Boost

ENDORSEMENTS

“This book carries an important message: We are not incompetent idiots as some research has suggested. To the contrary, we can adopt effective ways to manage our lives and our environments, and we can learn new techniques for how to do so. Boosts are the tool the authors offer in aid of this, with detailed examples from disinformation to ultra-processed food to how to boost your understanding of statistics that matter to your life. Though it is a very serious, well-researched, well-argued book, it is written in a light, inviting tone and illustrated with charming—and highly apt—line drawings.”
—Nancy Cartwright, Professor of Philosophy, Durham University, UK

“How should public policy deal with situations in which people seem to be making choices that are not in their best interests? Challenging fashionable paternalistic proposals for ‘nudging,’ Ralph Hertwig and Till Grüne-Yanoff have argued for ‘boosts’—policies that increase people’s decision-making competence by teaching simple and effective heuristics. By presenting this argument in an engaging and nontechnical way, Boost will be an influential counterpoint to Nudge.”
—Robert Sugden, Professor of Economics, University of East Anglia, UK

“Essential reading—for scientists, by shifting behavioral research from focusing on cognitive biases to studying cognitive strengths and adaptability; and for policymakers, to promote boosts that are transparent, scalable, respect autonomy, and create lasting change.”
—Susan Michie, Professor of Health Psychology, University College London, UK

“At a time when digital and physical environments are increasingly optimized to steer our choices, Boost makes a compelling case for equipping people to navigate more effectively. For anyone interested in using behavioral science to improve human welfare, this book offers a wide-ranging collection of useful ideas and insights.”
—Katherine L. Milkman, James G. Dinan Professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

Ralph Hertwig is Director of the Center for Adaptive Rationality at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin.

Till Grüne-Yanoff is Professor of Philosophy at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm.

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