Intro -- Contents -- Preface -- Some Personal Reflections on Writing This Book -- The Author's Qualifications to Write a Book Like This One -- Interchange Among the Social and Decision Sciences -- The History of the Book -- Please Enjoy It -- Note -- Overview of Business Psychology -- The Book's Purpose -- Life Is Complicated -- The Outline of the Book -- The Book in a Nutshell -- PART I WANTS, ABILITIES, AND GOALS -- Chapter 1 Tastes, Preferences, Wants, and Values -- Brief Outline -- What Do You Want? -- What Are We Talking About Here? -- The Basics of Understanding Desires -- Some Useful Tactics for Sorting Out Desires -- Tastes Are Tricky -- You May Wish to Increase Your Desires Rather Than Satisfy Them -- Analyzing the Aims of Organizations -- Notes -- Chapter 2 Assessing Your Resources -- Brief Outline -- What Do You Have Going for You? -- The Past Influences the Present -- Taking Stock of Your Resources -- Notes -- Chapter 3 Choosing Goals and Criteria of Success -- Brief Outline -- The Inputs Used in Setting Goals -- The Benefits of Wise Goal Selection -- The Benefits of Setting Goals -- The Goal-Setting Process -- Summary -- Note -- PART II INTRODUCTION TO EVALUATIVE THINKING -- Brief Outline -- What Is in Part II? -- The Role of Comparison -- What Is Cost-Benefit Analysis? -- The Limits of Cost-Benefit Analysis: To What Is It Applicable? -- The Steps in a Cost-Benefit Analysis -- When to Use Cost-Benefit Analysis, and What You Get Out of It -- Exercise -- Notes -- Chapter 4 Evaluating Simple Alternatives -- How to Price What You Sell -- How Many Alternatives to Consider -- Combination Alternatives -- Exercises -- Notes -- Chapter 5 Weighing Present Versus Future Benefits (and Costs) -- Brief Outline -- The Concept of Discounting for Time -- Rent Versus Buy (Zero Salvage Value) -- How Sharply Should You Discount Future Events? -- Summary.

Additional Reading -- Exercises -- Notes -- Chapter 6 How to Think About Cost -- Brief Outline -- Nonbusiness Costs -- Opportunity Cost -- Nonmonetary Costs Other Than Time -- Chapter 7 Allowing for Uncertainty -- Brief Outline -- The Concept of Probability -- Allowing for Uncertainty When Comparing Alternatives -- Chapter 8 Dealing With Risks -- Brief Outline -- Understanding Insurance (and Gambling) -- Possible Criteria for Assessing Risk -- Risk in a Business Setting -- Summary -- Chapter 9 Reconciling Multiple Goals -- Brief Outline -- Try to Proceed Between the Horns of the Dilemma -- When You Really Must Choose Among Goals -- When You Really Must Choose Among Goals -- Summary -- Note -- PART III GETTING USEFUL IDEAS AND KNOWLEDGE -- Brief Outline -- Three Kinds of Knowledge -- The Relative Smallness of Any Person's Knowledge -- Start by Immersing Yourself in the Raw Facts -- Obtaining the Various Sorts of Knowledge -- Chapter 10 Getting and Eliminating Ideas -- Brief Outline -- How to Get Ideas -- Eliminating Ideas -- Notes -- Chapter 11 Experts, Expert Systems, and Libraries -- Experts -- Expert Systems -- Libraries -- Summary -- Notes -- Chapter 12 Using Scientific Discipline to Obtain Information -- Brief Outline -- Who Needs Science? -- Conditions That Require the Discipline of Science -- Steps in a Scientific Investigation -- Summary -- Notes -- Chapter 13 Assessing Consequences and Likelihoods -- Brief Outline -- Range of Procedures That Can Help You Make Estimates -- Some Principles for Estimating Costs and Benefits -- Estimating Probabilities -- Summary -- Exercises -- Notes -- PART IV WORKING WITH INFORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE -- Chapter 14 Pitfalls That Entrap Our Thinking -- Brief Outline -- Two Helpful Tactics -- The Main Types of Pitfalls and Fallacies -- The Classical Logical Pitfalls -- Pitfalls in Dealing With Information.

Fallacies in the Way We Use Language -- Summary -- Notes -- Chapter 15 My Favorite Worst Sources of Errors -- Summary -- Notes -- Chapter 16 Good Judgment -- Chapter 17 Self-Discipline and Habits of Thought -- Brief Outline -- Necessary Values, Norms, and Ethics for Social Functioning -- Notes -- Chapter 18 Dealing With People, and Managing Them -- Infrequent Relationships: Negotiation -- The Art and Science of Negotiation -- Ongoing Relationships -- Notes -- Index -- About the Author.

This practical resource shows business professionals how to improve their decision-making skills and enhance their ability to develop effective interpersonal relationships with co-workers and clients. The book covers a wide range of topics -- identifying tastes and preferences, personal skill assessment, cost-benefit analysis, risk and uncertainty, multi-tasking, human resource management, time constraints, data collection, and more. Designed to help busy professionals make the most effective use of time and energy, it will also be useful in the study of organizational behavior and business psychology.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, 2018. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries.