Chapter
1
The Truth about Relativity
Why Everything Is Relative—Even When It Shouldn’t Be
Chapter
1
CONtINUeD
Chapter
1
CONtINUeD
Chapter
2
The Fallacy of Supply and Demand
Why the Price of Pearls—and Everything Else— Is Up in the Air
Average prices paid for the various products for each of the five groups of final digits in social security numbers, and the correlations between these digits and the bids submitted in the auction. Range of last two digits of SS number Products Cordless trackball Cordless keyboard Design book Neuhaus chocolates 1998 Côtes du Rhône 1996 Hermitage 00–19 20–39 40–59 60–79 80–99 Correlations* 0.42 0.52 0.32 0.42 0.33 0.33 $8.64 $ 11.82 $13.45 $16.09 $26.82 $29.27 $12.82 $16.18 $15.82 $9.55 $10.64 $12.45 $8.64 $14.45 $12.55 $11.73 $22.45 $18.09 $21.18 $26.18 $34.55 $55.64 $19.27 $30.00 $13.27 $20.64 $15.45 $27.91 $24.55 $37.55
*Correlation is a statistical mea sure of how much the movement of two variables is related. The range of possible correlations is between -1 and +1, where a correlation of 0 means that the change in value of one variable has no bearing on the change in value of the other variable.
Chapter
5
The Influence of Arousal
Why Hot Is Much Hotter Than We Realize
Table 1 RaTe The aTTRacTiveness of DiffeRenT acTiviTies
Question Are women’s shoes erotic? Can you imagine being attracted to a 12-year- old girl? Can you imagine having sex with a 40-year- old woman? Can you imagine having sex with a 50-year- old woman? Can you imagine having sex with a 60-year- old woman? Can you imagine having sex with a man? Could it be fun to have sex with someone who was extremely fat? Could you enjoy having sex with someone you hated? If you were attracted to a woman and she proposed a threesome with a man, would you do it? Is a woman sexy when she’s sweating? Is the smell of cigarette smoke arousing? Would it be fun to get tied up by your sexual partner? Would it be fun to tie up your sexual partner? Would it be fun to watch an attractive woman urinating? Would you find it exciting to spank your sexual partner? Would you find it exciting to get spanked by an attractive woman? Would you find it exciting to have anal sex? Can you imagine getting sexually excited by contact with an animal? Is just kissing frustrating? Nonaroused 42 23 58 28 7 8 13 53 Aroused Difference, percent 65 46 77 55 23 14 24 77 55 100 33 96 229 75 85 45
19 56 13 63 47 25 61 50 46 6 41
34 72 22 81 75 32 72 68 77 16 69
79 29 69 29 60 28 18 36 67 167 68
Chapter
5
CONtINUeD
RaTe The likelihooD of engaging in immoRal behavioRs like DaTe Rape (a sTRicT oRDeR of seveRiTy is noT implieD)
Question Would you take a date to a fancy restaurant to increase your chance of having sex with her? Would you tell a woman that you loved her to increase the chance that she would have sex with you? Would you encourage your date to drink to increase the chance that she would have sex with you? Would you keep trying to have sex after your date says “no”? Would you slip a woman a drug to increase the chance that she would have sex with you? Nonaroused Aroused Difference, percent
55
70
27
30
51
70
46 20
63 45
37 125
5
26
420
Table 3 RaTe youR TenDency To use, anD ouTcomes of noT using, biRTh conTRol
Question Birth control is the woman’s responsibility. A condom decreases sexual pleasure. A condom interferes with sexual spontaneity. Would you always use a condom if you didn’t know the sexual history of a new sexual partner? Would you use a condom even if you were afraid that a woman might change her mind while you went to get it? Nonaroused Aroused Difference, percent 44 78 73 29 18 26
34 66 58
88
69
22
86
60
30
Chapter
10
The Power of Price
Why a 50- Cent Aspirin Can Do What a Penny Aspirin Can’t
Word Puzzles Lunike epsoop quinue lefziz frivey quiety nyglik yennit rancor tuppil bewolb raclan rethie svalie berkam
Chapter
11
The Context of Our Character, Part I
Why We Are Dishonest, and What We Can Do about It
Condition 1 Condition 2 Condition 3 Condition 4
Control Self-check Self-check + shredding Self-check + shredding +money jar
= = = =
32.6
Look at your watch, note the time, and start searching for two numbers in the matrix below that will add up to exactly 10. How long did it take you? 1.69 4.67 5.82 6.36 1.82 4.81 5.06 5.19 2.91 3.05 4.28 4.57
List of Collaborators
On Amir On joined MIT as a PhD student a year after me and became “my” first student. As my first student, On had a tremendous role in shaping what I expect from students and how I see the professor-student relationship. In addition to being exceptionally smart, On has an amazing set of skills, and what he does not know he is able to learn within a day or two. It is always exciting to work and spend time with him. On is currently a professor at the University of California at San Diego. Marco Bertini When I first met Marco, he was a PhD student at Harvard Business School, and unlike his fellow students he did not see the Charles River as an obstacle he should not cross. Marco is Italian, with a temperament and sense of style to match—an overall great guy you just want to go out for a drink with. Marco is currently a professor at London Business School. Ziv Carmon Ziv was one of the main reasons I joined Duke’s PhD program, and the years we spent together at Duke justified this decision. Not only did I learn from him a great deal about decision making and how to conduct research; he also became one of my dear friends, and the advice I got from him over the years has repeatedly proved to be invaluable. Ziv is currently a professor at INSEAD’s Singapore campus. Shane Frederick I met Shane while I was a student at Duke and he was a student at Carnegie Mellon. We had a long discussion about fish over sushi, and this has imprinted on me a lasting love for both. A few years later Shane and I both moved to MIT and had many more opportunities for sushi and lengthy discussions, including the central question of life: “If a bat and a ball cost $1.10 in total, and the bat costs a dollar more than the ball, how much does the ball cost?” Shane is currently a professor at MIT.
