Psychologie
11 cards from across every topic, each citing a source. Tap one to open it in the feed.
- The good old days were never as good as you remember.
In studies by Mitchell and Thompson, travellers rated the same trip far more positively afterwards than during it – …
- The middle option only exists so you buy the big one.
With the decoy effect, a seller slips in a deliberately unattractive option. Small coffee €3, large €4.50: many pick …
- The package insert can cause side effects.
Nocebo is the opposite of placebo: expecting harm produces real symptoms. In trial placebo groups, participants …
- Why a pay rise often doesn't make you richer.
Lifestyle creep is the effect of spending growing along with income: bigger flat, better car, pricier restaurants. What …
- Why a tax refund feels different from salary.
Mental accounting means you sort money into mental buckets even though every euro is worth the same. A €500 refund gets …
- Why almost nothing costs €10 but everything costs €9.99.
Reading left to right, the first digit anchors most strongly. €9.99 gets stored by your brain as nine-something rather …
- Why every collapse looks 'inevitable' in hindsight.
Hindsight bias makes you treat an outcome you know as having been predictable. The fall of Rome, the Reformation, the …
- Why every disaster looks predictable in hindsight.
Hindsight bias: once you know the outcome, it seems like the most likely one all along. Baruch Fischhoff showed in 1975 …
- Why the crossed-out price makes you buy.
The anchoring effect means the first number you see distorts your judgement. A €49 jumper seems expensive. Put a …
- Why you take €100 today but want €110 in a year.
Question 1: €100 today or €110 in a week? Most take the €100. Question 2: €100 in 52 weeks or €110 in 53? Now almost …
- You pay more by card. For the very same thing.
In an experiment by economists Prelec and Simester, participants bid up to twice as much for sought-after sports …