Impulse: Why We Do What We Do Without Knowing Why We Do It

by David R. Lewis

"It seemed like a good idea at the time" has been the limp excuse of many a person whose actions later became cause for regret. Although we see ourselves as rational beings, we are far more likely to act according to impulse than logic. Nor is this always a bad thing, David Lewis suggests. Impulse explores all the mystifying things people do despite knowing better, from blurting out indiscretions to falling for totally incompatible romantic partners. Informed by the latest research in neuropsychology, this eye-opening account explains why snap decisions so often govern--and occasionally enrich--our lives.

Lewis investigates two kinds of thinking that occur in the one slow and reflective, the other fast but prone to error. In ways we cannot control, our mental tracks switch from the first type to the second, resulting in impulsive actions. This happens in that instant when the eyes of lovers meet, when the hand reaches for a must-have product that the pocketbook can't afford, when "I really shouldn't" have another drink becomes "Oh why not?" In these moments, our rational awareness takes a back seat.

While we inevitably lose self-control on occasion, Lewis says, this can also be desirable, leading to experiences we cherish but would certainly miss if we were always logical. Less about the ideal reasoning we fail to use than the flawed reasoning we manage to get by with, Impulse proves there is more to a healthy mental life than being as coolly calculating as possible.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Science

336 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2013

About the author

David Lewis is a retired, decorated Lieutenant-Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy. Having retired just before COVID came to visit, he was forced to stay home with limited options for personal productivity. Perhaps it was time for him to paint and to write. David writes about his life and many years of military service in both the US and Canada, Europe and Afghanistan. He also includes how flashbacks of childhood abuse at the hands of parish priests have influenced and infected his life and service. David is a recipient of the Meritorious Service Medal, the General Campaign Star – South-West Asia, the Commander Canadian Army Commendation, and other decorations. He has been married to Sherrie, his wife of over 40 years. They have five children and one granddaughter.

(Also, I have not authored over 200 books. Goodreads just attaches every 'David Lewis' authored book and I can't undo it)

Reviews

[victor harris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty much a rehash of other studies in the field. We act before we think i.e. we are impulsive. Usually because of conditioned responses and neural pathways established via evolutionary biology. We also are susceptible to musical, sound and visual manipulation and are not as rational as we think.

[Cigdem · Rating 2 out of 5]

Having read "Thinking fast and slow", the book comes across as a rehash of old ideas sprinkled with one or two interesting social studies and cases.

[Emilie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun mix of psychology theories and related anecdotes. A great conversation starter and fun subjects to discuss at a dinner party if smalltalk is not your thing.

[Ray Dunsmore · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting book on the subject of how our brains manage the illusion of free will through a self-control mechanism that often rests after lengthy periods of self-restraint, thus causing impulsive behavior. The book itself goes into more detail, but that's the gist of it. The decisions that we make throughout our lives are determined by chemical reactions in our brains, and we are merely bundles of nerves piloting meat machines in a world that is almost entirely the construct of our brains. Somehow, this is not distressing to me and is actually rather calming, despite the warning at the end that the illusion of free will is all that keeps our society from plunging into an anarchic hellscape without law or morals: ridiculous on a personal scale, yet frighteningly plausible en masse. The systems we put in place to tie ourselves to the mast like Ulysses are all that keep us from driving the boat into the cliffs to heed the sirens' call.
More importantly, this book provided me with enough psychological drippings to talk like a pretentious douche without having to go to college for it, so hooray for that.

[Henry · Rating 5 out of 5]

- Very similar to Kahneman's Thinking Fast and Slow. Author points out there are 2 systems in our brain, System I (impulse, similar to System 1) and System R (Reflective, similar to System 2)

- We do not have the ability to understand System I since it's autonomous. In fact, many of the times when we rethink about System I action (we'll use System R to understand System I action) we have to come out a sound reason afterthemath

- System I is easy so it's use most frequently. The trick here is to have a healthy balance of System I and System R usage. People who overly rely on System I have tendency to forgo their own thoughts (hence that's where herd mentality come from). On the other hand, System R is too cumbersome to use day-to-day: you can't spend 2 hours contemplating how to sit down

- System I is important: often in sports, coach will say "stop thinking, just do it": it actually refers to urging player to use System I, not System R to play the game. Since body movement is System I's domain

- System R is important for rational decisions: FOMO is System I's doing

[Kalle Wescott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read /Impulse: Why We Do What We Do Without Knowing Why We Do It/, by David Lewis:

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-en...

David Lewis veers from sudden impulses, to our zombie brains, to teenage brains. Strangely, he believes there is male teenage brain activity that deals with issues other than sex.

The author talks about our senses, visual overlays, and visual illusions and how they happen.

Lewis bounces around to love and overeating, never bringing the sections in to any sort of coherent whole, nor does it matter too much.

The disjointed sections are interesting on their own.

[Amal Jamal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some of the take-home messages that I can gather after having read this book:

• Having impulses doesn’t simply mean that we don’t possess free will; instead, we are very much a conscious being who should be accountable for every action that we do.

• I believe in the necessity of living life according to a faith/religious system which will guide us on ways to manage our impulses day by day.

• Practicing moderation [wasatiyyah] is key to achieving a balanced & fulfilling life.

[Alea · Rating 3 out of 5]

TW: Suicide descriptions, and some quite detailed. Don't even know what the point of that section was tbh.

Some interesting parts, but nothing to revolutionary.

[Mohamed Alemam · Rating 2 out of 5]

نجمتين من أجل جزئية الشراء الاندفاعي.. وهو على ما اعتقد ان كل شخص لابد له من معرفة كيف يتم استفزاز اندفاعاته على الشراء...

[Ashleigh Cunningham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book assisted me greatly with my BA Honours in Strategic Brand communications. It opened up a lot of my thinking about how people connect their consumerism, impulses and values.

[Deepak · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who fell in love with a girl the instant i saw her, now i know why.

[James Isbill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up several very neat little facts and anecdotes from this book that I will not forget for a long time. Though, what this book really lacks is a strong overarching argument.

[Hasini | bibliosini · Rating 3 out of 5]

Impulse wasn't quite so interesting until I reached like, the 30% mark. The beginning had a bit of a monotonous feel because it was like a repetition of everything I already knew. But once the good stuff started rolling in, I was hooked!

Research wise, this book had a ton of it! Half the pages were references and bibliography. I was honestly taken back by how research - based this book was.

All in all, this book was an interesting read but there were quite a few instances where I got really bored! Haha!

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't feel there was anything overly surprising nor enlightening in this book about impulses. It covered things like rioting, suicide, over-spending, over eating, falling in love etc. It was a bit dry and text bookie. Over 100 pages are dedicated to references and footnotes, so it is not an overly long book, but long enough for me.

[Joelviven · Rating 4 out of 5]

a very good research on impulsive behaviour with keen and clear examples .
Dr. David Lewis research which were brought from his mindlabs has definitely got a good knowing how our brain works behind our eyes and imagination
the phrase "thinking about thinking" is really mesmerising because i have never came across such phrase to explain someone about my state of thinking.

[Jonny Wignall · Rating 4 out of 5]

An eye opener and worth a read

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Awesome cover - textured image of a hand popping bubble wrap. Contents were a bit mixed. Chapters within the author's particular expertise (neurology and marketing) were worth reading.

[Tiara Mellon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically mentions other studies and information that has already been presented.
A good read for those just starting to read up on psychological research.