The Science of Fear: Why We Fear the Things We Shouldn't--and Put Ourselves in Greater Danger
By:
Daniel Gardner
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Average Customer Rating: 4.0 out of 5
Description:
From terror attacks to the war on terror, real estate bubbles to the price of oil, sexual predators to poisoned food from China, our list of fears is ever-growing. And yet, we are the safest and healthiest humans in history. Irrational fear seems to be taking over, often with tragic results. For example, in the months after 9/11, when people decided to drive instead of fly—believing they were avoiding risk—road deaths rose by more than 1,500.
In this fascinating, lucid, and thoroughly entertaining examination of how humans process risk, journalist Dan Gardner had the exclusive cooperation of Paul Slovic, the world renowned risk-science pioneer, as he reveals how our hunter gatherer brains struggle to make sense of a world utterly unlike the one that made them. Filled with illuminating real world examples, interviews with experts, and fast-paced, lean storytelling, The Science of Fear shows why it is truer than ever that the worst thing we have to fear is fear itself.
Publisher: Dutton Adult
Customer Review: 5 out of 5
This should be required reading - High school students should be required to read this and other books that promote skepticism and critical thinking. When opinion passes for journalism, and all of the avenues through which we get our information are controlled by special interests, it is essential for people to actively seek the opposing point of view. Unfortunately we are not taught at an early age to challenge the official story, to do our own research, gather evidence, observe facts, temper opinions, or use reason and logic to make decisions. We need these skills to keep ourselves out of the dark ages.
Customer Review: 5 out of 5
be afraid, be very afraid - Be afraid, its good for business. This is a journey into the fear industry. Daniel Gardner looks at how fearmongering is used sell products, to push a political agenda and how to keep people glued to every word that the TV talking heads have to say. For example, if obesity rates are causing us to die early, why does life expectancy keep rising? Why do Europeans fear GM food and yet smoke at a higher rate than americans (who are unconcerned by GM food)? This is a cheerful look at our deepest fears.
Customer Review: 4 out of 5
Debunking more myths - I like this book. This is one of those books that debunks common "knowledge" on subjects much like John Stossel's or Bernard Goldberg's works. In the first part of the book, the author goes into detail describing why we think the way we do. It is a bit long in detail in the explanation of why we believe what we believe, but the information is used as a basis to explain the rest of the book. As for detail in the rest of the book, the examples used are numerous and credible. I could have gotten the points with fewer examples, but many readers may find this level of detail comforting or more convincing.
The second half of the book takes on different aspects of the way we view fear. The author covers crime, chemicals, cancer, terrorism, and other subjects that have high fear content. He exposes the relative dangers versus the absolute dangers in these areas. He concludes that there has never been a better time to be alive.
One thing that struck me about the book is that the author spends plenty of time describing how "Gut" and "Head" determine how we think. Gut usually prevails, but the author's argument is that it is often wrong. However, he makes his argument in statistics and numbers, which are completely geared for the Head. Maybe that is because he isn't trying to scare us.
I learned a lot from the book and will view the information I receive from news sources, advertising, and other means with a more informed point of view.
Customer Review: 5 out of 5
Very good read - We thought this book was very interesting and certainly gives a good picture of why we make some of the decisions that we do (and why advertising execs make the decisions they do . . .). It was well-written, well-researched and well-organized. I do think some of the authors personal opinions/views (politically, etc.) were apparent (and I tend to disagree with some of his views) but I don't believe they interfered with the overall intent of the book. Worth reading for sure!
Customer Review: 5 out of 5
If you thought that was scary..... - Daniel Gardner has done a wonderful job creating a fast-read with good solid research. The Science of Fear points out how easily we are fooled by the way we process the massive amount of information we receive. Gardner compares our decisions made with our Head versus those made with our Gut, referring to our ability to use critical thinking versus our tendency to use our instinctual mind. Critical thinking would tell me that flying is safer than driving. After 9/11 my instinctual mind told me that planes are dangerous.
The book covers the evolutionary psychological concepts of Confirmation bias ( I see what I already believe), the Law of Similarity (appearance equals reality), the Anchoring and adjustment heuristic (influenced by what I just heard), the Rule of Typical things (things that usually go together always go together), and the Example Rule (a story is more powerful than statistical data). Each of these is explored in entertaining detail and backed up by academic research.
The main focus of the book is that our emotions often overrule our critical thinking skills. We are convinced through anecdote, stories we recently heard, stray statistical information that is incorrect and incorrectly cited, how we feel about events, and our life experience. We see something on talk TV and are convinced that it is true. Many people around us are sure of their information and we are swayed by their conviction. We are told by some commercial that we are at risk from strangers, dangers, disease and drugs and we change our buying habits. We hear that 600 people die in the US every year from something and we demand new laws.
How dangerous is the world? Gardner would argue not as dangerous as we have convinced ourselves. Our very complex brains still respond to danger they way our evolutionary ancestors did, listen to the herd and run, or fight, if there is something we do not understand. Gardner's suggestion? Focus on what we have to be grateful for.
This is a great read. I recommend it to anyone interested in brain research, human behavior, human cognition, and group behavior. It is fun, well balanced and well supported.
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