The Random Factor: How Chance and Luck Profoundly Shape Our Lives and the World around Us - Softcover

Rank, Prof. Mark Robert

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0520430751 ISBN 13: 9780520430754

Publisher: University of California Press, 2026

Synopsis

A poverty expert reveals how truly random the world is―including how economic inequality is experienced―and how we can learn to acknowledge chance and appreciate it. 
 
It’s comforting to think that we can be successful because we work hard, climb ladders, and get what we deserve, but each of us has been profoundly touched by randomness. Chance is shown to play a crucial role in shaping outcomes across history, throughout the natural world, and in our everyday lives. In The Random Factor, Mark Robert Rank draws from a wealth of evidence, including interviews and research, to explain how luck and chance play out and reveals how we can use these lessons to guide our personal lives and public policies.
 
The Random Factor traverses luck from macro to micro, from events like the Cuban Missile Crisis to our personal encounters and relationships. From his perspective as a scholar of poverty, Rank also delves into the class and race dynamics of chance, emphasizing the stark disparities it brings to light. This transformative book prompts a new understanding of the twists and turns in our daily lives and encourages readers to fully appreciate the surprising world of randomness in which we live.

About this title

About the Author

Mark Robert Rank is Herbert S. Hadley Professor of Social Welfare at Washington University in St. Louis. He has received numerous awards for his scholarship and books, and his research has been reported in a wide range of national and international media.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of California Press
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0520430751
• ISBN 13: 9780520430754
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 302