Dan Ariely: Our buggy moral code

http://www.ted.com Behavioral economist Dan Ariely studies the bugs in our moral code: the hidden reasons we think it's OK to cheat or steal (sometimes). Clever studies help make his point that we're predictably irrational -- and can be influenced in ways we can't grasp.

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[comely91]

One of the best TED talks I've ever heard.

[wushish]

I think the real reason behind the nurses decision is that it simply took less of their time. It sounds harsh but it's their job to get things like this and when you have multiple patients you try and get things done as quickly as possible.

[Ambuj Arind]

they really think that quick is better.. they think it's for the good of the patients.. i had the same experience.. quick and intense is better than slow and prolonged according to them.. even doctors, when they have all day do the same thing, do the same.. it's very easy to think that way.. i saw a survey of common people, not doctors or nurses, showed a 50-50 split about this question..

[Alan McCrindle]

Dan's final comments" - Just think how much better my life would have been if the nurses listened to my intuitions"? - well maybe if the nurses did what Dan intuited he would never had ended up persuing this path of behavioral economics

[Johnathon Candelario]

Dan is truly brilliant. As he draws from his experiences I can understand the notion of what people may model as correct may be completely and utterly incorrect empirically speaking. His pursuit of knowledge and great sense of humor makes him one of the best TED speakers of all time.

[zoeelizabethc]

It's not though if you are having to rip off 20x bandaids, that is 20x intense pain vs. 200x minor pain. And in his experiments he showed that prolonged minor pain is less distressing than relatively shorter intense pain.

[xabcx]

True.

But I also think there's the pain of the nurses to consider as well. I don't think any nurse enjoys inflicting pain upon a patient, and I think the action of having to cause an extended amount of pain hurts a persons psyche far more than a momentary lunge.

Just my 2c.

[DonEdwardVoiceovers]

At the beginning, there's something wrong about his example.

Ripping a bandaid off is the least painful method.

Slowly taking it off is more painful.

But, still going to watch the rest of what he has to say.

[BobbynEdward]

Oh brother! 14:17

[BobbynEdward]

And the ones who could cheat a lot? The "Donald Trumps".

[Gnar Shredder]

you should test that

[komododr]

Stealing money!? Wow that's what my kid did on 1 of his games.