The Upside of Irrationality: The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home by Dan ArielyMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Ariely offers a kind of gonzo pop psychology that is enlightening, and entertaining. "Gonzo" because he interjects himself into the science when his life experiences drive questions to be answered and offer revealing anecdotes. Recovering from serious injuries and committing human foibles, Ariely seeks truth and is revealing in this personal work. He outlines the construction and implementation of experiments on either impoverished Indians or nearly impoverished university students to support that motivation is required by workers (duh) and bonuses decrease efficiency and do not incentivise (huh), etc. This becomes a framework to map the topography of irrationality in hums (and chimps, for that matter). Very interesting stuff. It seems weird at the end that Ariely underscores both the need of the scientific method and embracing irrationality which presents and unexplored contradiction.
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