A term created by behavioral economist Richard Thaler which describes the way that economists view people. Econs are always rational, always selfish, and unchanging in their tastes. Kahneman argues throughout the book that people generally do not operate like Econs. This term is often used in opposition with Humans—the way that psychologists view people.
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Econs Term Timeline in Thinking, Fast and Slow
The timeline below shows where the term Econs appears in Thinking, Fast and Slow. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part 4, Chapter 25
...anything but stable. Behavioral economist Richard Thaler designates these ideas of people using the names Econs and Humans.
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Utility theory focused on the decisions of Econs, but Tversky and Kahneman wanted to investigate the intuitive decisions of Humans. Five years after...
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Part 4, Chapter 27
...of the market for condo apartments in Boston during a downturn yielded these clear concepts. Econs would ignore buying prices—the current market value is all that should matter. But not so...
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Conclusions
Kahneman then returns to the idea of Econs and Humans, as well as basic economic theory. He argues that the definition of rationality...
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