Imperfectly Perfect: The Science of Human Decision Making | Lionel Page

Humans have limited information processing abilities and cannot possibly evaluate all possible options when making a decision. However, describing people merely as irrational paints an inaccurate picture. There can be benefits to the biases we hold.

Author of Optimally Irrational: The Good Reasons We Behave the Way We Do Lionel Page PhD, joins Kurt Nelson and Tim Houlihan on Behavioral Grooves Podcast to talk about his book. Lionel is a French-born economist who is currently working as the Director of the Behavioural and Economic Science Cluster at the University of Queensland in Australia.

Among the topics Lionel discusses is the hedonic treadmill and how happiness is always just ahead of us. Our subjective satisfaction system is designed to keep us motivated by focusing on future goals. However, once we achieve those goals, we move on to the next.

Anticipated utility and loss aversion become a powerful motivational combination. Our motivations for decisions are complex. But intentionality can help make up for some of the inconsistencies in our decision making.

Topics 

(1:51) Speed round questions.

(3:13) Is overconfidence beneficial or not beneficial?

(6:06) What is rational and irrational behavior?

(11:34) Why it is so important to define a field of work.

(14:09) Why is it so difficult for us to ask for what we want?

(17:31) Completeness helps us to find missing points.

(22:38) Happiness is actually connected to loss aversion.

(32:37) The benefits of anticipated utility.

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