the quotes that Ariely uses to start each chapter; the simple self-complete exercises he includes， and the selection of advice he gives。 The book made me feel that I was having a one-on-one conversation with Ariely。 Thank you to Edel I loved this book。 Dr。 Ariely frames the discussion around his personal encounters， giving the book a biographic feel and great vibrancy。 The writing is well-paced and from time to time I got to see some of his sense of humor。 Other aspects of the book I loved were: the quotes that Ariely uses to start each chapter; the simple self-complete exercises he includes， and the selection of advice he gives。 The book made me feel that I was having a one-on-one conversation with Ariely。 Thank you to Edelweiss and HarperCollins for the digital review copy。 。。。more
Cari
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