Barry Schwartz Answers Your Questions

Editor’s note: This article was initially published in The Daily Gazette, Swarthmore’s online, daily newspaper founded in Fall 1996. As of Fall 2018, the DG has merged with The Phoenix. See the about page to read more about the DG.

As promised, responses to your Burning Questions for Swarthmore’s TED-talking, choice-making guru and Psychology professor, Barry Schwartz. On video this time, in order to get the full impact of this guy’s unending, swaggerful charisma.

He already told you how to be happy, now get ready to hear about Barry’s biggest academic failure, tips for making decisions, even dating advice!

Video by Maria Gloria Robalino, Interview/Editing by Peter Liebenson, Questions by You!

Click on a question to show the video response (and click again to hide), or play them all in a row.

Intro: What’s it like to be “that guy who says that more choices are bad,” and what’s the Paradox of Choice?

Barry tells us how to make choices for breakfast, Sharples, dating and wine.

Why you got lotteried out of “Happiness,” and Barry’s biggest academic failure.

Who would Barry take on in a debate, and which academic division would he eliminate?

Barry answers a convoluted economics question from Soren.

Barry talks about TED, whether Swatties have practical wisdom, and what’s next for him.

Sahiba Gill

burningquestions

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