Decision Making: A Very Short Introduction - Softcover

Palminteri, Stefano; Wyart, Valentin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0198869576 ISBN 13: 9780198869573

Publisher: OUP Oxford, 2026

Synopsis

Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring

We are constantly making decisions. from everyday choices like whether to carry an umbrella, to complex issues involving risk, strategy, and long-term planning.

This Very Short Introduction explains how we make choices, exploring how we process information, learn from experience, and sometimes fail to make the 'right' decisions. Drawing on psychology, economics, neuroscience, and artificial intelligence to reveal the hidden mechanisms of decision-making, it offers a guide to how we decide - and how we might do it better.

ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

About this title

About the Author

Stefano Palminteri is Research Director at INSERM and leads the Human Reinforcement Learning team at ENS-DEC. His research, published in top journals like Nature Human Behaviour, has earned prestigious grants and awards, including an ERC Consolidator Grant and the Humboldt Foundation's Bessel Prize.


Valentin Wyart is Research Director at INSERM and leads the Cognitive Variability team at ENS-PSL in Paris, France. His research has studied the psychology and neurophysiology of human decision-making, from visual decisions to value-based decisions, made under adverse conditions characterized by different forms of uncertainty.

Edition details

• Publisher: OUP Oxford
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0198869576
• ISBN 13: 9780198869573
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 176