How We Decide

Jonah Lehrer How We Decide Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (2009) The first book to use the unexpected discoveries of neuroscience to help us make the best decisions. Since Plato, philosophers have described the decision-making process as either rational or emotional: we carefully deliberate, or we blink and go with our gut. But as scientists break open the minds black box with the latest tools of neuroscience, theyre discovering that this is not how the mind works. Our best decisions are a finely tuned blend of both feeling and reasonand the precise mix depends on the situation. When buying a house, for example, its best to let our unconscious mull over the many variables. But when were picking a stock, intuition often leads us astray. The trick is to determine when to use the different parts of the brain, and to do this, we need to think harder (and smarter) about how we think. Jonah Lehrer arms us with the tools we need, drawing on cutting-edge research as well as the real-world experiences of a wide range of decidersfrom airplane pilots and hedge fund investors to serial killers and poker players. Lehrer shows how people are taking advantage of the new science to make better television shows, win more football games, and improve military intelligence. His goal is to answer two questions that are of interest to just about anyone, from CEOs to firefighters: How does the human mind make decisions? And how can we make those decisions better? Since Plato, philosophers have described the decision-making process as either rational or emotional: we carefully deliberate, or we "blink" and go with our gut. But as scientists break open the mind's black box with the latest tools of neuroscience, they're discovering that this is not how the mind works. Our best decisions are a finely tuned blend of both feeling and reason- and the precise mix depends on the situation. When buying a house, for example, it's best to let our unconscience mull over the many variables. But when we are picking a stock, intuition often leads us astray. The trick is to determine when to use the different parts of the brain, and to do this, we need to think harder (and smarter) about how we think. This book offers a fascinating look at the new science of decision-making--and how it can help us make better choices.-- Book jacket Title Page......Page 2 Table of Contents......Page 3 .........Page 5 Copyright......Page 6 Dedication......Page 7 Contents......Page 8 Epigraph......Page 9 Introduction......Page 10 1. The Quarterback in the Pocket......Page 16 2. The Predictions of Dopamine......Page 39 3. Fooled by a Feeling......Page 63 4. The Uses of Reason......Page 93 5. Choking on Thought......Page 126 6. The Moral Mind......Page 154 7. The Brain Is an Argument......Page 178 8. The Poker Hand......Page 197 Coda......Page 224 .........Page 231 Acknowledgments......Page 232 Notes......Page 234 Bibliography......Page 246 Index......Page 266 Footnotes......Page 295 Offers A Fascinating Look At The New Science Of Decision-making--and How It Can Help Us Make Better Choices. Introduction -- The Quarterback In The Pocket -- The Predictions Of Dopamine -- Fooled By A Feeling -- The Uses Of Reason -- Choking On Thought -- The Moral Mind -- The Brain Is An Argument -- The Poker Hand -- Coda. Jonah Lehrer. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [274]-287) And Index. How We Decide provides insight into how people make decisions. The book approaches this question from a scientific perspective, and uses real world examples to help the reader understand.