Behavioral Economics

If You're Happy and You Know It Check Your Text

By Ryan T. Howell, Ph.D. on May 20, 2013 in Can't Buy Happiness

Using mobile technology is now a part of psychological research and you can use it to improve your happiness through improved spending choices—that is, unless you are already depressed. Read More

Healthcare and the Cost of Non-Price Rationing

By John C. Goodman, Ph.D. on May 20, 2013 in Curing the Healthcare Crisis

Too many health policy wonks ignore the time spent waiting for care. Read More

Divorce: The Stereotyping of Men and Women

By Mark Banschick, M.D. on May 20, 2013 in The Intelligent Divorce

Are men and women stereotyped in divorce? And how does it hurt them and their children? Rita Pollak is collaborative attorney who was kind enough to contribute this guest blog on stereotypes in divorce. It should be required reading for attorneys and the lay public alike. Read More

What States Have the Highest SAT Scores?

By Susan Newman, Ph.D. on May 20, 2013 in Singletons

Before you read further, jot down the three states you believe have the highest average SAT scores. Most people's guesses are way off the mark. Read More

How Inclusion Benefits Businesses

By Lynne Soraya on May 19, 2013 in Asperger's Diary

Can inclusion have a bottom-line impact for business? It's a question I think about a lot. I'm an advocate, but I also work in the business world. Can those two worlds meet? Can the business world create value for the community, in a way that also benefits the company? I've always hoped so, and thus I’m always alert for concrete examples in my daily life. Read More

How We Treat People Of Different Social Status

By Dr. Denise Cummins, Ph.D. on May 19, 2013 in Good Thinking

Suppose you offer to drive someone to work everyday if he or she will pay for the gas. Your passenger agrees, but then frequently reneges on the deal. Would you continue the agreement? Would it make you mad? Does it matter whether your contract partner is your boss, a coworker, your employee, or a stranger who answered an ad in the paper? The answer may surprise you. Read More

Management Lessons From the World's Best Boss

By Victor Lipman on May 19, 2013 in Mind of the Manager

Now that "The Office" has closed its doors, some management counsel inspired by Michael Scott. Embrace your Inner Lunatic... Read More

Passo Carrabile

By Joachim I. Krueger, Ph.D. on May 19, 2013 in One Among Many

In Italy, my thoughts return to the unpredictability of human behavior. ‘Passo carrabile’ means ‘stay clear,’ as in ‘don’t block the driveway.’ Metaphorically, I ask you to keep on open mind. Read More

Are You Fool Efficient?

By Dr. Jeremy Sherman on May 18, 2013 in Ambigamy

Though we make a virtue out of both honest connection and respectful disengagement, we rarely look at the challenge of figuring when to do which. Here's a primer on fool efficiency, deciding how best to suffer fools, when to do it through respectful engagement, and when through respectful disengagement. Read More

Are Women Leaders More Ethical Than Men?

By Ronald E. Riggio, Ph.D. on May 17, 2013 in Cutting-Edge Leadership

Does the fact that few women leaders are prosecuted for ethical violations mean that women are more ethical than men? Or, is it do to the relatively few number of women leaders? Are women more sensitive to ethical issues, or are there no differences? Read More

Want A Deep Spiritual Path? Try Economics.

By Dr. Jeremy Sherman on May 16, 2013 in Ambigamy

Economics as a science aims to be the value-neutral study of how value happens. Since all living things express values, economics is fundamental to all of the life and social sciences. Some say economics can't speak to transcendent values like love and spirituality. Here's an argument than it can--more honestly, humbly and wisely than other spiritual practices do. Read More

Am I a Home for Identities?

By Robert W. Fuller, Ph.D. on May 16, 2013 in Somebodies and Nobodies

The self is a laboratory in which identities are minted, tested, and from which they step onto the stage. Read More

Homosexuality and AIDS

By Fredric Neuman, M.D. on May 16, 2013 in Fighting Fear

A response to a post decrying a presumed denial of AIDS in homosexual men. A brief, personal history of this epidemic Read More

Healthcare and the Poor: Why Money Works Better than Waiting

By John C. Goodman, Ph.D. on May 15, 2013 in Curing the Healthcare Crisis

Health policy wonks seem to think the poor should wait longer than the rest of us. That's wrong. Read More

When the Dog's Health Is More Important Than Your Own

By Katrina S. Firlik, MD on May 15, 2013 in A Spoonful of Sugar

How to explain why filling a dog's prescription could trump filling your own, or why people would rather take out the trash than take their medication? It's human psychology. Read More

How Did I Get 1 Million Views?

By Douglas T. Kenrick, Ph.D. on May 14, 2013 in Sex, Murder, and the Meaning of Life

Just the other morning I became a millionaire! Well, at least if we’re counting blogosphere hits. There are a couple of things I've learned along the way: lessons both qualitative and quantitative. Read More

The Truth about Cats and Dogs—by the Numbers

By Stanley Coren, Ph.D., F.R.S.C. on May 14, 2013 in Canine Corner

Some new survey data provides an interesting snapshot about the population of dogs and cats in America, how we treat them, care for them, and relate to them. It also illustrates some interesting ways in which we regard dogs and cats differently. Read More

Essential Reads: Editor's Picks

What States Have the Highest SAT Scores?
by Susan Newman, Ph.D.
How Did I Get 1 Million Views?
by Douglas T. Kenrick, Ph.D.
Competitions Within Competitions
by Hilary Levey Friedman, Ph.D.

Behavioral Economics Blogs

Baffled by Numbers
Navigating information towards better health decisions.
By Talya Miron-Shatz, Ph.D.
Consumed
The psychology of what we buy, how we choose, and why we need to make sense of it all.
By Alain Samson, Ph.D.
Consumer Behavior
A peek inside the shopper's mind
By Philip Graves
Dollars and Sex
How economics influences sex and love
By Marina Adshade, Ph.D.
Emotional Currency
Your relationship to money
By Kate Levinson, Ph.D.
Financial Focus
How to clearly navigate your financial life
By Michael Kay
How Risky Is It, Really?
Why our fears don't always match the facts
By David Ropeik
In Hindsight
How we think about our decisions
By Neal Roese, Ph.D.
Inside the Consumer Mind
Understanding the rational and emotional foundations of consumer behavior
By Peter Noel Murray, Ph.D.
Living It
The stress of life's ontological experiment
By Matthew Shanahan, M.Sc.
Love, Inc
The intersections of emotion and capitalism.
By Laurie Essig, Ph.D.
Market Mind Games
Emotion, risk and market behaviors
By Denise K. Shull, M.A.
Mind Over Money
Overcoming the money disorders that threaten our financial health
By Brad Klontz, Psy.D.
Retail Therapy
Why we shop—and what it means when we do
By Scott Rick, Ph.D.
Sapient Nature
Bite-sized insights on the human condition.
By Raj Raghunathan, Ph.D.
Sold?
Understanding consumer behavior—before you buy.
By Ian Zimmerman, Ph.D
The Eclectic Professor
Reflections on the psychology-marketing-economics nexus
By John Gaski, Ph.D.
The Good, The Bad, The Economy
Does human nature rule out a better world?
By Louis Putterman, Ph.D
The Impulse Factor
How spur-of-the-moment decisions lead to better choices.
By Nick Tasler
The Why Behind the Buy
Understanding consumerism and why we buy
By Kit Yarrow, Ph.D.
There Are Free Lunches
Behavioral clues to a happy life.
By Diogo Goncalves
Unconscious Branding
How Neuroscience Can Empower (and Inspire) Marketing
By Douglas Van Praet