The Confidence Game: Why We Fall for It . . . Every Time"It’s a startling and disconcerting read that should make you think twice every time a friend of a friend offers you the opportunity of a lifetime.” —Erik Larson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Dead Wake and bestselling author of Devil in the White City Think you can’t get conned? Think again. The New York Times bestselling author of Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes explains how to spot the con before they spot you. “[An] excellent study of Con Artists, stories & the human need to believe” –Neil Gaiman, via Twitter A compelling investigation into the minds, motives, and methods of con artists—and the people who fall for their cons over and over again. While cheats and swindlers may be a dime a dozen, true conmen—the Bernie Madoffs, the Jim Bakkers, the Lance Armstrongs—are elegant, outsized personalities, artists of persuasion and exploiters of trust. How do they do it? Why are they successful? And what keeps us falling for it, over and over again? These are the questions that journalist and psychologist Maria Konnikova tackles in her mesmerizing new book. From multimillion-dollar Ponzi schemes to small-time frauds, Konnikova pulls together a selection of fascinating stories to demonstrate what all cons share in common, drawing on scientific, dramatic, and psychological perspectives. Insightful and gripping, the book brings readers into the world of the con, examining the relationship between artist and victim. The Confidence Game asks not only why we believe con artists, but also examines the very act of believing and how our sense of truth can be manipulated by those around us. |
What people are saying - Write a review
User ratings
| 5 stars |
| ||
| 4 stars |
| ||
| 3 stars |
| ||
| 2 stars |
| ||
| 1 star |
|
LibraryThing Review
User Review - LynnB - LibraryThingThis book blends true stories of cons -- big and small -- with psychology and neuroscience to show what is going on in our brains when we are victims of scammers. It's hard to believe that I would ... Read full review
LibraryThing Review
User Review - loraineo - LibraryThingI guess we've all been conned a time or two! this book is very interesting with details of many con artist and those who've been conned. Sure kept me interested and lots to think about as to why so many of us are often caught up in scams. Read full review
Other editions - View all
The Confidence Game: The Psychology of the Con and Why We Fall For It ... Maria Konnikova No preview available - 2016 |
Common terms and phrases
actually Ann Freedman asked Azzopardi Barrett behavior believe better called cash chance comes con artist confidence artist confidence game confirmation bias cons convinced Crichton cult deception Demara dollars donation effect emotional everything evidence Facebook fact fake feel Frampton fraud Fred gambler's fallacy Glafira Rosales grifter happen human impostor investment investors knew Knoedler later look Machiavellianism manipulate mark matter Matthew Michael Shermer microexpressions Miller million mind Moran Cerf never Norfleet once Oscar Hartzell ourselves over-belief paintings percent person persuasive play police Ponzi scheme psychic psychologist psychopath put-up reality reason reputation researchers Richard Thaler rope scam scheme seemed sense simply social someone soon Stetson story successful Sullivan tell Teton Dam There's thing thought three-card monte tickets tion told trust turn victim who'd words
Bibliographic information
| Title | The Confidence Game: Why We Fall for It . . . Every Time |
| Author | Maria Konnikova |
| Publisher | Penguin, 2016 |
| ISBN | 0698170997, 9780698170995 |
| Length | 288 pages |
| Subjects | › › Psychology / Interpersonal Relations Psychology / Psychopathology / General Social Science / Sociology / General |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |