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*Major New York Times Bestseller
*More than 2.6 million copies sold
*One of
The New York Times Book Review's ten best books of the year
*Selected by
The Wall Street Journal as one of the best nonfiction books of the year
*Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipient
*Daniel Kahneman's work with Amos Tversky is the subject of Michael Lewis's best-selling
The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds

In his mega bestseller, Thinking, Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman, world-famous psychologist and winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics, takes us on a groundbreaking tour of the mind and explains the two systems that drive the way we think.

System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberative, and more logical. The impact of overconfidence on corporate strategies, the difficulties of predicting what will make us happy in the future, the profound effect of cognitive biases on everything from playing the stock market to planning our next vacation―each of these can be understood only by knowing how the two systems shape our judgments and decisions.

Engaging the reader in a lively conversation about how we think, Kahneman reveals where we can and cannot trust our intuitions and how we can tap into the benefits of slow thinking. He offers practical and enlightening insights into how choices are made in both our business and our personal lives―and how we can use different techniques to guard against the mental glitches that often get us into trouble. Topping bestseller lists for almost ten years,
Thinking, Fast and Slow is a contemporary classic, an essential book that has changed the lives of millions of readers.


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From the Publisher

Praise for Thinking, Fast and Slow

Thinking Fast and Slow Daniel Kahneman

Thinking Fast and Slow Daniel Kahneman

Thinking Fast and Slow Daniel Kahneman

Editorial Reviews

Review

“It is an astonishingly rich book: lucid, profound, full of intellectual surprises and self-help value. It is consistently entertaining . . . So impressive is its vision of flawed human reason that the New York Times columnist David Brooks recently declared that Kahneman and Tversky's work ‘will be remembered hundreds of years from now,' and that it is ‘a crucial pivot point in the way we see ourselves.'”
Jim Holt, The New York Times Book Review

“There have been many good books on human rationality and irrationality, but only one masterpiece. That masterpiece is Daniel Kahneman's
Thinking, Fast and Slow . . . This is one of the greatest and most engaging collections of insights into the human mind I have read.”
William Easterly, Financial Times

“I will never think about thinking quite the same. [
Thinking, Fast and Slow] is a monumental achievement.”
Roger Lowenstein, Bloomberg/Businessweek

“Brilliant . . . It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of Daniel Kahneman's contribution to the understanding of the way we think and choose. He stands among the giants, a weaver of the threads of Charles Darwin, Adam Smith and Sigmund Freud. Arguably the most important psychologist in history, Kahneman has reshaped cognitive psychology, the analysis of rationality and reason, the understanding of risk and the study of happiness and well-being.”
Janice Gross Stein, The Globe and Mail

"Everyone should read
Thinking, Fast and Slow.”
Jesse Singal, Boston Globe

“[
Thinking, Fast and Slow] is wonderful. To anyone with the slightest interest in the workings of his own mind, it is so rich and fascinating that any summary would seem absurd.”
Michael Lewis, Vanity Fair

“Profound . . . As Copernicus removed the Earth from the centre of the universe and Darwin knocked humans off their biological perch, Mr. Kahneman has shown that we are not the paragons of reason we assume ourselves to be.”
The Economist

“[A] tour de force of psychological insight, research explication and compelling narrative that brings together in one volume the high points of Mr. Kahneman's notable contributions, over five decades, to the study of human judgment, decision-making and choice . . . Thanks to the elegance and force of his ideas, and the robustness of the evidence he offers for them, he has helped us to a new understanding of our divided minds―and our whole selves.”
Christoper F. Chabris, The Wall Street Journal

“A major intellectual event . . . The work of Kahneman and Tversky was a crucial pivot point in the way we see ourselves.”
David Brooks, The New York Times

“For anyone interested in economics, cognitive science, psychology, and, in short, human behavior, this is the book of the year. Before Malcolm Gladwell and
Freakonomics, there was Daniel Kahneman, who invented the field of behavior economics, won a Nobel . . . and now explains how we think and make choices. Here's an easy choice: read this.”
The Daily Beast

