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Manipulation: What It Is, Why It's Bad, What to Do About It
New technologies are offering companies, politicians, and others unprecedented opportunity to manipulate us. Sometimes we are given the illusion of power—of freedom—through choice, yet the game is rigged, pushing us in specific directions that lead to less wealth, worse health, and weaker democracy. In, Manipulation, nudge theory pioneer and New York Times bestselling author, Cass Sunstein, offers a new definition of manipulation for the digital age, explains why it is wrong; and shows what we can do about it. He reveals how manipulation compromises freedom and personal agency, while threatening to reduce our well-being; he explains the difference between manipulation and unobjectionable forms of influence, including 'nudges'; and he lifts the lid on online manipulation and manipulation by artificial intelligence, algorithms, and generative AI, as well as threats posed by deepfakes, social media, and 'dark patterns,' which can trap people into giving up time and money. Drawing on decades of groundbreaking research in behavioral science, this landmark book outlines steps we can take to counteract manipulation in our daily lives and offers expert guidance to protect consumers, investors, and workers.
- GenresEconomicsPsychology
219 pages, Hardcover
Published August 28, 2025
12 people are currently reading
108 people want to read
About the author
Cass R. Sunstein
170 books742 followersCass R. Sunstein is an American legal scholar, particularly in the fields of constitutional law, administrative law, environmental law, and law and behavioral economics, who currently is the Administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs in the Obama administration. For 27 years, Sunstein taught at the University of Chicago Law School, where he continues to teach as the Harry Kalven Visiting Professor. Sunstein is currently Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, where he is on leave while working in the Obama administration.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 30, 2025
I honestly don’t know how I always manage to trick myself into reading Cass Sunstein books. Don’t get me wrong, this book is really good, but his books are always just so boring. Somehow, he’ll figure out a way to discuss the same topic in 15 different ways. There were multiple times in this book where I honestly thought that I accidentally went back to a part I already read. I even took a few weeks off of reading this book after getting halfway through.
Overall, he brings up some really good topics about good versus bad manipulation. Of course, he talks a ton about “nudges” and nudging people into making decisions that are beneficial to their own well-being. But yeah, I was just insanely bored reading this book. I’m sure a lot of people will enjoy this book because Sunstein has a massive audience, but I’m definitely going to try to remember not to read his next book.
Overall, he brings up some really good topics about good versus bad manipulation. Of course, he talks a ton about “nudges” and nudging people into making decisions that are beneficial to their own well-being. But yeah, I was just insanely bored reading this book. I’m sure a lot of people will enjoy this book because Sunstein has a massive audience, but I’m definitely going to try to remember not to read his next book.
August 29, 2025
Many thanks to Cambridge University Press and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of esteemed Harvard scholar and writer Cass R. Sunstein’s new and timely book Manipulation: What It Is, Why It’s Bad, What To Do About It. Sunstein, who has worked examined legal and behavioral issues in other books, examines all of the ways that we encounter manipulation in our daily lives. I found the book to be fascinating since manipulative means often attract our emotions, or our system 1 level of responding, which don’t allow much time for reflection or consideration about the implications or ramifications of any responses. According to Sunstein, this is the primary goal of manipulators and why manipulation is problematic in most cases. According to Sunstein, manipulation does not consider our agency or reflective ability. It merely assumes that we are likely to emotionally respond without any thought or consideration to consequences. Furthermore, many manipulators use deceitful or bad faith tactics that also trigger our System 1 responses, and don’t allow for much research or further learning about the topic. As a result, manipulators tend to have a dim view of those they seek to manipulate, assuming they will not seek out additional information or challenge their claims. Sunstein uses many examples in various fields including work, advertising, technology, and politics, among others. I found these examples to be revealing and compelling.
I appreciated Sunstein’s approach to this topic. It’s one that he’s spent time before working on, specifically with nudging and behavior, a topic he co-authored a book with Nobel winning economist Richard Thaler, and decision making and judgement, another topic he co-authored a book with another Nobel laureate, Daniel Kahneman. Sunstein brings a wealth of knowledge and experience with this topic, and aptly defines manipulation not only with examples and subtypes, but also by differentiating the topic from other forms of deceptive practice including lying and coercion. With coercion specifically, Sunstein argues that coercion is often thought of as more forceful than manipulation, but actually people have a choice with coercion. There is often a consequence to follow, and the severity of the consequence often informs people’s decisions to comply with the coercion. This is not the same case with manipulation, which seeks to appeal more to our emotions, or system 1 responses, rendering us unlikely to question or challenge the information. Thus, with manipulation, the approach is to remove choice and thinking, taking away our agency and dignity, and subjecting us to the desires of the manipulator. Nevertheless, Sunstein presents the challenges to regulating manipulation since it is a form of speech and outlawing it would, in turn, become not only difficult, but would also take away other freedoms of expression.
