Sharing what I have learned from what I have read: A blog by Joe Abittan
Plans held within our own head don't seem to mean that much. I have had tons of plans to get things done around the house, to stop snacking on baked goods, and to read more, but I often find the time ticking by while I waste time reading news stories that don't mean much to … Continue reading Facilitating Behaviors
I listen to a lot of politics and policy podcasts, and one thing I learned over the last few years is that asking people to vote and encouraging them to vote isn't very effective. What is effective, is asking people how they plan to vote. If you ask someone where their polling place is, how … Continue reading The Mere Measurement Effect
Donald Trump frequently employs a rhetorical strategy built on the power of social influencers. We pay attention to what happens around us, and adjust our behaviors and even our beliefs relative to the groups that surround us. When we are around people who cuss a lot, we might cuss more. When we are around people … Continue reading Social Influencers
"In many domains people are tempted to think, after the fact, that an outcome was entirely predictable, and that the success of a musician, an actor, an author, or a politician was inevitable in light of his or her skills and characteristics. Beware of that temptation. Small interventions and even coincidences, at a key stage, … Continue reading Predictable Outcomes
This last election season was not a great one for political polls. The presidential election polls were off for the second straight presidential election, leaving many with doubts about the effectiveness of polling. Many state senatorial polls were also off, leading to expectations that were not met by the actual election outcomes. I spent a … Continue reading Conforming to What We Think People Expect
We are social creatures that crave connections with and acceptance from other people. We want to have many allies as we move through life and want to be seen as a valuable ally to others. In our minds, we magnify our actions, words, and behaviors, examining what we do and how we present ourselves to … Continue reading The Spotlight Effect
TV shows and movies frequently have scenes where one character has been putting up with something they dislike in order to please another character, only to find out that the other character also dislikes the thing. I can think of instances where characters have been drinking particular beverages they dislike, playing games they don't enjoy, … Continue reading Pluralistic Ignorance
Groupthink is one of the most dangerous phenomenon that our world faces today. Families, companies, and governments can all find themselves stuck in groupthink, unable to adapt to a world that no longer fits the model and expectations that drive traditional thinking. When everyone has the same thought processes and members of the group discount … Continue reading Collective Conservatism
Cass Sunstein and Richard Thaler describe an experiment in their book Nudge where people were placed in a group in a dark room with a small point of light. Due to an illusion with the brain processing visual information, the small point of light appears to move slightly, even though it is stationary. The lead … Continue reading Confident Nudges & Strong Opinions
I discount the idea of the self more than most people. I don't think that it is useful to think about ourselves as definable individuals the way most people do, and as a result, I don't think self-control, discipline, and individual responsibility should be as prominent in our economic and political systems as we make … Continue reading Self-Control & Environmental Effects