“Daniel Kahneman is one of the most original and interesting thinkers of our time. There may be no other person on the planet who better understands how and why we make the choices we make. In this absolutely amazing book, he shares a lifetime's worth of wisdom presented in a manner that is simple and engaging, but nonetheless stunningly profound. This book is a must read for anyone with a curious mind.”
Steven D. Levitt, William B. Ogden Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago; co-author of Freakonomics and SuperFreakonomics

Thinking, Fast and Slow is a masterpiece―a brilliant and engaging intellectual saga by one of the greatest psychologists and deepest thinkers of our time. Kahneman should be parking a Pulitzer next to his Nobel Prize.”
Daniel Gilbert, Harvard University Professor of Psychology, author of Stumbling on Happiness, host of the award-winning PBS television series "This Emotional Life"

“This is a landmark book in social thought, in the same league as
The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith and The Interpretation of Dreams by Sigmund Freud.
Nassim Taleb, author of The Black Swan

“Daniel Kahneman is among the most influential psychologists in history and certainly the most important psychologist alive today. He has a gift for uncovering remarkable features of the human mind, many of which have become textbook classics and part of the conventional wisdom. His work has reshaped social psychology, cognitive science, the study of reason and of happiness, and behavioral economics, a field that he and his collaborator Amos Tversky helped to launch. The appearance of
Thinking, Fast and Slow is a major event.”
Steven Pinker, Harvard College Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and author of How the Mind Works and The Better Angels of our Nature

About the Author

Daniel Kahneman was the Eugene Higgins Professor of Psychology Emeritus at Princeton University and a former professor of public affairs at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. He received the 2002 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his pioneering work with Amos Tversky on decision-making. He is the author of the international bestseller Thinking, Fast and Slow. He died in 2024.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Farrar, Straus and Giroux; First Edition (April 2, 2013)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 512 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0374533555
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0374533557
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 15.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.51 x 1.46 x 8.23 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 45,033 ratings

About the author

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Daniel Kahneman
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Daniel Kahneman (Hebrew: דניאל כהנמן‎, born March 5, 1934) is an Israeli-American psychologist notable for his work on the psychology of judgment and decision-making, as well as behavioral economics, for which he was awarded the 2002 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (shared with Vernon L. Smith). His empirical findings challenge the assumption of human rationality prevailing in modern economic theory. With Amos Tversky and others, Kahneman established a cognitive basis for common human errors that arise from heuristics and biases (Kahneman & Tversky, 1973; Kahneman, Slovic & Tversky, 1982; Tversky & Kahneman, 1974), and developed prospect theory (Kahneman & Tversky, 1979).

In 2011, he was named by Foreign Policy magazine to its list of top global thinkers. In the same year, his book Thinking, Fast and Slow, which summarizes much of his research, was published and became a best seller. He is professor emeritus of psychology and public affairs at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School. Kahneman is a founding partner of TGG Group, a business and philanthropy consulting company. He is married to Royal Society Fellow Anne Treisman.

In 2015 The Economist listed him as the seventh most influential economist in the world.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by see page for author [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
45,033 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the book interesting, erudite, and entertaining. They also say it explains a lot about human behavior and is thought-provoking. Opinions are mixed on readability and length, with some finding it comprehensible and intuitive, while others say it's difficult to read and dry.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

1,660 customers mention "Insight"1,660 positive0 negative

Customers find the book interesting and well-written. They say it enlightens and entertains the reader. Readers mention the book provides valuable insights into unconsciously lazy mental habits.

"......" Read more

"...This very well written book will enlighten and entertain the reader, especially if the reader is not exposed to the full range of research relating..." Read more

"...ideas regarding human thought, but rather as an interesting framework regarding thought processes and a different perspective on the way we process..." Read more

"...System 1 is impulsive, and provides heuristic and intuitive guesses and reactions to stimuli without prompting. It can't be turned off...." Read more

564 customers mention "Impact"459 positive105 negative

Customers find the book's impact incredibly important, engaging, and compelling. They say it explains a lot about human behavior and is highly influential. Readers also mention that the research behind the book is highly influential and curious.

