Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview
  • Predictably Irrational

  • The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions
  • By: Dan Ariely
  • Narrated by: Simon Jones
  • Length: 7 hrs and 24 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (778 ratings)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Predictably Irrational

By: Dan Ariely
Narrated by: Simon Jones
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

Why do smart people make irrational decisions every day? The answers will surprise you. Predictably Irrational is an intriguing, witty and utterly original look at why we all make illogical decisions.

Why can a 50p aspirin do what a 5p aspirin can't? If an item is "free" it must be a bargain, right? Why is everything relative, even when it shouldn't be? How do our expectations influence our actual opinions and decisions?

In this astounding book, behavioural economist Dan Ariely cuts to the heart of our strange behaviour, demonstrating how irrationality often supplants rational thought and that the reason for this is embedded in the very structure of our minds.

Predicatably Irrational brilliantly blends everyday experiences with a series of illuminating and often surprising experiments, that will change your understanding of human behaviour. And, by recognising these patterns, Ariely shows that we can make better decisions in business, in matters of collective welfare, and in our everyday lives from drinking coffee to losing weight, buying a car to choosing a romantic partner.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2008 Dan Ariely (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Algorithms to Live By cover art
Mind Full cover art
Storyworthy cover art
The Promises of Giants cover art
The Selfish Gene cover art
The Upside of Irrationality cover art
24 Assets cover art
Misbehaving cover art
The Paradox of Choice cover art
Influence cover art
Contagious cover art
The Self Illusion cover art
The Believing Brain cover art
How the Mind Works cover art
You Are Not So Smart cover art
Thinking Like an Economist: A Guide to Rational Decision Making cover art

Critic reviews

‘A marvelous book that is both thought provoking and highly entertaining, ranging from the power of placebos to the pleasures of Pepsi. Ariely unmasks the subtle but powerful tricks that our minds play on us, and shows us how we can prevent being fooled.’ Jerome Groopman, New York Times bestselling author of How Doctors Think

‘PREDICTABLY IRRATIONAL is wildly original. It shows why—much more often than we usually care to admit—humans make foolish, and sometimes disastrous, mistakes. Ariely not only gives us a great read; he also makes us much wiser.’ George Akerlof, Nobel Laureate in Economics, 2001 Koshland Professor of Economics, University of California at Berkeley

‘Dan Ariely is one of the most original and consistently interesting social scientists I know. His research covers an unusually broad range of topics, and in every one of them he has produced some distinctive findings and ideas. His methodological inventiveness is remarkable.’ Daniel Kahneman, Nobel Prize in Economics, 2002

What listeners say about Predictably Irrational

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    526
  • 4 Stars
    198
  • 3 Stars
    50
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    2
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    496
  • 4 Stars
    125
  • 3 Stars
    33
  • 2 Stars
    6
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    443
  • 4 Stars
    154
  • 3 Stars
    48
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    3

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Woow

The writer and narrator are a perfect match. Would highly recommend this book and audible

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

very interesting and thought provoking

It has many good examples and is very well balanced. Deffenetly worth the read and would recommend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Good book, good narrator, poor recording.

This is an interesting (if now little dated) introduction to much of the irrationality studies that are now well known to people through the books of Kahneman. The material is interesting and humourously presented. The choice of narrator is a little strange considering how US-centric all the material is, but I certainly didn't object to having a Brit read me this instead of an American. Simon Jones is of course great - what could be better than Arthur Dent reading this to you? The recording is poor however, with a rather dull echoey sound that is made worse by a constant background hum and noise. I would probably normally have asked for my money back on these grounds, but I got this one for half-price in a sale and as such it still represented good value.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

largely fascinating book and very well read

some fascinating ideas in the book and I loved the dry narration - highly recommended!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

a very interesting listen. worth a credit

great listen
very informative and useful in knowing oneself better! who knew that we are all so irrational so regularly and predictably!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very interesting

I listened to this audio book because it was recommended on a list of books that will help you get better at sales.

You’ll come away from it knowing much more about human nature.

Great book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

First audio book I tried....loved it

I was already reading the book, but wanted to try audio...after you get in the zone, it's awesome..so much helpful information that just makes you think.. definitely recommend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Our behaviour is the key to understanding markets and so much more

My take alway; our behaviour doesn’t confirm to rational economic theory and Dan advocates behavioural economics to build better models / predictions because our decisions still follow patterns.

I enjoyed the experiments and insights into social and market norms, ditto qualification of our super ego for work, money and relationships today.

Was your back story a hint of narcissism Dan? It didn’t add much for me aside from humanising the storyteller and delivering a much loved American tale of triumph over adversity.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

interesting and amusing

I found the book very interesting. It gives oversight in to the things we all do. The reader conveyed the irony and humour nicely. Well read indeed.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great

Amusingly written, and many very interesting ideas backed up with anecdotes. Not deep on why we do these things, but that makes it easy to consume.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!