2009 Headlines
Professor Robert Frank's latest book is now available
The Economic Naturalist's Field Guide: Common Sense Principles for Troubled Times
May 25, 2009 | Ithaca, NY | "Long before there was Malcolm Gladwell, Steve Levitt, and Tim Harford, Robert Frank had begun to critique the way his fellow economists thought about and taught 'the dismal science.'"—Washington Post
Next to lawyers, economists have long been regarded with suspicion by the general public. According to Robert H. Frank, both a professor of economics and an economics columnist for the New York Times, this skepticism rests on well-founded misgivings about the wisdom of economists' advice. Traditional economic models employ transparently absurd behavioral assumptions—for example, that self-interest is the only human motivator, that consumer decisions take place in social isolation, and that people are always rational and dispassionate when choosing among alternatives. Why should advice predicated on such assumptions be taken seriously?
The good news is that recent years have witnessed a revolution in how economists think about human behavior. Researchers in the emerging field of behavioral economics have introduced new models that are much more descriptive of how people actually behave when confronted with economic choices. In these models, narrow self-interest is no longer the only important human motive; context shapes evaluation; and the consequences of systematic cognitive errors are explicitly taken into account.
The resulting insights have made it possible to discuss economic choices in ways that respect the reader's intelligence. Since the late 1990s, Frank has been writing columns about such choices for The New York Times. A collection of Frank's columns are grouped thematically in his new book, THE ECONOMIC NATURALIST'S FIELD GUIDE: Common Sense for Troubled Times (Basic Books; June 1, 2009).
Together they cover a broader spectrum of questions than many readers might expect to encounter in economics—such as:
- Why was JFK's "Ask not" appeal so effective?
- Is the estate tax really as bad as Rush Limbaugh thinks?
- Why do Americans save so little?
- Is happiness the only important welfare measure?
- Why does the U.S. health care system work so poorly?
- Why do prices generally vary too little?
- If SUVs put others in danger, why not tax them?
- Does having rich neighbors make you feel poor?
Frank's retains the traditional assumption that even though human desires are boundless, the resources necessary to satisfy them remain limited. We confront tradeoffs at every turn, in large-scale policy decisions about regulations, tax policy, health care, and employment, and in our personal decisions about food, friendship, education, even love. Failure to use a few basic economic principles to think through these tradeoffs often results in waste. Until now, this was considered par for the course, but Frank argues that we can easily do better.
THE ECONOMIC NATURALIST'S FIELD GUIDE is a fascinating and, in some places, forehead-slappingly revelatory collection of essays that argues that choices are always best made pragmatically—by carefully weighing the relevant costs and benefits of competing options. In most choices, a small handful of basic principles can do all the heavy lifting. Frank applies insight and wit to issues that, in the currently anxious economic climate, have more bearing on our pocketbooks, policies, and personal happiness than ever.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Robert H. Frank is the Henrietta Johnson Louis Professor of Management and Professor of Economics at Cornell University's Johnson Graduate School of Management and a regular economics columnist for The New York Times. His previous books include The Economic Naturalist, Falling Behind, The Winner-Take-All Society, Luxury Fever, and Principles of Economics (with Ben Bernanke). Frank's many awards include the Apple Distinguished Teaching Award and the Leontief Prize for Advancing the Frontiers of Economic Thought. He lives in Ithaca, New York. For more information about Robert H. Frank, please see www.robert-h-frank.com
ABOUT THE BOOK
THE ECONOMIC NATURALIST'S FIELD GUIDE: Common Sense Principles for Troubled Times
By Robert H. Frank
Published by Basic Books, a member of the Perseus Books Group
Publication date: June 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-465-01511-5