"...Choices, and Part V. Two Selves.Positives:1. Award-winning research. A masterpiece of behavioral economics knowledge...." Read more

"...The basis thesis of the book is simple. In judging the world around us, we use two mental systems: Fast and Slow...." Read more

"...Overall, I enjoyed Kahneman's engaging use of examples and simple "mini-experiments" which allowed me to try and witness the results firsthand...." Read more

"...He writes in an unassuming, humble, curious way that made each anecdote or cited study a joy to read...." Read more

313 customers mention "Thought provoking"313 positive0 negative

Customers find the book thought-provoking and challenging to read. They say it's a masterclass in psychology and how we think. Readers also mention the book is useful and brilliant.

"...20. Great stuff on well being.21. An excellent Conclusions chapter that ties the book up comprehensively.Negatives:1...." Read more

"...But it's also responsible for remarkably well-tuned intuitions, fast information-processing, "muscle memory," pattern-matching, intensity matching,..." Read more

"...we attach value to a reference number, even if we shouldn't, particularly useful, and very valuable when approaching a negotiation...." Read more

"...of this interactive form of writing is a deeper appreciation of our individual intrinsic biases..." Read more

61 customers mention "Value for money"61 positive0 negative

Customers find the book well worth the investment. They say it's valuable for personal and private lives. Readers also mention it's useful in sales, management, trading, and everyday life.

"...It requires an investment of your time but it so well worth it. A tremendous Kindle value don't hesitate to get this book...." Read more

"...But absolutely worth it!! Amazing insights....a must read!" Read more

"Very tasty a good value" Read more

"...It's a long read but worth it...." Read more

33 customers mention "Clarity"33 positive0 negative

Customers find the book provides a clear, easy-to-understand foundation. They say it offers a wonderfully clear perspective on our vulnerabilities in making important decisions. Readers also mention it's eye-opening and stimulating.

"...having learned much about these sciences - in a way that is accurate, clear, and understandable...." Read more

"It’s a solid read. Tons to learn. Humbling and eye opening. What I’ve done is read a chapter a week or a day...." Read more

"The first half of the book was great. Eye opening and clear in how our fast thinking can lead us astray...." Read more

"...Thinking Fast and Slow is a remarkably clear view of how a human brain perceives and interprets the medium in which it has evolved..." Read more

939 customers mention "Readability"612 positive327 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the readability of the book. Some mention it's comprehensible and intuitive, while others say it's difficult to read and the writing style feels long and dry.

"...3. Excellent format. Each chapter is well laid out and ends with a Speaking of section that summarizes the content via quotes.4...." Read more

"...it's also responsible for remarkably well-tuned intuitions, fast information-processing, "muscle memory," pattern-matching, intensity matching, face..." Read more

"...It's distracted and hard to engage. These two systems together provide a backdrop for our cognitive biases and achievements...." Read more

"...There is thoughtful, research-based advice on when to rely on an "expert" and when not...." Read more

101 customers mention "Length"44 positive57 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the length of the book. Some mention it's long and extensive, while others say it's probably 150 pages too long.

"...It was honestly extremely extensively long with extremely huge walls of text on small font typography that made it a strain on the eyes and killing..." Read more

"...Chapters are short, usually 8~16 pages, and they always concentrate on some nugget or fallacy that could be later referenced by a single term, like "..." Read more

"...read, it is well written but some of the concept are tough, fairly long, but ready a little quicker then the 400+ pagesSummary..." Read more

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39 customers mention "Density"20 positive19 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the book's density. Some mention the material is very broad, while others say it needs some focus and good follow-up. They also mention the content is heavy and the book is printed on thicker paper than usual.

