The Art of Choosing
Sheena Iyengar, . . Hachette/Twelve, $25.99 (329pp) ISBN 978-0-446-50410-2
“Choice,” perhaps the highest good in the American socioeconomic lexicon, is a very mixed blessing, according to this fascinating study of decision making and its discontents. Psychologist Iyengar cites evidence that a paucity of choice can damage the mental and physical health of dogs, rats, and British civil servants alike. But, she contends, choice can also mislead and burden us: advertising manipulates us through the illusion of choice; a surfeit of choices can paralyze decision making; and some choices, like the decision to withdraw life support from a loved one, are so terrible that we are happier if we delegate them to others. Iyengar draws on everything from the
Reviewed on: 01/18/2010
Genre: Nonfiction