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Why We Get Duped and How to Avoid It
Praeger Publishers
January 2009
On Sale: December 30, 2008
224 pages
ISBN: 0313362165
EAN: 9780313362163
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
The first book to provide a comprehensive look at the
problem of gullibility, this groundbreaking work covers how
and why we are fooled in areas that range from religion,
politics, science, and medicine, to personal finance and
relationships. First laying the groundwork by showing
gullibility at play in the writings of historic authors we
all know, developmental psychologist Stephen Greenspan
follows with chapters that describe social duping across
the gamut of human conduct. From people who pour bucks into
investment scams, to those who follow the "faith" of
scientologists, believe in fortunetellers, or champion
unfounded "medicine" akin to snake oil, we all know someone
who has been duped. A lot of us have been duped ourselves,
out of naive trust. It's not a matter of low intelligence
that moves us to, without evidence, believe the words of
politicians, salesmen, academics, lawyers, military
figures, or cult leaders, among others. Greenspan shows us
the four broad reasons we become drawn into gullible
behavior, and he presents ways people can become less
gullible. Greenspan takes us into the vast realm of
gullibility from the fictional Pied Piper to the historical
Trojan Horse, then through modern-day military maneuvers,
political untruths, police and criminal justice scams, and
financial and love lies. While there have been earlier
books focused on "liars" and manipulators of all sorts,
this is the first to focus on the gullible who are their
victims, and how the gullible can become less likely to be
taken again.
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