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Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior | 
| Authors: Ori Brafman, Rom Brafman
Publisher: Doubleday Business
Category: Book
List Price: $21.95
Buy New: $12.15
You Save: $9.80 (45%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  22 reviews
Sales Rank: 186
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 224
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.8 x 0.7
ISBN: 0385524382
Dewey Decimal Number: 155.92
EAN: 9780385524384
ASIN: 0385524382
Publication Date: June 3, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
A fascinating journey into the hidden psychological influences that derail our decision-making, Sway will change the way you think about the way you think.
Why is it so difficult to sell a plummeting stock or end a doomed relationship? Why do we listen to advice just because it came from someone “important”? Why are we more likely to fall in love when there’s danger involved? In Sway, renowned organizational thinker Ori Brafman and his brother, psychologist Rom Brafman, answer all these questions and more.
Drawing on cutting-edge research from the fields of social psychology, behavioral economics, and organizational behavior, Sway reveals dynamic forces that influence every aspect of our personal and business lives, including loss aversion (our tendency to go to great lengths to avoid perceived losses), the diagnosis bias (our inability to reevaluate our initial diagnosis of a person or situation), and the “chameleon effect” (our tendency to take on characteristics that have been arbitrarily assigned to us).
Sway introduces us to the Harvard Business School professor who got his students to pay $204 for a $20 bill, the head of airline safety whose disregard for his years of training led to the transformation of an entire industry, and the football coach who turned conventional strategy on its head to lead his team to victory. We also learn the curse of the NBA draft, discover why interviews are a terrible way to gauge future job performance, and go inside a session with the Supreme Court to see how the world’s most powerful justices avoid the dangers of group dynamics.
Every once in a while, a book comes along that not only challenges our views of the world but changes the way we think. In Sway, Ori and Rom Brafman not only uncover rational explanations for a wide variety of irrational behaviors but also point readers toward ways to avoid succumbing to their pull.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 17 more reviews...
 Alcoholics-Kings of Irrational Behavior-and Their Spiritual Solutiion July 19, 2008
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
Many have come to adopt a definition of insanity that is supposed to represent the alcoholic's "stinking thinking" or warped state of mind. They will say that "insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting the result to be different." I disagree, and I have written widely on my point.God and Alcoholism: Our Growing Opportunity in the 21st Century; By the Power of God: A Guide To Early A.A. Groups and Forming Similar Groups Today ; Why Early A.A. Succeeded: The Good Book in Alcoholics Anonymous Yesterday and Today. My view of the alcoholic's supposed "insanity" is that he does the same thing over and over and KNOWS the result will be the same. That's the irrational behavior. What are the forces that cause the alcoholic-involuntarily perhaps-to pursue dangerous behavior over and over again, get a brief reprieve, and then turn around again to do the same thing and get the same result. There's no expectation of a difference, but rather a knowledge of an inevitable disaster while ignoring the consequences. That's nuts. Now why bring it up here? The reason is that I fault any discussion of irrational behavior, and the sway and pull, if it overlooks some important factors in the alcoholism, smoking, drug addiction, and gambling scene. People know the consequences, but they repeat the behavior again and again. Early AAs favored the Book of James in the Bible. And the first chapter of James describes the problem of TEMPTATION and its inevitable consequence if one yields to it.The James Club and the Original A.A. Program's Absolute Essentials. A person knows he'll get drunk if he always gets drunk and gets in trouble. Despite the known disaster, he drinks or smokes, or shoots up or gambles, yet reaps the same vomit and mire. That's irrational. But it ignores the other thing that the Book of James talks about--the solution. James 4:7 says: Submit yourselves therefore to God; resist the devil, and he will flee from you. The scientist doesn't necessarily like to here Bible talk. But the early AAs did. They relied on God to help them and guide them and strengthen them against temptation. Then they tried to obey God and grow in the relationship with Him. And their last rule was to give love and service to someone still suffering.When Early AAs Were Cured and Why, Third Edition It was a program of will-power coupled with humble submission to the Creator for the power, strength, and direction to exercise the will-power sanely and successfully. In short, I'd always welcome a product that emphasized the role of the Adversary and the potential from the Creator and the Adversary in the problem of irrational behavior. Spiritual tools for a spiritual problem.The Golden Text of A.A.: God, the Pioneers, and Real Spirituality.)
 Smartest book I have read this year. July 18, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Wow! What a fabulous,timely, and perhaps overdue book. I was particularly impressed by their discussions of altruism versus addiction, and their ability to tie it to modern day screw-ups. Absolute Must-read for 2008. I am looking forward to their next book.
Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior July 17, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I thoroughly enjoyed this book! A friend recommended this book to me and I enjoyed it so much that I bought 3 copies for friends. The book will definitely get you thinking about how irrational we can be! With some of the examples, I saw myself and in others I saw people I know. It made me think but also made me laugh. There are other moments that even though a behavior may be irrational, it is a choice I would still make. Irrational is not always a bad thing! Other times, such as the job interview questions, it's important to question why we ask what we ask and what is it we really want to know.
There were moments that were, in a sense, disturbing as when a person will agree with everyone in a room simply because s/he does not want to be different.
A lot to think about and an easy read. I do recommend this book.
a good read July 12, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
a lot of the research they cite will be well known to the studious reader, but still, a worthwhile addition, and an easy pleasant read
"People aren't rational." July 10, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
The latest book on why people sometimes behave illogically is "Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior," by the Brafman brothers. Ori has a PhD in psychology and Rom is a graduate of the Stanford Business School. They tell engrossing stories, each of which illuminates a principle of human behavior, and pose such intriguing questions as: Why would an experienced pilot who values the safety of his passengers take unnecessary risks? Why did the Challenger Space Shuttle go up even after "engineers from the company that build the O-ring recommended that the launch be delayed"? Why would a group of emergency room doctors fail to treat an obviously sick two-year-old girl? Why are most job interviews a complete waste of time and energy?
The answers will surprise you, but the basic theme is that we tend to be unduly influenced by other people and by our own preconceived notions. Instead of using our intellects to objectively analyze each situation on its merits, "we often ignore all evidence that contradicts what we want to believe." The authors' premise has widespread implications for every aspect of our lives: government, the economy, education, and of course, our professional and personal relationships.
"Sway" is clearly written, entertaining, and enlightening. The authors illustrate their ideas using a variety of eye-opening examples from medicine, sports, finance, archaeology, and even the world of game shows. If you take the Brafmans' message to heart, you may decide to think before you act, instead of being swayed to do things that will make you feel sorry later.
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