• In the 1950s, Danny was drafted into the Israel Defence Forces in the psychology branch, creating methods to assess recruitment suitability.  

• From the late 60s, he worked with fellow academic and best friend Amos Tversky. 1971-81 were the peak years of research output for the ‘dynamic duo’, including on the Availability and Anchoring shortcuts.

• In ’74, they published the important Judgement Under Uncertainty paper on biases and shortcuts, which started the wave of rational thinking as something unrealistic, impacting psychology, economics and philosophy. 

“Thinking, Fast and Slow is an interesting capstone to his career, but his accomplishments were solidified well in advance of writing it. They’d be just as significant without it.” 

- Steven Pinker on Daniel

• In ’79, Danny and Amos created Prospect Theory - with its “meaningless yet distinctive name” and initial discovery of Loss Aversion.

• In ’81, they created Framing suggesting that choices are merely mental representations open to intepretation and not set in stone. 

• Defined Peak End Rule with the famous colonoscopy study.

• In 2002, won the Nobel Prize for Economics for work with Tversky and later winner Richard Thaler that combined psychology with economics.

• He also furthered and then popularized Dual System Theory (Fast and Slow Thinking) in his best-selling book, Thinking, Fast and Slow in 2011.

• In the 1950s, Danny was drafted into the Israel Defence Forces in the psychology branch, creating methods to assess recruitment suitability.  

• From the late 60s, he worked with fellow academic and best friend Amos Tversky. 1971-81 were the peak years of research output for the ‘dynamic duo’, including on the Availability and Anchoring shortcuts.

• In ’74, they published the important Judgement Under Uncertainty paper on biases and shortcuts, which started the wave of rational thinking as something unrealistic, impacting psychology, economics and philosophy. 

“Thinking, Fast and Slow is an interesting capstone to his career, but his accomplishments were solidified well in advance of writing it. They’d be just as significant without it.” 

- Steven Pinker on Daniel

• In ’79, Danny and Amos created Prospect Theory - with its “meaningless yet distinctive name” and initial discovery of Loss Aversion.

• In ’81, they created Framing suggesting that choices are merely mental representations open to intepretation and not set in stone. 

• Defined Peak End Rule with the famous colonoscopy study.

• In 2002, won the Nobel Prize for Economics for work with Tversky and later winner Richard Thaler that combined psychology with economics.

• He also furthered and then popularized Dual System Theory (Fast and Slow Thinking) in his best-selling book, Thinking, Fast and Slow in 2011.

• Morals are driven by 5 factors (2008)
Though ever-evolving over time and different according to culture, Pinker states that what is seen as morally-acceptable is governed by our needs for fair Reciprocity, Community belonging, adherence to some form of Authority, Aversion to Risk and avoidance of harm to others.

• Imagery is incredibly powerful for cognition (1986)
In Steven’s words “We are visual creatures. Visual things stay put, whereas sounds fade.” His award-winning research into visual cognition teaches us how it works and points towards the power of the Picture Superiority Effect.

“All of the violence that doesn’t occur doesn’t get reported on the news.”

- Pinker (2018) Enlightenment Now

• We believe things are much worse than evidence suggests (2018)
In his 2018 book, Enlightenment Now, he targets common misconceptions about violence and inequality in modern society, showing that these false beliefs are a result of the Availability Bias. Quantitative evidence shows how wealth has increased around the globe, while poverty and violence have both decreased. ‍

• We're different, and that's okay... (2012)
In The Blank Slate, he argues that some human characteristics are pre-defined by our genes. For instance, he states that there are visible differences between the brains of men and women, citing research that men are less Risk Averse and are better at conceptualizing 3D objects. Similarly, women are much better at spelling and reading body language and facial expressions.

• Morals are driven by 5 factors (2008)
Though ever-evolving over time and different according to culture, Pinker states that what is seen as morally-acceptable is governed by our needs for fair Reciprocity, Community belonging, adherence to some form of Authority, Aversion to Risk and avoidance of harm to others.

