Steven D. Levitt

“For emotion is the enemy of rational argument.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“A rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Humans respond to incentives.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Tetlock’s words, even when their predictions prove.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“We are blind to our blindness.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Don’t listen to what people say; watch what they do.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Shaw reportedly said. “I have made an international reputation for myself by thinking once or twice a week.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“It isn't only that we know less than we pretend about the outside world; we don't even know ourselves all that well.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Ideas nearly always seem brilliant when they’re hatched, so we never act on a new idea for at least twenty-four hours.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Sometimes in life, going straight up the middle is the boldest move of all.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“When moral posturing is replaced by an honest assessment of the data, the result is often a new, surprising insight.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Most of us want to fix or change the world in some fashion. But to change the world, you first have to…

— Steven D. Levitt

“The evidence linking increased punishment with lower crime rates is very strong.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Human beings, for all our accomplishments, can be fragile animals. Most of us don't take criticism well at all.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“Morning robberies yield far more than afternoon robberies . . .' - When to Rob a Bank: A Rouge Economist's Guide to…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Government agents sardonically known as the Menstrual Police regularly rounded up women in their workplaces to administer pregnancy tests. If a woman…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Human beings aren't the most candid animals on the planet. We'll often say one thing and do another—or, more precisely, we’ll say…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Whatever the incentive, whatever the situation,dishonest people will try to gain an advantage by whatever means necessary.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“One thing we’ve learned is that when people, especially politicians, start making decisions based on a reading of their moral compass, facts…

— Steven D. Levitt

“The conventional wisdom is often wrong. Crime didn’t keep soaring in the 1990s, money alone doesn’t win elections, and—surprise—drinking eight glasses of…

— Steven D. Levitt

“The best way to increase wolves in America, rabbits in Australia, and snakes in India is to pay a bounty on their…

— Steven D. Levitt

“[...]finding a few bad apples out of millions would be difficult. Our odds would improve if we could somehow trick the bad…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Here is the broader point: whatever problem you're trying to solve, make sure you're not just attacking the noisy part of the…

— Steven D. Levitt

“How can this type of data be made to tell a reliable story? By subjecting it to the economist’s favorite trick: regression…

— Steven D. Levitt

“As with most bad behaviors, drunk driving could probably be wiped out entirely if a strong-enough incentive were instituted—random roadblocks, for instance,…

— Steven D. Levitt

“It is understandable, therefore, that the movement to stop global warming has taken on the feel of a religion. The core belief…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Every time we pretend to know something, we are doing the same: protecting our own reputation rather than promoting the collective good.…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Colleges and universities, meanwhile, have no such qualms about torturing their applicants. Think about how much work a high-school student must do…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Congress passed legislation requiring a five-year mandatory sentence for selling just five grams of crack; you would have to sell 500 grams…

— Steven D. Levitt

“The theme of Smith’s first book, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, was the innate honesty of mankind. “How selfish soever man may…

— Steven D. Levitt

“While one might expect that suicide is highest among people whose lives are the hardest, research by Lester and others suggests the…

— Steven D. Levitt

“When it comes to solving problems, one of the best ways to start is by putting away your moral compass. Why? When…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Some people would argue that we don’t do a very good job. But taking the long view, that is clearly not true.…

— Steven D. Levitt

“When a woman does not want to have a child, she usually has good reason. She may be unmarried or in a…

— Steven D. Levitt

“But as incentives go, commissions are tricky. First of all, a 6 percent real-estate commission is typically split between the seller’s agent…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Keepers jump left 57 percent of the time and right 41 percent—which means they stay in the center only 2 times out…

— Steven D. Levitt

“All of us face barriers—physical, financial, temporal—every day. Some are unquestionably real. But others are plainly artificial—expectations about how well a given…

— Steven D. Levitt

“And what about the other half of the election truism—that the amount of money spent on campaign finance is obscenely huge? In…

— Steven D. Levitt

“Few people think more than two or three times a year,” Shaw reportedly said.”

— Steven D. Levitt

“The key is to learn to climb inside other people's minds to figure out what really matters to them.”

— Steven D. Levitt