Listen free for 30 days

Preview
  • Misbelief

  • What Makes Rational People Believe Irrational Things
  • Written by: Dan Ariely
  • Narrated by: Simon Jones
  • Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins
  • 4.9 out of 5 stars (9 ratings)

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Misbelief

Written by: Dan Ariely
Narrated by: Simon Jones
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $32.62

Buy Now for $32.62

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

The renowned social scientist, professor, and bestselling author of Predictably Irrational delivers his most urgent and compelling book—an eye-opening exploration of the human side of the misinformation crisis—examining what drives otherwise rational people to adopt deeply irrational beliefs.

Misinformation affects all of us on a daily basis—from social media to larger political challenges, from casual conversations in supermarkets, to even our closest relationships. While we recognize the dangers that misinformation poses, the problem is complex—far beyond what policing social media alone can achieve—and too often our limited solutions are shaped by partisan politics and individual interpretations of truth.

In Misbelief, preeminent social scientist Dan Ariely argues that to understand the irrational appeal of misinformation, we must first understand the behavior of “misbelief”—the psychological and social journey that leads people to mistrust accepted truths, entertain alternative facts, and even embrace full-blown conspiracy theories. Misinformation, it turns out, appeals to something innate in all of us—on the right and the left—and it is only by understanding this psychology that we can blunt its effects. Grounded in years of study as well as Ariely’s own experience as a target of disinformation, Misbelief is an eye-opening and comprehensive analysis of the psychological drivers that cause otherwise rational people to adopt deeply irrational beliefs. Utilizing the latest research, Ariely reveals the key elements—emotional, cognitive, personality, and social—that drive people down the funnel of false information and mistrust, showing how under the right circumstances, anyone can become a misbeliever.

Yet Ariely also offers hope. Even as advanced artificial intelligence has become capable of generating convincing fake news stories at an unprecedented scale, he shows that awareness of these forces fueling misbelief make us, as individuals and as a society, more resilient to its allure. Combating misbelief requires a strategy rooted not in conflict, but in empathy. The sooner we recognize that misbelief is above all else a human problem, the sooner we can become the solution ourselves.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2023 Dan Ariely (P)2023 HarperCollins Publishers
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about Misbelief

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    8
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

“So that’s why…”

Objective, thoughtful and nonjudgmental - the book answers so many questions about the increasing number of people (it seems) that believe fake news.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Understand Others Better

If you've been puzzled over how people can have such different views, Dan Ariely helps solve the mystery. The primary example is COVID-19, which affected Ariely in eye-opening ways. Besides his first person perspective, we get research. The results are educational and entertaining.

My main issue is with the narration. While Simon Jones is wonderful in The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, his voice doesn't seem like the right fit here. Others will likely disagree, which is fine.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Research that is not “I did my own research”

A book everyone in 2023 and beyond should read!

We all know someone who, maybe because of Covid, or Trump or the climate crisis, has shocked us with their wild beliefs. If you are baffled by someone specific or groups of people, have a listen.

I’m sorry for the person attacks on you Dan Ariely, but thank you for being curious, and an actual researcher, and writing this book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!