One of the points I found most fascinating was how often we encounter manipulation, but with a more positive, or as Sunstein mentions, a welfarist approach. Although Sunstein spends time exploring the ways that various approaches to manipulation occur and drain time and money from us, he also notes that frequently governments and public health campaigns apply manipulative methods to promote positive health or at least deter behaviors that are unhealthy. While advertising companies in the past have used manipulation to promote cigarettes and alcohol, often showing happy, healthy, and young people enjoying themselves, more recent attempts to deter smoking and excessive drinking have aimed to use manipulative practices to deter smoking. The examples of anti-smoking campaigns are particularly graphic but use manipulation for a good. Sunstein explains why these examples would make outlawing manipulation problematic. The other interesting aspect of manipulation is the different types of manipulation, and how technology is factoring into making manipulation much easier today. One form of manipulation that Sunstein discusses is sludge, which is basically like onerous bureaucratic impediments that are a means to slow people down to limit them from accessing any resources. While reading this, I thought about the show Nathan For You, and one episode where Nathan develops a rebate plan to boost a gas station’s business. He makes the process of obtaining the rebate so difficult and time consuming that most of the applicants drop out. Nathan applies an approach that Sunstein explores as manipulative that many other businesses, organizations, and governments employ to deter access to resources and goods. Sunstein notes that FAFSA, the federal student aid program’s application was often viewed as a type of sludge, making it difficult for students to access aid, assuming that many would give up. Sunstein documents other examples of sludge in the world, and how it impacts our lives. Other examples are about ending free trials, and how challenging it can be to sometimes escape any kind of free trial without taking an incredible amount of time and effort. He cites examples of Serious XM radio, and how cancelling a subscription often involves talking to a live human, which can involve waiting for a lengthy time on the phone. I didn’t realize that the Biden administration actually enacted legislation to counter these kinds of practices, recognizing that sludge costs people time and money, and as a result, people need easier methods to cancel subscriptions and not be the targets of deceptive manipulation.
The most compelling cases, on the other hand, dealt with technology and how technology enables manipulators to employ new and more dangerous forms of manipulation. He cites examples of egregious manipulation like the Trump campaign’s reelection scheme to opt donors into recurring payments, assuming that they would not read the fine print or check their accounts to see the money they lost. Maybe it’s not surprising, but it demonstrates how Sunstein’s idea that manipulators devalue their targets and don’t consider their agency and dignity. Sunstein also touches on deep fakes and how these forms of manipulated video (and audio) can be so compelling that they don’t allow us to access our System 2 processing, where we consider and reflect on the information we are taking in. This is especially important as younger children are encountering more and more video media, and are not always taught to question or consider what they encounter online. Furthermore, with the current administration employing these kinds of manipulative practices, it’s more important that people are made aware of them and develop tools and practices to counter and question the information that’s being spewed on a regular basis. Sunstein ends the book by examining AI, and noting how AI can be used for both manipulative practices, but also as a tool to learn more about options and choice engines. I’m glad to see that he doesn’t completely dismiss AI as manipulative, but recognizes that any kind of algorithm may have the potential to produce biased results that might target our system 1 responses. Nevertheless, he also notes that AI has the potential to quickly scan through information that would take most humans hours and hours, enabling them to save more time and focus to make better informed decisions, ultimately to prevent manipulation.
Although the book is important and fascinating, it is a little challenging to read, and I know that I will need to revisit the topics. Manipulation has ideas and examples that affect our lives in different respects from advertising and large purchases, to retirement planning and government policies. Although the book may not be for everyone, Sunstein present clear and relevant examples that highlight the various ways that manipulation is used to impact behavior. While not always bad, manipulation does entail practices that seek to bypass rational decision-making and have us react. Although this is sometimes necessary in promoting public health, we can also see how it is used for other ends. Thus, this is an important read with significant implications. This book has made me more conscious of the information and media I encounter, and how I can carefully consider it before responding or reacting.
I appreciated Sunstein’s approach to this topic. It’s one that he’s spent time before working on, specifically with nudging and behavior, a topic he co-authored a book with Nobel winning economist Richard Thaler, and decision making and judgement, another topic he co-authored a book with another Nobel laureate, Daniel Kahneman. Sunstein brings a wealth of knowledge and experience with this topic, and aptly defines manipulation not only with examples and subtypes, but also by differentiating the topic from other forms of deceptive practice including lying and coercion. With coercion specifically, Sunstein argues that coercion is often thought of as more forceful than manipulation, but actually people have a choice with coercion. There is often a consequence to follow, and the severity of the consequence often informs people’s decisions to comply with the coercion. This is not the same case with manipulation, which seeks to appeal more to our emotions, or system 1 responses, rendering us unlikely to question or challenge the information. Thus, with manipulation, the approach is to remove choice and thinking, taking away our agency and dignity, and subjecting us to the desires of the manipulator. Nevertheless, Sunstein presents the challenges to regulating manipulation since it is a form of speech and outlawing it would, in turn, become not only difficult, but would also take away other freedoms of expression.
