The New Meaning of Fast Delivery

From the nineteenth century to the twenty-first, our expectations for fast letter and package delivery have changed considerably.

Economics and the Honor System

When we pay through an honor system, retailers depend on our economic honesty while researchers are trying to understand it.

How a Behavioral Economist Explains a Frappuccino Problem

Since 1995, many of us have been consuming shamelessly decadent Frappuccinos. Just one Ultra Caramel Frappuccino with dark caramel coffee, layers of whipped cream (each topped with a dollop of caramel sauce), and white chocolate tops the 400 calorie threshold.…

Why You Might Want Some “Price Gouging”

Called “price gouging” by many of us, an increase in prices as a hurricane approaches could be a productive incentive for supply and demand.

What Soccer Can Teach Us About Investing

When measuring happiness around the world after a World Cup finals match, the pain of loss can exceed the pleasure of gain.

Still More on the Mommy Penalty

Two new papers have looked more closely at the mommy penalty and even identified how women who have no children are affected.

When Choosing a Salad Is Like Buying a Car

Recent research explains why and when we experience choice fatigue after seeing the alternatives at a salad bar or options at an auto dealer.

Why Charismatic Animals Need More Conservation

A paradox explains why our concern for wildlife conservation might not extend to the charismatic animals we most care about.

Why We Will Miss the Candy We Never Loved

Told that their least favorite candy might no longer exist, people are panic buying NECCO wafers and Sweethearts because the New England Confectionary Company could shut down.

Will Money Bring You Happiness?

Looking at our day-to-day emotions and our life evaluation, recent studies give us some answers about whether money brings happiness.