James Heyman James and I spent a year together at Berkeley. He would often come in to discuss some idea, bringing with him some of his recent baking outputs, and this was always a good start for an interesting discussion. Following his life’s maxim that money isn’t everything, his research focuses on nonfinancial aspects of marketplace transactions. One of James’s passions is the many ways behavioral economics could play out in policy decisions, and over the years I have come to see the wisdom in this approach. James is currently a professor at the University of St. Thomas (in Minnesota, not the Virgin Islands). Leonard Lee Leonard joined the PhD program at MIT to work on topics related to e-commerce. Since we both kept long hours, we started taking breaks together late at night, and this gave us a chance to start working jointly on a few research projects. The collaboration with Leonard has been great. He has endless energy and enthusiasm, and the number of experiments he can carry out during an average week is about what other people do in a semester. In addition, he is one of the nicest people I have ever met and always a delight to chat and work with. Leonard is currently a professor at Columbia University. Jonathan Levav Jonathan loves his mother like no one else I have met, and his main regret in life is that he disappointed her when he didn’t go to medical school. Jonathan is smart, funny, and an incredibly social animal, able to make new friends in fractions of seconds. He is physically big with a large head, large teeth, and an even larger heart. Jonathan is currently a professor at Columbia University. George Loewenstein George is one of my first, favorite, and longest-time collaborators. He is also my role model. In my mind George is the most creative and broadest researcher in behavioral economics. George has an incredible ability to observe the world around him and find nuances of behavior that are important for our understanding of human nature as well as for policy. George is currently, and appropriately, the Herbert A. Simon Professor of Economics and Psychology at Carnegie Mellon University. Nina Mazar Nina first came to MIT for a few days to get feedback on her research and ended up staying for five years. During this time we had oodles of fun working together and I came to greatly rely on her. Nina is oblivious of obstacles, and her willingness to take on large challenges led us to carry out some particularly difficult experiments in rural India. For many years I hoped that she would never decide to leave; but, alas, at some point the time came: she is currently a professor at the University of Toronto. In an alternative reality, Nina is a high-fashion designer in Milan, Italy.
Elie Ofek Elie is an electrical engineer by training who then saw the light (or so he believes) and switched to marketing. Not surprisingly, his main area of research and teaching is innovations and high-tech industries. Elie is a great guy to have coffee with because he has interesting insights and perspectives on every topic. Currently, Elie is a professor at Harvard Business School (or as its members call it, “The Haaarvard Business School”). Yesim Orhun Yesim is a true delight in every way. She is funny, smart, and sarcastic. Regrettably, we had only one year to hang out while we were both at Berkeley. Yesim’s research takes findings from behavioral economics and, using this starting point, provides prescriptions for firms and policy makers. For some odd reason, what really gets her going is any research question that includes the words simultaneity and endogeneity. Yesim is currently a professor at the University of Chicago. Drazen Prelec Drazen is one of the smartest people I have ever met and one of the main reasons I joined MIT. I think of Drazen as academic royalty: he knows what he is doing, he is sure of himself, and everything he touches turns to gold. I was hoping that by osmosis, I would get some of his style and depth, but having my office next to his was not sufficient for this. Drazen is currently a professor of management science at MIT. Kristina Shampanier Kristina came to MIT to be trained as an economist, and for some odd but wonderful reason elected to work with me. Kristina is exceptionally smart, and I learned a lot from her over the years. As a tribute to her wisdom, when she graduated from MIT, she opted for a nonacademic job: she is now a high-powered consultant in Boston. Jiwoong Shin Jiwoong is a yin and yang researcher. On one hand he carries out research in standard economics assuming that individuals are perfectly rational; on the other hand he carries out research in behavioral economics showing that people are irrational. He is thoughtful and reflective—a philosophical type—and this duality does not faze him. Jiwoong and I started working together mostly because we wanted to have fun together, and indeed we have spent many exciting hours working together. Jiwoong is currently a professor at Yale University.
Baba Shiv Baba and I first met when we were both PhD students at Duke. Over the years Baba has carried out fascinating research in many areas of decision making, particularly on how emotions influence decision making. He is terrific in every way and the kind of person who makes everything around him seem magically better. Baba is currently a professor at Stanford University. Rebecca Waber Rebecca is one of the most energetic and happiest people I have ever met. She is also the only person I ever observed to burst out laughing while reading her marriage vows. Rebecca is particularly interested in research on decision making applied to medical decisions, and I count myself as very lucky that she chose to work with me on these topics. Rebecca is currently a graduate student at the Media Laboratory at MIT. Klaus Wertenbroch Klaus and I met when he was a starting professor at Duke and I was a PhD student. Klaus’s interest in decision making is mostly based on his attempts to make sense of his own deviation from rationality, whether it is his smoking habit or his procrastination in delaying work for the pleasure of watching soccer on television. It was only fitting that we worked together on procrastination. Klaus is currently a professor at INSEAD. 