One of the points I found most fascinating was how often we encounter manipulation, but with a more positive, or as Sunstein mentions, a welfarist approach. Although Sunstein spends time exploring the ways that various approaches to manipulation occur and drain time and money from us, he also notes that frequently governments and public health campaigns apply manipulative methods to promote positive health or at least deter behaviors that are unhealthy. While advertising companies in the past have used manipulation to promote cigarettes and alcohol, often showing happy, healthy, and young people enjoying themselves, more recent attempts to deter smoking and excessive drinking have aimed to use manipulative practices to deter smoking. The examples of anti-smoking campaigns are particularly graphic but use manipulation for a good. Sunstein explains why these examples would make outlawing manipulation problematic. The other interesting aspect of manipulation is the different types of manipulation, and how technology is factoring into making manipulation much easier today. One form of manipulation that Sunstein discusses is sludge, which is basically like onerous bureaucratic impediments that are a means to slow people down to limit them from accessing any resources. While reading this, I thought about the show Nathan For You, and one episode where Nathan develops a rebate plan to boost a gas station’s business. He makes the process of obtaining the rebate so difficult and time consuming that most of the applicants drop out. Nathan applies an approach that Sunstein explores as manipulative that many other businesses, organizations, and governments employ to deter access to resources and goods. Sunstein notes that FAFSA, the federal student aid program’s application was often viewed as a type of sludge, making it difficult for students to access aid, assuming that many would give up. Sunstein documents other examples of sludge in the world, and how it impacts our lives. Other examples are about ending free trials, and how challenging it can be to sometimes escape any kind of free trial without taking an incredible amount of time and effort. He cites examples of Serious XM radio, and how cancelling a subscription often involves talking to a live human, which can involve waiting for a lengthy time on the phone. I didn’t realize that the Biden administration actually enacted legislation to counter these kinds of practices, recognizing that sludge costs people time and money, and as a result, people need easier methods to cancel subscriptions and not be the targets of deceptive manipulation.
The most compelling cases, on the other hand, dealt with technology and how technology enables manipulators to employ new and more dangerous forms of manipulation. He cites examples of egregious manipulation like the Trump campaign’s reelection scheme to opt donors into recurring payments, assuming that they would not read the fine print or check their accounts to see the money they lost. Maybe it’s not surprising, but it demonstrates how Sunstein’s idea that manipulators devalue their targets and don’t consider their agency and dignity. Sunstein also touches on deep fakes and how these forms of manipulated video (and audio) can be so compelling that they don’t allow us to access our System 2 processing, where we consider and reflect on the information we are taking in. This is especially important as younger children are encountering more and more video media, and are not always taught to question or consider what they encounter online. Furthermore, with the current administration employing these kinds of manipulative practices, it’s more important that people are made aware of them and develop tools and practices to counter and question the information that’s being spewed on a regular basis. Sunstein ends the book by examining AI, and noting how AI can be used for both manipulative practices, but also as a tool to learn more about options and choice engines. I’m glad to see that he doesn’t completely dismiss AI as manipulative, but recognizes that any kind of algorithm may have the potential to produce biased results that might target our system 1 responses. Nevertheless, he also notes that AI has the potential to quickly scan through information that would take most humans hours and hours, enabling them to save more time and focus to make better informed decisions, ultimately to prevent manipulation.
Although the book is important and fascinating, it is a little challenging to read, and I know that I will need to revisit the topics. Manipulation has ideas and examples that affect our lives in different respects from advertising and large purchases, to retirement planning and government policies. Although the book may not be for everyone, Sunstein present clear and relevant examples that highlight the various ways that manipulation is used to impact behavior. While not always bad, manipulation does entail practices that seek to bypass rational decision-making and have us react. Although this is sometimes necessary in promoting public health, we can also see how it is used for other ends. Thus, this is an important read with significant implications. This book has made me more conscious of the information and media I encounter, and how I can carefully consider it before responding or reacting.
May 2, 2025
I have received a free ARC of the book from the publisher via NetGalley. This did not influence my opinion.
I have fallen for it and it’s my own fault: I expected this book to be interesting. It’s an academic book. My first hint should have been the publisher, Cambridge University Press. However, when read without this bit of information, the blurb borders on… wait for it… manipulative (cringe face). ‘New York Times bestselling author’ and ‘lift[ing] the lid on […] manipulation by artificial intelligence, algorithms, and generative AI, as well as threats posed by deepfakes, social media, and ‘dark patterns’ made me think, yes, this is the book I want to read.
