Hi all, I’m looking for a recommendation on why humans behave the way they do and make the choices that they make. Any good titles out there?
Thanks for any and all answers in advance!
Edit: thanks for all the recs! Love this sub. Deciding between “Thinking, Fast and Slow” and “Behave”. Extra props to those who recommended both!
by kdrums100
32 Comments
Biology? Sociology? Anthropology?
Henri Laborit, Jean Baudrillard, Claude Lévi-Strauss…
The human society bu Kingsley Davis. Very old book but one of the best i ever read
Behave by Robert Sapolsky gives a nice overview of different levels at which decisions can be driven, starting with neurotransmitters, then to hormonal, intragenerational / genetic and finally environmental
Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell. Interesting perspective on our human biases and how that impacts our interactions with each other.
You might enjoy Blink by Malcolm Gladwell or Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
I never read it but The Naked Ape was really popular once
Atlas of the Heart was full of wisdom on human behavior
I see Behave by Robert Sapolsky already, I would second it wholeheartedly
Another one would be Elephant in the Brain, it’s a fascinating read, covering an array of complex human behaviours like sex, language and religion. The author duo are extremely concise. You can read the chapters in any order, or just those you find intriguing
The Laws of Human Nature, loved it because it talks about the things we cannot change, as someone who believed as a kid i can mould myself into anything and anyone this was actually a comforting read in terms of real life limits lol
Not a book but ive been greatly enjoying Andrew Hubermanns talk with dr Paul Conti-assessing ones mental health talks a lot about behavior as well
Our Inner Ape by Franz De Waal
The righteous mind by Jonathan Haidt
The coddling of the American mind also by Haidt
Think Again by Adam Grant
Thinking, Fast and Slow
How to win friends and influence people
“Thinking, Fast and Slow” by Daniel Kahneman is a compelling exploration of the human mind’s inner workings. It delves into the concept of two thinking systems that influence our decisions: the fast, intuitive “System 1,” and the slow, deliberate “System 2.”
The book offers insights into the quirks and flaws of human reasoning. It uncovers the hidden biases that affect our decision-making, often leading to surprising and sometimes irrational outcomes. Happy reading
“It didn’t start with you”
The origins of totalitarianism by hannah Arendt
Influence by Robert Cialdini.
Thinking Fast and Slow. One of the best books I’ve ever read.
Great recs so far. I’ll add:
The motivation code
The Color Code by Taylor Hartman is by far the most insightful book i have ever read on the subject.
“High-Rise is a 1975 novel by British writer J. G. Ballard. The story describes the disintegration of a luxury high-rise building as its affluent residents gradually descend into violent chaos. As with Ballard’s previous novels Crash (1973) and Concrete Island (1974), High-Rise inquires into the ways in which modern social and technological landscapes could alter the human psyche in provocative and hitherto unexplored ways”
Thought as a system by David bohm. It’s in the form of a lecture he gave about how our thoughts have become second nature due to years of evolution and how this affects our thinking, emotions, and actions.
The stranger by albert camus is an amazing exploration of absurdist and human behaviour – its a novel and you could probably read it in a day.
The Elephant In The Brain by Kevin Simler and Robin Hanson.
Change Your Brain Change Your Life!
If you like “Thinking Fast and Slow”, Michael Lewis wrote a book called “The Undoing Project” that’s about Danny Kahneman and Amos Tversky and their work. It’s excellent.
The Anarchist’s Cookbook and The Velvet Underground (the book-not the band, but I highly recommend anything by them
Social psychology by Aronson Timothy (9th edition)
Games People Play: The Basic Handbook of Transactional Analysis by Eric Berne.
Not Just for Marketers: Martin Lindstrom’s Buyology: A Fascinating Journey into the Brain of the Modern Consumer
Kahnemann’s Thinking Fast and Slow is a pretty tough read – might want to start with something simpler.
Daniel Pink’s Drive or Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink could be a somewhat easier way in.
Choice Theory (1998) by William Glasser, MD is a superb work.
He talks about how society works off a control model (“You will do what I say.”) and how much happier we would be if we would give up trying to control each other. He discusses how we can choose to manage our own behaviors, including recognizing the 5 basic needs, making our real worlds look more like our quality worlds, and a utilizing a clever compromise tool for harmonious relationships.
The most life-changing line from the book is, “Love is a giving process.”