Clearer Thinking with Spencer Greenberg Seeing through cognitive traps (with Alex Edmans)
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Sep 3, 2025 
Alex Edmans, Professor of Finance at London Business School, explores the complexities of causation versus correlation in organizational success, particularly regarding ESG criteria. He delves into the nuances of gray thinking in climate policies, arguing against binary views. The discussion touches on how cognitive biases shape understanding of diversity and company performance, countering the assumption that higher diversity guarantees better outcomes. Edmans also critiques the pressures of academic publishing and shares insights on the interplay between market dynamics and corporate responsibility.
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Edit Referees, Don’t Obey Them Blindly
- Editors should apply the intersection heuristic: focus on referee points they all agree are critical.
- Avoid forcing authors to implement the union of all referee demands to stop endless, low-value revisions.
Perverse Academic Incentives
- Academic incentives (publish-or-perish, blacklists) push quantity over concise, high-impact work.
- Shorter, rigorous venues exist but institutional reward lists lag and penalize authors.
Why Smart People Still Confirm Their Beliefs
- Confirmation bias blinds smart people because motivated reasoning leverages intelligence.
- Neuroscience shows contradictory political evidence activates the amygdala, producing fight-or-flight responses.
