The Insidious Power of Irrationality

Introduction by the blog author:
Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior is a short book written without jargon on how rational, professional people get pulled off course to make irrational – and sometimes life-threatening – decisions.

I recommend this book because I am something of a logician. I’ve studied reason and logic in detail ever since I was a teenager. And yet there were some irrational decision in the book that even I stumble into!
Below is a good review of the book by a reader who posted a summary on Amazon.com:

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4.0 out of 5 stars
This book keeps its promise, January 31, 2013 By YoyoMitch
This review is from: Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior
Frequently, a book will promise to shed light on a behavior that is universal but rarely examined; now and again will an author achieve such a stated goal, but few authors do so as well as the Brafman brothers in this present book. From the opening paragraph the authors draw the reader into discovering some of the reasons intelligent, wise, well-trained adults do some very irrational things. They achieve this goal by siting research, using appropriate real-life illustrations and connecting with the reader by speaking of events that are common to everyone's experience.

Not long ago, Bill Engvall, a stand-up comedian, added to his fame by offering a sign for to those who made "stupid" decisions. What made Mr. Engvall's routine so funny is everyone who heard his stories could relate on a personal level (because they had "known someone (never oneself) who had did that").

This book offers some insight into just how those events occur with such frequency. Things as seemingly innocuous as wanting to be on time, arbitrary values, even a single word can influence a decision into becoming one that is, upon reflection, irrational, illogical and (often) dangerous. (For many of us, those bad decisions could have been prefaced with, "Hey, Y'all, watch what I can do!") Becoming aware of these influences will, hopefully, give the reader the awareness to decrease the "sway" those influences have in their life.

This is an easily read, easily understood, well-written book. It would be fitting to be read by anyone who: works with people, has management responsibility or is interested in exploring the age-old question of "how come people do the things they do." It is a scholarly work produced for a mass readership (the concepts presented are stated in common language, clearly explained) and contains no adult language or situations. I marked up the copy lent to me (oops!), anyone reading it will be well served to buy their own copy.

As a therapist, I found the fifth chapter (entitled "The Bipolar Epidemic and the Chameleon Effect") of this book to be most helpful. Therein, the authors address the power a diagnosis has on those who are diagnosed, those who treat them and the outcomes to be expected once a diagnosis has been named. One cannot "throw the baby out with the bath" when it comes to diagnosis, but those of us who weld the "power" to name another's affliction must hold that responsibility in greater regard for the welfare of the client, not the convenience of an insurance carrier. The authors did help me to better understand the dramatic increase in the diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder in the last 10 years (here is a hint, easing the requirements for the diagnosis and money became a part of the equation).

As a theologian, this book reminded me of the power words have in the living of life. I have witnessed how religion has been used as a weapon against the defenseless, a weight on the oppressed, a burden on the broken. I have also witnessed how faith can bring healing, hope, assurance, freedom and acceptance. Those who desire to be transformed, to be "swayed" in a direction that is redemptive, can do so, in part, by remembering Paul's words to the Philippians (4:8) where he urges God's people to live with "whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable" at the forefront of our minds. This will not eliminate all that could "sway" us into irrational behavior, but it will give us cause to rise to a level of expectation, action and behavior that will limit the possible effects of that sway.

http://www.amazon.com/Sway-Irresistible-Pull-Irrational-Behavior/product-reviews/0385530609/ref=cm_cr_dp_synop?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending#R29OWM01M063DT