"...This book is dense and contains a wealth of data, but is worth the read, and for the more ambitious reader - the references section is equally rich..." Read more

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"A amazing book. Dense and slow but delicious reading...." Read more

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Cover was bent, black marks also
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Top reviews from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2014
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman

“Thinking, Fast and Slow” is a fascinating look at how the mind works. Drawing on knowledge acquired from years of research in cognitive and social psychology, Nobel Prize Winner, Dr. Daniel Kahneman delivers his magnum opus on Behavioral Economics. This excellent book focuses on the three key sets of distinctions: between the automatic System 1 and the effortful System 2, between the conception of agents in classical economics and in behavioral economics, and between the experiencing and the remembering selves. This enlightening 512-page book is composed of thirty-eight chapters and broken out by the following five Parts: Part I. Two Systems, Part II. Heuristics and Biases, Part III. Overconfidence, Part IV. Choices, and Part V. Two Selves.

Positives:
1. Award-winning research. A masterpiece of behavioral economics knowledge. Overall accessible.
2. Fascinating topic in the hands of a master. How the mind works. The biases of intuition, judgment, and decision making.
3. Excellent format. Each chapter is well laid out and ends with a Speaking of section that summarizes the content via quotes.
4. A great job of defining and summarizing new terms. "In summary, most of what you (your System 2) think and do originates in your System 1, but System 2 takes over when things get difficult, and it normally has the last word."
5. Supports findings with countless research. Provides many accessible and practical examples that help readers understand the insightful conclusions.
6. A great job of letting us what we know and to what degree. "It is now a well-established proposition that both self-control and cognitive effort are forms of mental work."
7. You are guaranteed to learn something. Countless tidbits of knowledge throughout this insightful book and how it applies to the read world. "The best possible account of the data provides bad news: tired and hungry judges tend to fall back on the easier default position of denying requests for parole. Both fatigue and hunger probably play a role."
8. The differences of Systems 1 and 2 and how they function with one another. "System 1 is impulsive and intuitive; System 2 is capable of reasoning, and it is cautious, but at least for some people it is also lazy." "System 1 is gullible and biased to believe, System 2 is in charge of doubting and unbelieving, but System 2 is sometimes busy, and often lazy."
9. Important recurring concepts like WYSIATI (What You See Is All There IS). "You surely understand in principle that worthless information should not be treated differently from a complete lack of information, but WYSIATI makes it very difficult to apply that principle."
10. Understanding heuristics and biases. "The strong bias toward believing that small samples closely resemble the population from which they are drawn is also part of a larger story: we are prone to exaggerate the consistency and coherence of what we see. The exaggerated faith of researchers in what can be learned from a few observations is closely related to the halo effect, the sense we often get that we know and understand a person about whom we actually know very little. System 1 runs ahead of the facts in constructing a rich image on the basis of scraps of evidence. A machine for jumping to conclusions will act as if it believed in the law of small numbers. More generally, it will produce a representation of reality that makes too much sense."
11. Paradoxical results for your enjoyment. "People are less confident in a choice when they are asked to produce more arguments to support it."
12. Understanding how our brains work, "The world in our heads is not a precise replica of reality; our expectations about the frequency of events are distorted by the prevalence and emotional intensity of the messages to which we are exposed."
13. Wisdom. "'Risk' does not exist 'out there,' independent of our minds and culture, waiting to be measured. Human beings have invented the concept of “risk” to help them understand and cope with the dangers and uncertainties of life. Although these dangers are real, there is no such thing as 'real risk' or 'objective risk.'" Bonus. "To be useful, your beliefs should be constrained by the logic of probability."
14. You will learn lessons that are practical. "Rewards for improved performance work better than punishment of mistakes."
15. An interesting look at overconfidence. "Our comforting conviction that the world makes sense rests on a secure foundation: our almost unlimited ability to ignore our ignorance." "Remember this rule: intuition cannot be trusted in the absence of stable regularities in the environment."
16. Have you ever had to plan anything in your life? Meet the planning fallacy. "This may be considered the single most important piece of advice regarding how to increase accuracy in forecasting through improved methods. Using such distributional information from other ventures similar to that being forecasted is called taking an “outside view” and is the cure to the planning fallacy."
17. A very interesting look at Econs and Humans. "Economists adopted expected utility theory in a dual role: as a logic that prescribes how decisions should be made, and as a description of how Econs make choices."
18. Prospect theory explained. "The pain of losing $900 is more than 90% of the pain of losing $1,000. These two insights are the essence of prospect theory."
19. Avoiding poor psychology. "The conclusion is straightforward: the decision weights that people assign to outcomes are not identical to the probabilities of these outcomes, contrary to the expectation principle. Improbable outcomes are overweighted—this is the possibility effect. Outcomes that are almost certain are underweighted relative to actual certainty. The expectation principle, by which values are weighted by their probability, is poor psychology."
20. Great stuff on well being.
21. An excellent Conclusions chapter that ties the book up comprehensively.

