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ranahabib 's review for:
Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness
by Richard H. Thaler, Cass R. Sunstein
9/10
Since reading Thinking, Fast & Slow, I've taken a keen interest in Behavioural Economics. I've already read Misbehaving by Thaler, and since I enjoyed his writing so much (he's really funny and engaging), I decided to give Nudge a shot.
Important notes:
Definition: "A nudge is an aspect of choice architecture that will later alter our behavior/choice without forbidding any options or significantly changing economic incentives."
Libertarian-Paternalism: Where private and public institutions can affect behavior while still respecting freedom of choice
- Nudges can be used to alter someone's behavior, leading them to make the best choice for themselves, without taking away their freedom to choose
Review:
For the most part, I really enjoyed Nudge.
Thaler and Sunstein essentially argue that nudges, when used ethically, can help the betterment of society. Public and private institutions can employ choice architects to help nudge us into making better decisions for ourselves -- without taking away our freedom of choice.
Likes:
Thaler and Sunstein's points were well articulated throughout the book, frequently using examples of in different areas of life (financially, socially, politically, economically, and physically)
I really liked that they used examples where nudges were non-existent and how they could've helped, but they also used examples of nudges gone wrong and what should've been done instead.
I also really liked that the second last chapter of the book was dedicated to any counter-arguments one may have towards nudges and libertarian paternalism, in which they debunked each argument. Not only did this chapter help clear up my criticism and confusion, but I thought that it was a nice touch of transparency that you don't get often with non-fic books.
Thaler and Sunstein aren't saying "this is the right way of doing things"; they're saying "this could potentially be the better way of doing things and here's why:" which I LOVED because nothing bothers me more than a know-it-all Author.
Ok now here are my dislikes:
- Redundancy. For example, I think there were a solid 3-4 chapters that drew the same conclusion: too much choice is bad for consumers because they typically end up choosing the worst one, even with nudges.
- I'd be lying if I said I wasn't bored at times. Some chapters were more interesting than others, but I'd say 80% of the book was really interesting and fun, and the other 20% honestly bored me.
- Focused a lot on American issues, policies, and politics (however, I guess it makes sense considering that the authors are American -- but still. Nudging isn't exclusive to the USA).
- The cover makes you think that it's a how-to book on decision-making in different areas of your life, but it's not. It focuses on society as a whole as opposed to the individual.
Since reading Thinking, Fast & Slow, I've taken a keen interest in Behavioural Economics. I've already read Misbehaving by Thaler, and since I enjoyed his writing so much (he's really funny and engaging), I decided to give Nudge a shot.
Important notes:
Definition: "A nudge is an aspect of choice architecture that will later alter our behavior/choice without forbidding any options or significantly changing economic incentives."
Libertarian-Paternalism: Where private and public institutions can affect behavior while still respecting freedom of choice
- Nudges can be used to alter someone's behavior, leading them to make the best choice for themselves, without taking away their freedom to choose
Review:
For the most part, I really enjoyed Nudge.
Thaler and Sunstein essentially argue that nudges, when used ethically, can help the betterment of society. Public and private institutions can employ choice architects to help nudge us into making better decisions for ourselves -- without taking away our freedom of choice.
Likes:
Thaler and Sunstein's points were well articulated throughout the book, frequently using examples of in different areas of life (financially, socially, politically, economically, and physically)
I really liked that they used examples where nudges were non-existent and how they could've helped, but they also used examples of nudges gone wrong and what should've been done instead.
I also really liked that the second last chapter of the book was dedicated to any counter-arguments one may have towards nudges and libertarian paternalism, in which they debunked each argument. Not only did this chapter help clear up my criticism and confusion, but I thought that it was a nice touch of transparency that you don't get often with non-fic books.
Thaler and Sunstein aren't saying "this is the right way of doing things"; they're saying "this could potentially be the better way of doing things and here's why:" which I LOVED because nothing bothers me more than a know-it-all Author.
Ok now here are my dislikes:
- Redundancy. For example, I think there were a solid 3-4 chapters that drew the same conclusion: too much choice is bad for consumers because they typically end up choosing the worst one, even with nudges.
- I'd be lying if I said I wasn't bored at times. Some chapters were more interesting than others, but I'd say 80% of the book was really interesting and fun, and the other 20% honestly bored me.
- Focused a lot on American issues, policies, and politics (however, I guess it makes sense considering that the authors are American -- but still. Nudging isn't exclusive to the USA).
- The cover makes you think that it's a how-to book on decision-making in different areas of your life, but it's not. It focuses on society as a whole as opposed to the individual.