• Imagery is incredibly powerful for cognition (1986)
In Steven’s words “We are visual creatures. Visual things stay put, whereas sounds fade.” His award-winning research into visual cognition teaches us how it works and points towards the power of the Picture Superiority Effect.

“All of the violence that doesn’t occur doesn’t get reported on the news.”

- Pinker (2018) Enlightenment Now

• We believe things are much worse than evidence suggests (2018)
In his 2018 book, Enlightenment Now, he targets common misconceptions about violence and inequality in modern society, showing that these false beliefs are a result of the Availability Bias. Quantitative evidence shows how wealth has increased around the globe, while poverty and violence have both decreased. ‍

• We're different, and that's okay... (2012)
In The Blank Slate, he argues that some human characteristics are pre-defined by our genes. For instance, he states that there are visible differences between the brains of men and women, citing research that men are less Risk Averse and are better at conceptualizing 3D objects. Similarly, women are much better at spelling and reading body language and facial expressions.

• We overvalue things that are free (2007)
His famous chocolate experiment revealed that, due to our Zero Price Bias, we place far greater value on things that are free over something very cheap.

• We value things more that we’ve helped make (2012)
Dan discovered the famous IKEA Effect, which tells us that when we’ve invested energy into helping make something, we feel a stronger attachment to it and will therefore pay more for it over something very similar that we didn’t make.

• We can design for more ethical behavior (2016)
As Chief Behavioral Officer at Lemonade, an insurance firm, Dan combined our Commitment Bias with his findings on dishonesty, using moral reminders and honesty pledges to increase the number of genuine insurance claims.

“People are willing to work free, and they are willing to work for a reasonable wage; but offer them just a small payment and they will walk away.”

• Even the lazy can reach life goals (2015)
Dan helped to develop Qapital, an app that lets you connect your bank account to reach your financial goals. Make a purchase for $5.70, Qapital charges you $6 and saves the difference for you. A brilliant use of Defaults to avoid the Loss Aversion of intentionally putting money away in a savings pot.

• Tiny commitments can have a big effect (2018)
Found that having people make a pledge to repay a loan within a smaller window of time led them to be more likely to pay off their debt. These results suggest that designing Time-scarce commitments like this are a scalable, cost-effective intervention to help improve people’s lives.

• We overvalue things that are free (2007)
His famous chocolate experiment revealed that, due to our Zero Price Bias, we place far greater value on things that are free over something very cheap.

• We value things more that we’ve helped make (2012)
Dan discovered the famous IKEA Effect, which tells us that when we’ve invested energy into helping make something, we feel a stronger attachment to it and will therefore pay more for it over something very similar that we didn’t make.

• We can design for more ethical behavior (2016)
As Chief Behavioral Officer at Lemonade, an insurance firm, Dan combined our Commitment Bias with his findings on dishonesty, using moral reminders and honesty pledges to increase the number of genuine insurance claims.

“People are willing to work free, and they are willing to work for a reasonable wage; but offer them just a small payment and they will walk away.”

• Even the lazy can reach life goals (2015)
Dan helped to develop Qapital, an app that lets you connect your bank account to reach your financial goals. Make a purchase for $5.70, Qapital charges you $6 and saves the difference for you. A brilliant use of Defaults to avoid the Loss Aversion of intentionally putting money away in a savings pot.

• Tiny commitments can have a big effect (2018)
Found that having people make a pledge to repay a loan within a smaller window of time led them to be more likely to pay off their debt. These results suggest that designing Time-scarce commitments like this are a scalable, cost-effective intervention to help improve people’s lives.

• Scarcity impedes unrelated tasks and keeps the poor poor.
Sendhil found that the cognitive ability of sugar cane farmers in India was much lower before their harvest period, when money was tight, than after. When under Scarcity, we're driven to focus on the now, as explained by Present Bias and Delay Discounting.  

Be mindful of the cognitive tax placed on those in a stressed situation, using smart Defaults, shorter, well-chunked forms and reminders to reduce Analysis Paralysis.

