Dan ArielyNobel Conference 52

James B. Duke Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics, Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, Durham, NC, and founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight.

Lecture: The (Honest) Truth about Dishonesty

Dan Ariely has devoted his professional energies to investigating why people think they are behaving in one way, when they are actually doing something completely different. By blending economic theory with ‘irrationality’, Ariely has learned how to make better decisions in his own life and seeks to help the rest of us do so as well. Lying, cheating, relationship decisions, and impressing others are some of the behaviors that fascinate Ariely. In his book Predictably Irrational, Ariely explains that ‘irrational’ behavior is, in fact, pretty rational. Understanding this enables one to predict everything from marriage proposals to wine selections to market investment timing.

Dan Ariely received a BA in psychology from Tel Aviv University in 1991, an MA and PhD in cognitive psychology from UNC-Chapel Hill, and a second PhD, in business administration, from Duke University. He is the author of four books, including The Honest Truth About Dishonesty, which was the subject of his lecture. The Center for Advanced Hindsight, the research lab he founded in 2007, engages a large and unruly crew of people in the service of making behavioral economics science accessible to everyone. The Lab’s goal is to “study, design, test and implement behavioral interventions that help people be happier, healthier and wealthier”.

Dr. Ariely has a blog/Facebook page/Wall Street Journal column, "Ask Ariely." Here's a sampling of Ask Ariely