The most complete and authoritative account to date of the response of the central bankers to the global financial crisis.
Holding that monetary policy is too subtle and complex to entrust to politicians beholden to the whims of an uninformed electorate, Washington Post financial columnist Irwin convincingly argues that independent central banks are an essential element of responsible economic stewardship.
The author rises to the defense of those who control the money supply, delivering a paean to central banking and the almost mystical power it wields over the economy. His characterization of Ben Bernanke, Jean-Claude Trichet and Mervyn King, leaders of the Fed, the ECB and the Bank of England, respectively, as almost demigods is perhaps a bit hyperbolic; he claims that their actions in 2007 and 2008 “would create the world to come.” Unexpected wit and an eye for drama keep the meticulously researched minutiae of monetary policy from reading too much like a baseball box score, but readers without a background in economics or finance may find all of the jargon bewildering. Irwin is effusive in his praise for the overall performance of the central banks. He singles out Bernanke specifically for his measured response and political savvy, while King, who “seemed to disdain bankers personally, and was privately contemptuous of their views,” receives mixed marks for his failure to play well with others. The close personal relationships of the three, forged over countless hours communing in exclusive clubs and at the sidelines of global conferences, are contrasted favorably with the messy backbiting and rabble-rousing of the political process. Enlightening chapters about the winding history of central banking and the People’s Bank of China have less to do with the main narrative but add depth to the book as a whole, making it an indispensable resource for anyone seeking to understand the role played by the guardians of the economy.
The most complete and authoritative account to date of the response of the central bankers to the global financial crisis.Pub Date: April 4, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-59420-462-3
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Penguin Press
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2013
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our...
A psychologist and Nobel Prize winner summarizes and synthesizes the recent decades of research on intuition and systematic thinking.
The author of several scholarly texts, Kahneman (Emeritus Psychology and Public Affairs/Princeton Univ.) now offers general readers not just the findings of psychological research but also a better understanding of how research questions arise and how scholars systematically frame and answer them. He begins with the distinction between System 1 and System 2 mental operations, the former referring to quick, automatic thought, the latter to more effortful, overt thinking. We rely heavily, writes, on System 1, resorting to the higher-energy System 2 only when we need or want to. Kahneman continually refers to System 2 as “lazy”: We don’t want to think rigorously about something. The author then explores the nuances of our two-system minds, showing how they perform in various situations. Psychological experiments have repeatedly revealed that our intuitions are generally wrong, that our assessments are based on biases and that our System 1 hates doubt and despises ambiguity. Kahneman largely avoids jargon; when he does use some (“heuristics,” for example), he argues that such terms really ought to join our everyday vocabulary. He reviews many fundamental concepts in psychology and statistics (regression to the mean, the narrative fallacy, the optimistic bias), showing how they relate to his overall concerns about how we think and why we make the decisions that we do. Some of the later chapters (dealing with risk-taking and statistics and probabilities) are denser than others (some readers may resent such demands on System 2!), but the passages that deal with the economic and political implications of the research are gripping.
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our minds.Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-374-27563-1
Page Count: 512
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Sept. 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
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These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.
A helpful guide to working effectively with people from other cultures.
“The sad truth is that the vast majority of managers who conduct business internationally have little understanding about how culture is impacting their work,” writes Meyer, a professor at INSEAD, an international business school. Yet they face a wider array of work styles than ever before in dealing with clients, suppliers and colleagues from around the world. When is it best to speak or stay quiet? What is the role of the leader in the room? When working with foreign business people, failing to take cultural differences into account can lead to frustration, misunderstanding or worse. Based on research and her experiences teaching cross-cultural behaviors to executive students, the author examines a handful of key areas. Among others, they include communicating (Anglo-Saxons are explicit; Asians communicate implicitly, requiring listeners to read between the lines), developing a sense of trust (Brazilians do it over long lunches), and decision-making (Germans rely on consensus, Americans on one decider). In each area, the author provides a “culture map scale” that positions behaviors in more than 20 countries along a continuum, allowing readers to anticipate the preferences of individuals from a particular country: Do they like direct or indirect negative feedback? Are they rigid or flexible regarding deadlines? Do they favor verbal or written commitments? And so on. Meyer discusses managers who have faced perplexing situations, such as knowledgeable team members who fail to speak up in meetings or Indians who offer a puzzling half-shake, half-nod of the head. Cultural differences—not personality quirks—are the motivating factors behind many behavioral styles. Depending on our cultures, we understand the world in a particular way, find certain arguments persuasive or lacking merit, and consider some ways of making decisions or measuring time natural and others quite strange.
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-61039-250-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2014
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