Behavioral Scientist’s Summer Book List 2023
The summer book list is a chance to peruse a collection of the most compelling behavioral science books published so far this year.
Books
On the Quest for Originality, Recombine the Familiar
Most of the time, success comes from a well-placed tweak, a novel combination of two or more existing elements, or the better version of an idea or product not yet perfected.
Tips, Clicks, and Charitable Gifts: The Persuasive Impact of a Single Touch
Restaurant servers, canvassers, and robot elderly care assistants may all be a single touch on the hand away from greater satisfaction, engagement, and compliance.
Weapons of Mass Persuasion: Tracing the Story of Psychological Targeting on Social Media
A rigorous assessment of whether psychological targeting on social media can influence our behavior has remained elusive. Until recently.
It’s a Bouba, Not a Kiki: The Relationship Between Sound, Form, and Meaning
We don’t assume that we can understand the meaning of words based on their sound alone. But a long history of research in psycholinguistics hints that we’re better at it than we might think.
The Psychology of Overhead Aversion—and What It Means for Charitable Work
Why are people so averse to paying charities’ overhead costs? What could knowing more about overhead aversion mean for successful fundraising? We conducted an experiment to find out.