[[Category:New Reviews|Politics and Society]]
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{{newreview
|title=The Why Axis: Hidden Motives and the Undiscovered Economics of Everyday Life
|author=Uri Gneezy and John List
|rating=5
|genre=Politics and Society
|summary=Wow! This is a most surprising economics book.
Behavioral economists (if you’ll excuse the American spelling) investigate people’s buying behaviour and consuming patterns. I guess we know about that already because supermarkets here lull us into buying three for the price of two, to come back next week for £10 off a £100, or to garner extra points on a loyalty card (Oh why can’t they just go for a cheaper price at the point of sale? Why do profits have to be in double percentage point increases year on year?). A fair bit of manipulation to ensure that a company survives is already part and parcel of our lives. If you’d asked me before I read this book, I would have lined up that sort of consumer marketing psychology alongside banking as profiteering. However … these guys are different: they really do seem to care about the plight of the underprivileged, and they come from an academic setting, rather than a commercial one.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847946747</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview
|author=Alain de Botton
When the earthquake struck, Katz was unexpectedly thrown into the thick of the action. As the only American reporter on the ground at the time of the quake, he felt duty-bound to break news of unfolding events to an oblivious world.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>023034187X</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview
|author=Jean M Twenge and W Keith Campbell
|title=The Narcissism Epidemic: Living in the Age of Entitlement
|rating=4.5
|genre=Politics and Society
|summary=Twenge and Campbell have been studying the rise in narcissism as a social trend. They are well-qualified to comment, having worked since 1998 with social psychologist Roy Baumeister, who pioneered research in this field. At more than three hundred pages it's rather weighty for the popular market at which it's aimed, but even if you only dip into this book, I think you'll take home their message.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1416575987</amazonuk>
}}