The Psychology of Stupidity

The #1 international bestseller The Sunday Times bestseller 'We need books like this one' - Steven Pinker, psychologist and bestselling author of Rationality A comprehensive and witty exploration of human stupidity from some of the world’s smartest minds, including: Daniel Kahneman, Dan Ariely, Alison Gopnik, Howard Gardner, Antonio Damasio, Aaron James, Ryan Holiday and more, 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.