“The tug of scarcity can be strong. But understanding its logic can minimize its negative consequences. We can go some way toward “scarcity-proofing” our environment.”

• We're unconsciously racist when hiring
Sendhil did a study on recruitment, where resumes were assigned either a very African American-sounding name or a very White-sounding name. The results showed strong discrimination: white names received 50% more interviews.

Unconscious bias can be reduced by putting systems in place to remove it. New companies, such as Applied are doing just this: removing the candidate’s personal details and allowing the recruiter to focus on the important information.

• Crime can be reduced with behavioral economics
Inspired by Daniel Kahneman's popularized Fast-and-Slow Thinking model, Sendhil co-authored a study on youth crime in Chicago.  It found that promoting reflection on our automatic (System 1) thoughts on risky behaviors by encouraging use of our less spontaneous, more controlled System 2, total arrests dropped by 28-35% and violent crime arrests by 45-50%.

• Scarcity impedes unrelated tasks and keeps the poor poor.
Sendhil found that the cognitive ability of sugar cane farmers in India was much lower before their harvest period, when money was tight, than after. When under Scarcity, we're driven to focus on the now, as explained by Present Bias and Delay Discounting.  

Be mindful of the cognitive tax placed on those in a stressed situation, using smart Defaults, shorter, well-chunked forms and reminders to reduce Analysis Paralysis.

“The tug of scarcity can be strong. But understanding its logic can minimize its negative consequences. We can go some way toward “scarcity-proofing” our environment.”

• We're unconsciously racist when hiring
Sendhil did a study on recruitment, where resumes were assigned either a very African American-sounding name or a very White-sounding name. The results showed strong discrimination: white names received 50% more interviews.

Unconscious bias can be reduced by putting systems in place to remove it. New companies, such as Applied are doing just this: removing the candidate’s personal details and allowing the recruiter to focus on the important information.

• Crime can be reduced with behavioral economics
Inspired by Daniel Kahneman's popularized Fast-and-Slow Thinking model, Sendhil co-authored a study on youth crime in Chicago.  It found that promoting reflection on our automatic (System 1) thoughts on risky behaviors by encouraging use of our less spontaneous, more controlled System 2, total arrests dropped by 28-35% and violent crime arrests by 45-50%.

• It started with a bowl of cashews at a university dinner party.
After Thaler’s friends thanked him for removing the addictive nuts from the table, he wondered why people felt happier that they now had less choice; it contradicted economic theory around more choice being better!  A curious anomaly…

• 1979 He saw that Kahneman and Tversky's Prospect Theory better predicted human behavior. Their finding that we use shortcuts to make decisions that lead to biases motivated him to turn his own stories into experiments…

• 1990 His famous mug experiment found that, due to Loss Aversion and the Status Quo Bias (a tendency to stick with what we have), we overinflate the value of what we own, known as the Endowment Effect or Ownership Bias.

“Creating a reputation as a “sludge-free” supplier of goods and services may be a winning, long-run strategy”

- Thaler (2018) The Evolution of Behavioral Economics

• 2004 Designed the ‘Save More Tomorrow’ program with Shlomo Benartzi to help people save more as their wages went up, using Defaults + Foot In The Door to get savings from 3.5% to 13.6% after 5 years, next to 5% without help.

• 2008 Wrote  ‘Nudge’ with Cass Sunstein, defining nudges as interventions to help people make the choice they'd have made if informed and rational, happening within a ‘Choice Architecture’: the environment in which people make decisions, like a menu in McDonald’s or on your iPhone screen.

• 2018 Found, from looking at Swedish pensions, that default-based nudges last for many years, even when risk goes up! He’s since spoken out of the misuse of nudges in industry, calling them ‘sludges’.

• 2021 'Nudge - The Final Edition' was updated with new examples and a deeper dive into sludge.

