Title: Interesting research, interesting conclusions

If you pick up this book expecting it to be as good as Ariely's first book, Predictably Irrational, you are likely to be disappointed. If, however, you approach it without high expectations caused by that first book, you will probably enjoy it quite a bit and pick up some useful and interesting information.

The Upside of Irrationality explores many facets of human behavior at work and at home and how we are all less than optimal in our behavior, even genius inventor Thomas Edison, who resisted AC current in large part because it was not his idea. It asks some very timely questions, like whether big bonuses really make CEOs more productive (His answer is No.) and how to improve internet dating, and more eternal questions, like the role of revenge in our lives.

The book emphasizes Ariely's own research and its conclusions, an approach that has both advantages and disadvantages. More than the first book, I found myself reflecting that it would desirable to do this or that additional work to try to support a conclusion more fully. Having read the book, I can reflect that perhaps some of this omission is due to the human tendency to overvalue what we make or do ourselves a phenomenon Ariely discusses and acknowledges he shares with the rest of us. Or perhaps it is simply that he has not had time or funding to pursue the work further.

The author also uses himself and his own life frequently as examples of the phenomena he discusses. These are vivid, but the technique may be overdone. In the first chapter Ariely describes a horrific accident he had in his late teens that resulted in his spending several years in the hospital and causes him pain and some disability even today. He uses this aspect of his life so frequently that I sometimes wondered if the use of the material was more for examples or for personal therapy.

The title and subtitle of the book are a bit misleading. The bulk of the conclusions in The Upside of Irrationality seem not so much irrational as counter-intuitive. For example, one of my favorite chapters is about adaptation, the human trait that enables us to get used to just about anything, good or bad. If we do something we enjoy, our pleasure increases for a while, but after a time our enjoyment tends to lessen. The same is true of painful or annoying experiences. The curve looks rather like an upside down U. If we stop and begin again, we will experience the same U-curve of pleasure or pain/annoyance. The lesson to draw from that result is that, contrary to human tendency, we should not take on an unpleasant chore “in pieces” but do it in one pass. This will reduce our sum total of negative experience. On the other hand, we should break up our positive experiences to maximize our enjoyment, e.g., we really WILL enjoy that piece of pie more if we cut it into smaller pieces and save one for tomorrow (as long as our spouse doesn't eat it first!).

In addition, although the subtitle of the book is “the unexpected benefits of defying logic at work and at home”, I finished several chapters wondering what benefits were conferred by the illogical behavior.

In sum, despite the flaws I have noted, the upside of The Upside of Irrationality is its fascinating look at many aspects of human behavior. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in why we do what we do and how that can cause us to make bad decisions.