Negatives:
1. Notes not linked up.
2. No formal separate bibliography.
3. Requires an investment of time. Thankfully, the book is worthy of your time.
4. The book overall is very well-written and accessible but some topics are challenging.
5. Wanted more clarification on how Bayes's rules work.

In summary, a masterpiece on behavioral economics. Dr. Kahneman shares his years of research and provides readers with an education on how the mind works. It requires an investment of your time but it so well worth it. A tremendous Kindle value don't hesitate to get this book. I highly recommend it!

Further suggestions: "Subliminal" by Leonard Mlodinow, "Incognito" by David Eagleman, "Switch" by Chip and Dan Heath, “Drive: The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us” by Daniel H. Pink, “Blink” by Malcolm Gladwell, “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg, “Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't T Stop Talking” by Susan Cain, "The Social Animal" by David Brooks, "Who's In Charge" Michael S. Gazzaniga, "The Belief Instinct" by Jesse Bering, "50 Popular Beliefs that People Think Are True" by Guy P. Harrison, "The Believing Brain" by Michael Shermer, "Predictably Irrational" by Dan Ariely, "Are You Sure?" by Ginger Campbell, and "Mistakes Were Made But Not By Me" by Carol Tavris.
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Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2011
Back in 1994, Massimo Piattelli-Palmarini, Director of the Institute of San Raffaele in Milan, Italy, wrote a charming little book about common cognitive distortions called Inevitable Illusions. It is probably the very first comprehensive summary of behavioral economics intended for general audience. In it, he predicted that the two psychologists behind behavioral economics - Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman - would win the Nobel prize. I didn't disagree with the sentiment, but wondered how in the world were they going to get it since these two were psychologists and there is no Nobel prize in psychology. I didn't think there was much chance of them winning the Nobel Prize in economics. I was wrong and Piattelli-Palmarini was right. Kahneman won the Nobel prize in Economic Sciences. (Tversky unfortunately prematurely passed away by this time.) Just as Steve Jobs who was not in the music industry revolutionized it, the non-economists Kahneman and Tversky have revolutionized economic thinking. I have known Kahneman's work for quite some time and was quite excited to see that he was coming out with a non-technical version of his research. My expectations for the book were high and I wasn't disappointed.

Since other reviewers have given an excellent summary of the book, I will be brief in my summary but review the book more broadly.

The basis thesis of the book is simple. In judging the world around us, we use two mental systems: Fast and Slow. The Fast system (System 1) is mostly unconscious and makes snap judgments based on our past experiences and emotions. When we use this system we are as likely to be wrong as right. The Slow system (System 2) is rational, conscious and slow. They work together to provide us a view of the world around us.

So what's the problem? They are incompatible, that's what.

System 1 is fast, but easily swayed by emotions and can be as easily be wrong as be right. You buy more cans of soup when the display says "Limit 12 per customer". We are on autopilot with this system. System 1 controls an amazing array of behavior. System 2 is conscious, rational and careful but painfully slow. It's distracted and hard to engage. These two systems together provide a backdrop for our cognitive biases and achievements.

This very well written book will enlighten and entertain the reader, especially if the reader is not exposed to the full range of research relating to behavioral economics.

