Eldar Shafir Books
Eldar Shafir is a professor of psychology and public affairs at Princeton University, specializing in cognitive science and decision-making under uncertainty.
Known for: Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much
Books by Eldar Shafir
Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much
This book explores the psychology and economics of scarcity, examining how having too little—whether of time, money, or other resources—shapes our thinking, decision-making, and behavior. The authors argue that scarcity captures the mind, narrowing focus and leading to both beneficial and detrimental effects. Drawing on research in behavioral economics and cognitive science, they reveal how scarcity can create cycles of poverty, stress, and inefficiency, and propose ways to design policies and systems that mitigate its negative impacts.
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Understanding Scarcity: The Mind Under Pressure
When we speak of scarcity, we do not simply mean having less; we mean the feeling of not having enough. Scarcity exists when there is a gap between what we want and what we have, and that gap captures the mind’s attention irresistibly. In our research, we found that scarcity pulls focus toward whate...
From Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much
The Bandwidth Tax and the Cycle of Scarcity
One of the most striking findings from our research is how scarcity imposes a *bandwidth tax*. Think of bandwidth as your mental capacity—the sum of attention, memory, and cognitive control available to you. When scarcity occupies part of that bandwidth, less remains for everything else. This tax is...
From Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much
About Eldar Shafir
Eldar Shafir is a professor of psychology and public affairs at Princeton University, specializing in cognitive science and decision-making under uncertainty.
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Eldar Shafir is a professor of psychology and public affairs at Princeton University, specializing in cognitive science and decision-making under uncertainty.
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