Our Emotions Are More Rational Than We Think feat. Eyal Winter

Which is smarter -- your head or your gut? It's a familiar refrain: you're getting too emotional. Try and think rationally. But is it always good advice?

Eyal Winter is the Silverzweig Professor of Economics at the Hebrew University and the Andrews & Elizabeth Brunner Professor at Lancaster University, specializing in Behavioral Economics, Decision Making, Game Theory and Finance. 

A member of the Center for the Study of Rationality, Eyal Winter was awarded the Humboldt Prize for excellence in research by the German government in 2011. He is also the author of “Feeling Smart: Why Our Emotions Are More Rational Than We Think.”

Listen to Eyal and Greg talk on recognizing deception, where emotions fit in negotiation, and using your emotional inventory. 

Episode Quotes:

Remembering emotional experiences

Fortunately, evolution endowed us with a better memory for emotional experiences than for cognitive experiences. We don't remember facts well, but we remember emotional experiences very, very well. And this is a blessing for us. 

Choosing between emotional and rational decision-making

I wouldn't choose between either emotional decision-making or rational decision-making. Each of them alone is not going to operate well.

On Regret

If we do a mistake, if we made a bad decision, even at the individual level, without any interaction with anybody, we're going to feel regret. The feeling of regret will remain for much longer than the ability to remember the circumstances under which this regret has been generated. 

Show Links:

Guest Profile:

• Faculty Profile at Lancaster University
• Professional Profile at Psychology Today
• Eyal Winter on LinkedIn
• Eyal Winter on Twitter

His Work:

• Eyal Winter on Google Scholar
• Feeling Smart: Why Our Emotions Are More Rational Than We Think

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