It has taken me two weeks to get through the 218 pages (including acknowledgements and the opening matter) because the book is dense. The author devotes a chapter to defining the word ‘manipulation’ in various context, and this chapter is basically philosophy. The most interesting parts of the book, for me, were the screenshots of dark patterns taken from Dark Patterns Hall of Shame (https://hallofshame.design/) which I could have easily found on the website itself.
In chapter 7, where Sunstein finally reaches generative AI’s manipulatory (or not) practices, large chunks are devoted to the prompts the author used and lengthy quotes from the replies ChatGPT generated. I didn’t find this to be either particularly useful or interesting, especially as ChatGPT is updated on nearly daily basis (see an article from April 2025 where ChatGPT praises the user for stopping their mental illness medication – this update was introduced and withdrawn over the course of two days). I nearly DNFed before getting to chapter 7 and I am glad I decided to finish reading the book, although I did skim parts of chapter 6 because, frankly, at some point the examination of words and their context became so abstract I was no longer sure of what I was reading.
Overall, I feel somewhat manipulated (sorry) by the blurb, although I admit I am guilty of doing most of the manipulation myself – here’s where the idea of nudges, introduced by the author, kicks in. I guess I got nudged – I read the blurb I wanted to read, not the one that was there; I missed the publisher’s name; and then I am here complaining about having received the book I should have expected, rather than the one I was expecting. If you’re searching for an academic deconstruction of what ‘manipulation’ means; how, where, and when it is used; what are its dangers and what happens when it isn’t used enough – this is the book for you. If you think you’re going to read a book explaining why AI is either good or bad for you, as I expected, this isn’t it.
My ratings:
5* = this book changed my life
4* = very good
3* = good
2* = I should have DNFed
1* = actively hostile towards the reader*
I have fallen for it and it’s my own fault: I expected this book to be interesting. It’s an academic book. My first hint should have been the publisher, Cambridge University Press. However, when read without this bit of information, the blurb borders on… wait for it… manipulative (cringe face). ‘New York Times bestselling author’ and ‘lift[ing] the lid on […] manipulation by artificial intelligence, algorithms, and generative AI, as well as threats posed by deepfakes, social media, and ‘dark patterns’ made me think, yes, this is the book I want to read.
It has taken me two weeks to get through the 218 pages (including acknowledgements and the opening matter) because the book is dense. The author devotes a chapter to defining the word ‘manipulation’ in various context, and this chapter is basically philosophy. The most interesting parts of the book, for me, were the screenshots of dark patterns taken from Dark Patterns Hall of Shame (https://hallofshame.design/) which I could have easily found on the website itself.
In chapter 7, where Sunstein finally reaches generative AI’s manipulatory (or not) practices, large chunks are devoted to the prompts the author used and lengthy quotes from the replies ChatGPT generated. I didn’t find this to be either particularly useful or interesting, especially as ChatGPT is updated on nearly daily basis (see an article from April 2025 where ChatGPT praises the user for stopping their mental illness medication – this update was introduced and withdrawn over the course of two days). I nearly DNFed before getting to chapter 7 and I am glad I decided to finish reading the book, although I did skim parts of chapter 6 because, frankly, at some point the examination of words and their context became so abstract I was no longer sure of what I was reading.
Overall, I feel somewhat manipulated (sorry) by the blurb, although I admit I am guilty of doing most of the manipulation myself – here’s where the idea of nudges, introduced by the author, kicks in. I guess I got nudged – I read the blurb I wanted to read, not the one that was there; I missed the publisher’s name; and then I am here complaining about having received the book I should have expected, rather than the one I was expecting. If you’re searching for an academic deconstruction of what ‘manipulation’ means; how, where, and when it is used; what are its dangers and what happens when it isn’t used enough – this is the book for you. If you think you’re going to read a book explaining why AI is either good or bad for you, as I expected, this isn’t it.
My ratings:
5* = this book changed my life
4* = very good
3* = good
2* = I should have DNFed
1* = actively hostile towards the reader*
Want to read
July 27, 2025I will be editing my review after I read this book, but my notes prior to reading might help you to choose/not to choose to pick this book up.
I came here from the author's piece published in The Guardian, and it's title "Why we need a right not to be manipulated" intrigued me. It was time this was widely addressed in an academic book that might also be accessible.
I will be reading this book less for the what, and I feel myself lucky in my reflections and reasoning, but more so for to dig deeper into the promoting of the right not to be manipulated a.k.a. how forces bigger than us (corporations, governments, institutions) must be stopped from manipulating people.
I came here from the author's piece published in The Guardian, and it's title "Why we need a right not to be manipulated" intrigued me. It was time this was widely addressed in an academic book that might also be accessible.
I will be reading this book less for the what, and I feel myself lucky in my reflections and reasoning, but more so for to dig deeper into the promoting of the right not to be manipulated a.k.a. how forces bigger than us (corporations, governments, institutions) must be stopped from manipulating people.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews