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The Cost of Conviction: How Our Deepest Values Lead Us Astray
A timely and important perspective on how people frame decisions and how relying on sacred values unwittingly leads to social polarization.
When you are faced with a decision, do you consider the best outcome, or do you consider your deepest values about which actions are appropriate? The Cost of Conviction contrasts these two primary strategies for making consequentialism, the former, or prioritizing one’s sacred values, the latter. Steven Sloman argues that, while both modes of decision making are necessary tools for a good decision maker, people err by deploying sacred values more often than they should, especially when it comes to sociopolitical issues. As a result, we oversimplify, grow disgusted and angry, and act in ways that contribute to social polarization. In this book, Sloman provides a new understanding of today’s societal ills and grounds that understanding in science.
The book begins by covering the philosophical and conceptual background of the two decision-making strategies, then takes a deep dive into the psychology of decision making. Drawing on historical and current examples of the use of the two strategies, the author provides a thorough overview of the psychology of decision making, including work on judgment, conscious and unconscious decision-making processes, the roles of emotion, and even an analysis of habit and addiction.
With its unique emphasis on sacred values, The Cost of Conviction is an eye-opening must-read for all decision makers, especially those who wish to understand judgment, social decision making, and leadership.
When you are faced with a decision, do you consider the best outcome, or do you consider your deepest values about which actions are appropriate? The Cost of Conviction contrasts these two primary strategies for making consequentialism, the former, or prioritizing one’s sacred values, the latter. Steven Sloman argues that, while both modes of decision making are necessary tools for a good decision maker, people err by deploying sacred values more often than they should, especially when it comes to sociopolitical issues. As a result, we oversimplify, grow disgusted and angry, and act in ways that contribute to social polarization. In this book, Sloman provides a new understanding of today’s societal ills and grounds that understanding in science.
The book begins by covering the philosophical and conceptual background of the two decision-making strategies, then takes a deep dive into the psychology of decision making. Drawing on historical and current examples of the use of the two strategies, the author provides a thorough overview of the psychology of decision making, including work on judgment, conscious and unconscious decision-making processes, the roles of emotion, and even an analysis of habit and addiction.
With its unique emphasis on sacred values, The Cost of Conviction is an eye-opening must-read for all decision makers, especially those who wish to understand judgment, social decision making, and leadership.
256 pages, Hardcover
Published May 20, 2025
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July 23, 2025
This book was interesting. There was a lot of stuff that wasn't really what I was as interested in when I first heard about this book, but from a psychological standpoint, it was all interesting! I thought there was a lot of really good stuff about sacred values and such, as the title implies, and I really wish certain people in my life would read that stuff. But yeah, it's an interesting read (and being able to listen to the audiobook made it a lot easier to get through!).
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