The Why Axis

What works in the classroom, in fundraising, and in business? Eric Martin's narration has the sound of a documentary film voice-over in this firsthand account of the fascinating field of behavioral economics. Gneezy and List are pioneers of field experiments designed to understand what motivates people to succeed in school, donate to charity, or patronize specific companies. In the tradition of FREAKONOMICS, they watch people who don't know they're being studied, and their work reveals that conventional wisdom about incentives is often wrong. Martin's delivery is authoritative but a little detached from the text, which is rich in anecdotes as well as all data and might have benefited from a warmer voice. D.B. (c) AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine