Shortform Books

Kahneman’s Prospect Theory: The Ultimate Guide

What is Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman’s prospect theory? How does it explain human behavior? Prospect theory is a theory in economics developed by Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman. It says that Utility depends on changes from one’s reference point rather than absolute outcomes. The theory suggests that people don’t always behave rationally. We’ll cover what Kahneman’s prospect theory is, how it works, and how it challenges traditional utility theory.

Why Did Homo Sapiens Survive? How We Outlived 7 Human Species

We think of our own species as the only humans, distinguished from and superior to every other species on earth. But when we, Homo sapiens, arrived on the scene 2.5 million years ago, we weren’t anything special. We existed in the middle of the food chain, as often prey as we were predators, and we weren’t even the only humans. Why did Homo Sapiens survive while other human species disappeared? Homo Sapiens survived due to their advanced linguistic abilities and communication skills. The way Homo Sapiens used language affected their ability to hunt, trade, and dominate the animal kingdom. We’ll

Narrow Framing: One Way You Make Bad Decisions

What is narrow framing? Does it help or hinder our decision-making process? Narrow framing is when you focus on the details at the expense of the big picture. Narrow framing can hurt your decision-making skills because it keeps you from seeing your choices in context. We’ll cover what narrow framing is, how it differs from broad framing, and how to counter narrow framing in your everyday life.

Regression Toward the Mean: 7 Real-World Examples

What does “regression toward the mean” mean in psychology? How does it apply to everyday life? Regression toward the mean refers to the principle that, over repeated sampling periods, outliers tend to revert to the mean. High performers show disappointing results when they fail to continue delivering; strugglers show sudden improvement. We’ll cover what it means to regress toward the mean in psychology, 7 examples of regression toward the mean, and how to counter biases related to this phenomenon.

Associative Thinking: How to Be Creative + Why You’re Biased

What is associative thinking? What is its function, and how might it lead to bias? Associative thinking is fast, subconscious thinking that associates one concept with another. The ideas can involve memories, emotions, and physical sensations. We’ll cover how associative thinking works and how you use it in everyday life.

Illusion of Validity: Think You Make Good Predictions?

What is the illusion of validity? Why is it an illusion, and why is it a problem? The illusion of validity is the tendency to be overconfident about our skills of prediction. We’re especially vulnerable to the illusion of validity when faced with data points that seem to form a coherent narrative. Learn what the illusion of validity is and why it happens, with examples.

Measuring Well-Being: Why It’s So Hard + How to Be Happier

How can you measure your well-being, according to Daniel Kahneman in Thinking, Fast and Slow? We’ll cover the steps of measuring well-being and how to improve well-being.

Cognitive Revolution (Sapiens): How Gossip Changed Our Brains

What was the Cognitive Revolution in Sapiens? How did it allow our species to survive, while other human species, such as Neanderthals, disappeared? The Cognitive Revolution was the moment in human history when our ancestors developed three new abilities: flexible language, communication about 3rd parties, and collective fictions. The Cognitive Revolution allowed homo sapiens to develop the societies that characterize the species today. We’ll cover the three aspects of the Cognitive Revolution as described in Yuval Noah Harari’s book Sapiens and expand upon the above Cognitive Revolution definition.

Guide to the Representative Heuristic: Definition, Examples

What does “representativeness” mean in psychology? What are examples of representativeness heuristics? The representative heuristic is when you organize objects by their similarities and categorize them around a prototype. The representativeness heuristic describes when we estimate the likelihood of an event by comparing it to an existing prototype in our minds. We’ll go more in depth into the above representative heuristic definition and cover multiple representative heuristic examples in psychology.

Cognitive Ease: What It Is (And How To Increase It)

What is cognitive ease? What is it good for, and when does it hinder you? Cognitive ease is an internal measure of how easy or strained your cognitive load is. In a state of cognitive ease, you’re probably in a good mood, believe what you hear, trust your intuitions, feel the situation is familiar, are more creative, and are superficial in your thinking. We’ll cover the properties of cognitive ease and how to use the concept to get your point across and convince others of its truth.