• It started with a bowl of cashews at a university dinner party.
After Thaler’s friends thanked him for removing the addictive nuts from the table, he wondered why people felt happier that they now had less choice; it contradicted economic theory around more choice being better!  A curious anomaly…

• 1979 He saw that Kahneman and Tversky's Prospect Theory better predicted human behavior. Their finding that we use shortcuts to make decisions that lead to biases motivated him to turn his own stories into experiments…

• 1990 His famous mug experiment found that, due to Loss Aversion and the Status Quo Bias (a tendency to stick with what we have), we overinflate the value of what we own, known as the Endowment Effect or Ownership Bias.

“Creating a reputation as a “sludge-free” supplier of goods and services may be a winning, long-run strategy”

- Thaler (2018) The Evolution of Behavioral Economics

• 2004 Designed the ‘Save More Tomorrow’ program with Shlomo Benartzi to help people save more as their wages went up, using Defaults + Foot In The Door to get savings from 3.5% to 13.6% after 5 years, next to 5% without help.

• 2008 Wrote  ‘Nudge’ with Cass Sunstein, defining nudges as interventions to help people make the choice they'd have made if informed and rational, happening within a ‘Choice Architecture’: the environment in which people make decisions, like a menu in McDonald’s or on your iPhone screen.

• 2018 Found, from looking at Swedish pensions, that default-based nudges last for many years, even when risk goes up! He’s since spoken out of the misuse of nudges in industry, calling them ‘sludges’.

• 2021 'Nudge - The Final Edition' was updated with new examples and a deeper dive into sludge.

• Katy did some great work on inter-temporal choice (how we choose is greatly dictated by when it's for).

She looked at online grocery ordering and found that we tend to make healthier "should" food choices the further we plan into the future, and less healthy "want" choices to satisfy our immediate needs. Ultimately, we have a Present Bias that gives more weight to immediacy, impacting our self-control and ability to stay healthy.

• Her study on flu jabs got people to make a written pre-Commitment to have their jab at a specific date and time. Doing so increased vaccinations by 4.2% (Milkman, Beshears, Choi, Laibson and Madrian, 2011)

“Thanks to the progress of behavioral science, we now have a new set of tools that can help — and produce big returns on small investments.”

• In understanding how to help break old habits and start new ones, Katy looked at the Fresh Start Effect, finding that we're more likely to stick to commitments made at the start of a new time period (e.g. a new week, month or year).

• She co-authored research on motivation and Temptation Bundling, finding that people can be made to do the hard 'should' tasks (e.g. going to the gym) by bundling them with pleasant 'want' experiences (listening to an audiobook). Gym attendance was boosted by 51% next to the no-bundle group.

• In 2018, found Reciprocity Decay showing that our desire to return an act of kindness wanes rapidly over time, impacting acts of goodwill from companies or the effectiveness of charities in raising donations.

• Katy did some great work on inter-temporal choice (how we choose is greatly dictated by when it's for).

She looked at online grocery ordering and found that we tend to make healthier "should" food choices the further we plan into the future, and less healthy "want" choices to satisfy our immediate needs. Ultimately, we have a Present Bias that gives more weight to immediacy, impacting our self-control and ability to stay healthy.

• Her study on flu jabs got people to make a written pre-Commitment to have their jab at a specific date and time. Doing so increased vaccinations by 4.2% (Milkman, Beshears, Choi, Laibson and Madrian, 2011)

“Thanks to the progress of behavioral science, we now have a new set of tools that can help — and produce big returns on small investments.”

• In understanding how to help break old habits and start new ones, Katy looked at the Fresh Start Effect, finding that we're more likely to stick to commitments made at the start of a new time period (e.g. a new week, month or year).

• She co-authored research on motivation and Temptation Bundling, finding that people can be made to do the hard 'should' tasks (e.g. going to the gym) by bundling them with pleasant 'want' experiences (listening to an audiobook). Gym attendance was boosted by 51% next to the no-bundle group.

• In 2018, found Reciprocity Decay showing that our desire to return an act of kindness wanes rapidly over time, impacting acts of goodwill from companies or the effectiveness of charities in raising donations.