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Barry Schwartz Quotes

From the perspective of a model of decision making that is future oriented, being sensitive to sunk costs is a mistake.

Barry Schwartz

From the perspective of a model of decision making that is future oriented, being sensitive to sunk costs is a mistake.

People tend to avoid taking risks—they are risk averse—when they are deciding among potential gains, potential positive outcomes.

Barry Schwartz

People tend to avoid taking risks—they are risk averse—when they are deciding among potential gains, potential positive outcomes.

About Author
Barry Schwartz may refer to:

Barry Schwartz (psychologist) (born 1946), American psychologist
Barry Schwartz (technologist) (born 1980), blogger and reporter who writes about search engines and search engine marketing
Barry K. Schwartz (born 1942), American businessman, Thoroughbred racehorse owner, and former horse racing industry executive
Barry Schwartz (sociologist) (1938–2021), American sociologist

We are surrounded by modern, time-saving devices, but we never seem to have enough time.

Barry Schwartz

We are surrounded by modern, time-saving devices, but we never seem to have enough time.

As I mentioned in Chapter 4, economist Fred Hirsch argued in his book Social Limits to Growth that while technological development may continue to increase the number of people who can be fed from an...

Barry Schwartz

As I mentioned in Chapter 4, economist Fred Hirsch argued in his book Social Limits to Growth that while technological development may continue to increase the number of people who can be fed from an...

Seligman’s discovery of learned helplessness has had a monumental impact in many different areas of psychology. Hundreds of studies leave no doubt that we can learn that we don’t have control.

Barry Schwartz

Seligman’s discovery of learned helplessness has had a monumental impact in many different areas of psychology. Hundreds of studies leave no doubt that we can learn that we don’t have control.

You will depend on how you do your accounting. People often talk jokingly about how creative accountants can make a corporate balance sheet look as good or as bad as they want it to look. Well, the po...

Barry Schwartz

You will depend on how you do your accounting. People often talk jokingly about how creative accountants can make a corporate balance sheet look as good or as bad as they want it to look. Well, the po...

I want a pair of jeans—32–28, I said. Do you want them slim fit, easy fit, relaxed fit, baggy, or extra baggy? she replied. Do you want them stonewashed, acid-washed, or distressed? Do you want them b...

Barry Schwartz

I want a pair of jeans—32–28, I said. Do you want them slim fit, easy fit, relaxed fit, baggy, or extra baggy? she replied. Do you want them stonewashed, acid-washed, or distressed? Do you want them b...

Following the other suggestions I’ve made may sometimes mean that when judged by an absolute standard, the results of decisions will be less good than they might otherwise have been—all the more reaso...

Barry Schwartz

Following the other suggestions I’ve made may sometimes mean that when judged by an absolute standard, the results of decisions will be less good than they might otherwise have been—all the more reaso...

Satisfaction treadmill. Suppose that in addition to adapting to particular objects or experiences, you also adapt to particular levels of satisfaction. In other words, suppose that with great ingenuit...

Barry Schwartz

Satisfaction treadmill. Suppose that in addition to adapting to particular objects or experiences, you also adapt to particular levels of satisfaction. In other words, suppose that with great ingenuit...

We would be better off if we lowered our expectations about the results of decisions

Barry Schwartz

We would be better off if we lowered our expectations about the results of decisions

The illusion that each person can have the body that he or she wants is especially painful for women, and especially in societies, like ours, in which the ideal body is extremely thin.

Barry Schwartz

The illusion that each person can have the body that he or she wants is especially painful for women, and especially in societies, like ours, in which the ideal body is extremely thin.

The very wealth of options before us may turn us from choosers into pickers. A chooser is someone who thinks actively about the possibilities before making a decision. A chooser reflects on what's imp...

Barry Schwartz

The very wealth of options before us may turn us from choosers into pickers. A chooser is someone who thinks actively about the possibilities before making a decision. A chooser reflects on what's imp...

On "idea technology"--Science creates ideas, science creates ways of understanding. And in the social sciences, ways of understanding ourselves. And they have an enormous influence on how we think, wh...

Barry Schwartz

on "idea technology"--Science creates ideas, science creates ways of understanding. And in the social sciences, ways of understanding ourselves. And they have an enormous influence on how we think, wh...

Tags: ideas, influence, knowledge, science, social science, theory

According to standard economic assumptions, the only opportunity costs that should figure into a decision are the ones associated with the next-best alternative.

Barry Schwartz

According to standard economic assumptions, the only opportunity costs that should figure into a decision are the ones associated with the next-best alternative.

Buying jeans is a trivial matter, but it suggests a much larger theme we will pursue throughout this book, which is this: When people have no choice, life is almost unbearable.

Barry Schwartz

Buying jeans is a trivial matter, but it suggests a much larger theme we will pursue throughout this book, which is this: When people have no choice, life is almost unbearable.

Because of a ubiquitous feature of human psychology, very little in life turns out quite as good as we expect it will be.

Barry Schwartz

Because of a ubiquitous feature of human psychology, very little in life turns out quite as good as we expect it will be.

When you hear the same story everywhere you look and listen, you assume it must be true. And the more people believe it’s true, the more likely they are to repeat it, and thus the more likely you are...

Barry Schwartz

When you hear the same story everywhere you look and listen, you assume it must be true. And the more people believe it’s true, the more likely they are to repeat it, and thus the more likely you are...

When you hear the same story everywhere you look and listen, you assume it must be true.

Barry Schwartz

When you hear the same story everywhere you look and listen, you assume it must be true.

A large array of options may discourage consumers because it forces an increase in the effort that goes into making a decision. So consumers decide not to decide, and don’t buy the product. Or if they...

Barry Schwartz

A large array of options may discourage consumers because it forces an increase in the effort that goes into making a decision. So consumers decide not to decide, and don’t buy the product. Or if they...

Theme we will pursue throughout this book, which is this: When people have no choice, life is almost unbearable. As the number of available choices increases, as it has in our consumer culture, the au...

Barry Schwartz

Theme we will pursue throughout this book, which is this: When people have no choice, life is almost unbearable. As the number of available choices increases, as it has in our consumer culture, the au...