Phishing for Phools

The Economics of Manipulation and Deception

Business & Finance, Marketing & Sales, Consumer Behaviour, Finance & Investing, Finance
Cover of the book Phishing for Phools by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller, Princeton University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller ISBN: 9781400873265
Publisher: Princeton University Press Publication: September 22, 2015
Imprint: Princeton University Press Language: English
Author: George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
ISBN: 9781400873265
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Publication: September 22, 2015
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Language: English

Ever since Adam Smith, the central teaching of economics has been that free markets provide us with material well-being, as if by an invisible hand. In Phishing for Phools, Nobel Prize–winning economists George Akerlof and Robert Shiller deliver a fundamental challenge to this insight, arguing that markets harm as well as help us. As long as there is profit to be made, sellers will systematically exploit our psychological weaknesses and our ignorance through manipulation and deception. Rather than being essentially benign and always creating the greater good, markets are inherently filled with tricks and traps and will "phish" us as "phools."

Phishing for Phools therefore strikes a radically new direction in economics, based on the intuitive idea that markets both give and take away. Akerlof and Shiller bring this idea to life through dozens of stories that show how phishing affects everyone, in almost every walk of life. We spend our money up to the limit, and then worry about how to pay the next month's bills. The financial system soars, then crashes. We are attracted, more than we know, by advertising. Our political system is distorted by money. We pay too much for gym memberships, cars, houses, and credit cards. Drug companies ingeniously market pharmaceuticals that do us little good, and sometimes are downright dangerous.

Phishing for Phools explores the central role of manipulation and deception in fascinating detail in each of these areas and many more. It thereby explains a paradox: why, at a time when we are better off than ever before in history, all too many of us are leading lives of quiet desperation. At the same time, the book tells stories of individuals who have stood against economic trickery—and how it can be reduced through greater knowledge, reform, and regulation.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Ever since Adam Smith, the central teaching of economics has been that free markets provide us with material well-being, as if by an invisible hand. In Phishing for Phools, Nobel Prize–winning economists George Akerlof and Robert Shiller deliver a fundamental challenge to this insight, arguing that markets harm as well as help us. As long as there is profit to be made, sellers will systematically exploit our psychological weaknesses and our ignorance through manipulation and deception. Rather than being essentially benign and always creating the greater good, markets are inherently filled with tricks and traps and will "phish" us as "phools."

Phishing for Phools therefore strikes a radically new direction in economics, based on the intuitive idea that markets both give and take away. Akerlof and Shiller bring this idea to life through dozens of stories that show how phishing affects everyone, in almost every walk of life. We spend our money up to the limit, and then worry about how to pay the next month's bills. The financial system soars, then crashes. We are attracted, more than we know, by advertising. Our political system is distorted by money. We pay too much for gym memberships, cars, houses, and credit cards. Drug companies ingeniously market pharmaceuticals that do us little good, and sometimes are downright dangerous.

Phishing for Phools explores the central role of manipulation and deception in fascinating detail in each of these areas and many more. It thereby explains a paradox: why, at a time when we are better off than ever before in history, all too many of us are leading lives of quiet desperation. At the same time, the book tells stories of individuals who have stood against economic trickery—and how it can be reduced through greater knowledge, reform, and regulation.

More books from Princeton University Press

Cover of the book Trading Barriers by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book "The Tibetan Book of the Dead" by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book Inventing Falsehood, Making Truth by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book Topics in Commutative Ring Theory by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book The Little Book of Black Holes by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book The Soul of the World by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book Vanguard of the Revolution by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book The Quotable Kierkegaard by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book The Everett Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book Nature, Human Nature, and Human Difference by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book A Reader's Guide to Wallace Stevens by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book Alan Turing: The Enigma by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book The Theory of Island Biogeography Revisited by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book Cold War Civil Rights by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
Cover of the book Agrarian Crossings by George A. Akerlof, Robert J. Shiller
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy