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The Psychology of Stupidity

Synopsis

The Number One international bestseller featuring contributions from Daniel Kahneman, Dan Ariely, Ryan Holiday, Alison Gopnik, Howard Gardner, Antonio Damasio, and Aaron James.

‘We need books like this one’
Steven Pinker

Stupidity is all around us, from the colleagues who won’t stop hitting ‘reply all’ to the former school friends posting conspiracy theories on Facebook. But in order to battle idiocy, we must first understand it. In The Psychology of Stupidity, some of the world’s leading psychologists and thinkers – including a Nobel Prize winner – will show you . . .

· Why smart people sometimes believe in utter nonsense
· How our lazy brains cause us to make the wrong decisions
· Why trying to debate with fools is a trap
· How media manipulation and Internet overstimulation makes us dumber
· Why the stupidest people don’t think they’re stupid

As long as there have been humans there has been human stupidity, but with wit and wisdom these great thinkers can help us understand this persistent human affliction.

Details

01 October 2020
495 pages
Allyson Ryan, Hillary Huber, Mark Deakins
9781529053852
Imprint: Macmillan

Reviews

We need books like this oneSteven Pinker
Fascinating . . . From morons to idiots to *ssholes, they’re all hereNews24, South Africa
A blunt and sometimes hilarious examination of human errorBusiness Day, South Africa
I was totally hooked. Everybody loves itLa Grande Librairie, La Grande Librairie