Lunch seminar “Lay misunderstanding of economics: its roots and its significance for public policy”

by David Leiser; October 4, 2018, at 12:30, Collegio Carlo Alberto

David Leiser is professor of psychology at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, specializing in Economic psychology.

Abstract
In many countries, simplistic economic views are gaining the ascendant. Economists are frustrated by the lack of understanding of non-economists. The public for its part feels that public officials needlessly obfuscate what are really simple issues, and do so out of deviousness.
This talk will focus on how and why non-economists habitually misunderstand economic phenomena, and discuss the mismatch between our cognitive endowment and the way economics analyzes economic phenomena (both micro and macro). We will present some examples of misunderstanding and bias, and briefly indicate the main tools laypeople use to make some sense of what is largely not understandable to them: metaphors, heuristics, ideology, reliance on psychological traits and more.
In fine, we will seed a discussion about what all this means for policy makers by making some preliminary recommendations.

Please register for participation by e-mail: silvia.maero@carloalberto.org