This book serves an antidote to Malcolm Gladwell's Blink. Although Gladwell never says that snap judgments are infallible and cannot badly mislead us, many readers got a different message. As the Royal Statistical Society's Significance magazine put it "Although Gladwell's chronicle of cognition shows how quick thinking can lead us both astray and aright, for many readers Blink has become a hymn to the hunch." While Kahneman does show how "fast thinking" can lead to sound judgments, he also notes how they can lead us astray. This point is made much more clearly and deliberately in Kahneman's book

All my admiration for the brilliance and creativity of Kahneman (and Tversky) does not mean that I accept 100% of their thesis. Consider this oft-quoted study. Linda is 31 years old, single, outspoken, and very bright. As a student, she was deeply concerned with the issues of discrimination and social justice, and she also participated in anti-nuclear demonstrations. Which is more probable?
1. Linda is a bank teller.
2. Linda is a bank teller and is active in the feminist movement.
Eighty-five percent of test subjects chose the second option, that Linda was a bank teller and active in the feminist movement. Kahneman's interpretation is that this opinion is wrong because the probability of a (random) woman being a bank teller is greater that than person's being a bank teller AND a feminist. What Kahneman overlooks here is that what most people answered may not be the question that was asked. The respondents may not have been concerned with mathematical probabilities, but rather could be responding to the question in reverse: Is it more likely for a current activist to have been an activist in the past compared to others in the profession? A more formal and theoretically better argued rebuttal of some of Kahneman's hypotheses can be found in the works of Gerd Gigerenzer.

Kahneman notes that even top performers in business and sports tend to revert to the mean in the long run. As a result, he attributes success largely to luck. I'm not so convinced of this. There can be alternative explanations. People who achieve high degree of success are also exposed to a high degree of failure and the reversion to the mean may be attributable to this possible mirror effect. Spectacular success may go with spectacular failure and run-of-the-mill success may go with run-of-the-mill failure. Eventually everyone may revert the mean, but the ride can be very different. Chance may not account for that.

Another concern is that much of the work is done in artificial settings (read college students). While much of what we learnt can perhaps be extended to the real world, it is doubtful every generalization will work in practice. Some may find Kahneman's endorsement of "libertarian paternelism," not acceptable. More importantly, when applied to the real world it did not always found to work.

In spite to these comments this book is written carefully in a rather humble tone. I also appreciated Kahneman's generous and unreserved acknowledgement of Tversky's contributions and his conviction that, had he been alive, Tversky would have been the co-recipient of the Nobel Prize. My cautionary comments probably have more to do with the distortions that might arise by those who uncritically generalize the findings to contexts for which they may not applicable. As mentioned earlier, the wide misinterpretation of Gladwell's Blink comes to mind.

Nevertheless, Thinking Fast and Slow is a very valuable book by one of the most creative minds in psychology. Highly recommended. For a more complete and critical understanding, I also recommend the writings of the critics of behavioral economic models such as Gerd Gigerenzer.

PS. After I published this review, I noticed an odd coincidence between Thinking Fast and Slow and Inevitable Illusions that I mentioned in my opening paragraph. Both books have white covers, with an image of a sharpened yellow pencil with an eraser top. How odd is that?
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Top reviews from other countries

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Regie
5.0 out of 5 stars I love it
Reviewed in Saudi Arabia on November 19, 2024
Awesome
Amazon Customer2
5.0 out of 5 stars A technical read
Reviewed in India on November 12, 2024
Very technical almost mathematical. But that's why i read it. Not for casual readers. In-depth explanation of how minds work. Very scientific. Is like reading a research paper.
Sal Pérez
5.0 out of 5 stars Intresting reading
Reviewed in Spain on October 23, 2024
The content is good and the format makes it very pleasant.
Andrzej Jablonski
5.0 out of 5 stars Thinking, fast and slow: Daniel Kahneman
Reviewed in Poland on July 23, 2024
Bardzo ciekawa.
Marco
5.0 out of 5 stars not bad
Reviewed in the Netherlands on June 22, 2024
not bad