Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioral Economics

Interesting Facts

• The book discusses the emergence of behavioral economics as a discipline that challenges traditional economic theory based on the assumption of human rationality.
• Richard Thaler shares personal stories and anecdotes about how he and his colleagues developed new concepts such as 'mental accounting' and the 'endowment effect.'
• One of the key examples in the book is research showing how people tend to overvalue things they own, which contradicts classical value theory.
• Thaler discusses the concept of 'nudging,' which has become popular in policy and business for changing people's behavior without coercion.
• The book illustrates how behavioral economics can be applied in real situations, such as retirement savings and medical decision-making.
• Thaler describes how his work influenced the creation of new economic models that account for human emotions and irrationalities.
• The book has been praised for its accessible explanation of complex economic concepts and its contribution to understanding human behavior.