The Legal Theory Bookworm recommends Bounded Rationality: Heuristics, Judgment, and Public Policy by Sanjit Dhami & Cass R. Sunstein. Here is a description:
Bounded rationality recognizes that human behavior departs from the perfect rationality assumed by neoclassical economics. In this book, Sanjit Dhami and Cass R. Sunstein explore the foundations of bounded rationality and consider the implications of this approach for public policy and law, in particular for questions about choice, welfare, and freedom. The authors, both recognized as experts in the field, cover a wide range of empirical findings and assess theoretical work that attempts to explain those findings. Their presentation is comprehensive, coherent, and lucid, with even the most technical material explained accessibly. They not only offer observations and commentary on the existing literature but also explore new insights, ideas, and connections.
After examining the traditional neoclassical framework, which they refer to as the Bayesian rationality approach (BRA), and its empirical issues, Dhami and Sunstein offer a detailed account of bounded rationality and how it can be incorporated into the social and behavioral sciences. They also discuss a set of models of heuristics-based choice and the philosophical foundations of behavioral economics. Finally, they examine libertarian paternalism and its strategies of “nudges.”
And from the reviews:
“Bounded Rationality is simply the best book on this topic. Encompassing, empirically grounded, analytically sophisticated, and intuitively compelling.”
—Ernst Fehr, Professor of Economics, University of Zurich
“This is a wonderful introduction to both classic and more recent behavioral economics. The mixture of theory and empirical evidence is very useful and healthy. The applications to public policy are particularly interesting. I highly recommend it to all entrants to the field.”
—Xavier Gabaix, Pershing Square Professor of Economics and Finance, Harvard University
