A model combination of scientific punctiliousness and popular accessibility.
A reconsideration of the basis of human rationality and the apparently predictable detours from its perfect exercise.
Debut author Stroh attempts to solve a perennial philosophical riddle: Why do otherwise rational actors make egregiously irrational decisions? The author keenly assesses the limitations of the available theories on the subject—cognitive bias, for example—but finds the whole lot of them wanting, too susceptible to counterfactual repudiation and too limited in scope. Stroh ambitiously argues that the only adequate theory will be a comprehensive one that includes a full rendering of the nature of human cognition and draws from neuroscience, economics, evolutionary psychology, and genetics. He calls this Motivational Drive Trait Theory. The author describes the human mind as a combination of inherited, prefabricated circuitry and more elastic neurons that adapt to new experiences and store new information. That neurophysiological complex doesn’t function insularly, but rather in the context of a social ecosystem that presents and reinforces a web of influences not reducible to the rational maximization of interest. For example, a preoccupation with status is a principal catalyst of human motivation, and what counts as status is relative to a specific group dynamic. And while the machinery of each individual mind idiosyncratically develops over time, there are identifiable types into which all individuals fall. This holistic account of human intellection furnishes, according to Stroh, the key to understanding the totality of human behavior, not just consumer decision-making, but also ideological extremism, international affairs, and the rise and fall of civilizations. Stroh’s account is stunningly thorough and philosophically searching. Despite his reliance upon neuroscience for the construction of his theory, he still presents a sophisticated argument in defense of free will. Also, his prose is marvelously lucid considering the technically prohibitive nature of the subject. Some of his conclusions seem shaky—given the extraordinary complexity of the mind as he presents it, one could just as confidently conclude that it must be resistant to meaningful prediction. Nevertheless, this is an intellectually engaging study and a valuable contribution to debates regarding the nature of human behavior.
A model combination of scientific punctiliousness and popular accessibility.Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-648-15530-0
Page Count: 228
Publisher: BookBaby
Review Posted Online: July 6, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our...
A psychologist and Nobel Prize winner summarizes and synthesizes the recent decades of research on intuition and systematic thinking.
The author of several scholarly texts, Kahneman (Emeritus Psychology and Public Affairs/Princeton Univ.) now offers general readers not just the findings of psychological research but also a better understanding of how research questions arise and how scholars systematically frame and answer them. He begins with the distinction between System 1 and System 2 mental operations, the former referring to quick, automatic thought, the latter to more effortful, overt thinking. We rely heavily, writes, on System 1, resorting to the higher-energy System 2 only when we need or want to. Kahneman continually refers to System 2 as “lazy”: We don’t want to think rigorously about something. The author then explores the nuances of our two-system minds, showing how they perform in various situations. Psychological experiments have repeatedly revealed that our intuitions are generally wrong, that our assessments are based on biases and that our System 1 hates doubt and despises ambiguity. Kahneman largely avoids jargon; when he does use some (“heuristics,” for example), he argues that such terms really ought to join our everyday vocabulary. He reviews many fundamental concepts in psychology and statistics (regression to the mean, the narrative fallacy, the optimistic bias), showing how they relate to his overall concerns about how we think and why we make the decisions that we do. Some of the later chapters (dealing with risk-taking and statistics and probabilities) are denser than others (some readers may resent such demands on System 2!), but the passages that deal with the economic and political implications of the research are gripping.
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our minds.Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-374-27563-1
Page Count: 512
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Sept. 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
IN THE NEWS
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.
A helpful guide to working effectively with people from other cultures.
“The sad truth is that the vast majority of managers who conduct business internationally have little understanding about how culture is impacting their work,” writes Meyer, a professor at INSEAD, an international business school. Yet they face a wider array of work styles than ever before in dealing with clients, suppliers and colleagues from around the world. When is it best to speak or stay quiet? What is the role of the leader in the room? When working with foreign business people, failing to take cultural differences into account can lead to frustration, misunderstanding or worse. Based on research and her experiences teaching cross-cultural behaviors to executive students, the author examines a handful of key areas. Among others, they include communicating (Anglo-Saxons are explicit; Asians communicate implicitly, requiring listeners to read between the lines), developing a sense of trust (Brazilians do it over long lunches), and decision-making (Germans rely on consensus, Americans on one decider). In each area, the author provides a “culture map scale” that positions behaviors in more than 20 countries along a continuum, allowing readers to anticipate the preferences of individuals from a particular country: Do they like direct or indirect negative feedback? Are they rigid or flexible regarding deadlines? Do they favor verbal or written commitments? And so on. Meyer discusses managers who have faced perplexing situations, such as knowledgeable team members who fail to speak up in meetings or Indians who offer a puzzling half-shake, half-nod of the head. Cultural differences—not personality quirks—are the motivating factors behind many behavioral styles. Depending on our cultures, we understand the world in a particular way, find certain arguments persuasive or lacking merit, and consider some ways of making decisions or measuring time natural and others quite strange.
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-61039-250-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2014
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