What Works: Gender Equality by Design - Hardcover

Bohnet, Iris

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0674089030 ISBN 13: 9780674089037

Publisher: Belknap Press: An Imprint of Harvard University Press, 2016

Synopsis

“Compelling, lucid, and filled with actionable insights, What Works draws from a deep well of research to explain how we can end gender inequality.”―Adam Grant, author of Give and Take and Originals

“A pathbreaking work, packed with insights on every page... The best book ever written on behavioral science and discrimination.”―Cass Sunstein, coauthor of Nudge

A Financial Times/McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award Finalist

Gender equality is a moral and a business imperative. But unconscious bias holds us back, and de-biasing people’s minds has proven to be difficult and expensive. Diversity training programs have had limited success, and individual effort alone often invites backlash. Behavioral design offers a new solution. By de-biasing organizations instead of individuals, we can make smart changes that have big impacts. Presenting research-based solutions, Iris Bohnet hands us the tools we need to move the needle in classrooms and boardrooms, in hiring and promotion, benefiting businesses, governments, and the lives of millions.

What Works is built on new insights into the human mind. It draws on data collected by companies, universities, and governments in Australia, India, Norway, the United Kingdom, the United States, Zambia, and other countries, often in randomized controlled trials. It points out dozens of evidence-based interventions that could be adopted right now and demonstrates how research is addressing gender bias, improving lives and performance. What Works shows what more can be done―often at shockingly low cost and surprisingly high speed.

About this title

About the Author

Iris Bohnet is a behavioral economist and the academic dean of Harvard’s Kennedy School. She combines insights from economics and psychology to improve decision-making in organizations and society. Her most recent research examines how behavioral design can be used to de-bias how we live, learn and work. She is co-director of the Kennedy School’s Women and Public Policy Program, and the faculty chair of the “Global Leadership and Public Policy for the 21st Century” for the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders.

Review

“In a field overflowing with opinions and ‘gut feelings,’ What Works is a shining ray of truth and insight. Bohnet lays out the science behind what really drives―and prevents―gender inequality, and translates it into clear, easy-to-implement steps for achieving equality. A much needed book with precise, effective prescriptions for any environment.”―Laszlo Bock, SVP of People Operations at Google and author of Work Rules!

“Compelling, lucid, and filled with actionable insights, What Works draws from a deep well of research to explain how we can end gender inequality.”―Adam Grant, author of Give and Take and Originals

“Pathbreaking work, and packed with insights on every page. Bohnet has produced, at once, the best book ever written on behavioral science and discrimination, and a major contribution to behaviorally informed policymaking as a whole. Her book promises to change both private and public institutions―and to improve individual lives.”―Cass Sunstein, Robert Walmsley University Professor at Harvard University and coauthor of Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness

“Drawing on a deep well of research and expertise, Iris Bohnet’s new book gives companies a practical and invaluable toolkit for designing a gender-equal culture. Her business case for action is so compelling that it should be required reading for every corporate leader.”―Frédéric Rozé, President and CEO, L’Oréal USA

“Bohnet assembles an impressive assortment of studies that demonstrate how organizations can achieve gender equity in practice...What Works is stuffed with good ideas, many equally simple to implement...In this era of the TEDification of every promising idea, Bohnet is refreshingly careful. She never overgeneralizes; she cautions about extrapolating from one group to another; and she acknowledges ignorance where data are lacking...The glory of this book is that Bohnet not only offers dozens of practical examples of how behavioral findings can be put to use but also demonstrates that moving toward equity need not be a zero-sum game in which as women gain, men lose...She makes trying out the new steps seem like an exhilarating project rather than an impossible one.”―Carol Tavris, Wall Street Journal

“Right up to board level, companies should find in What Works not only food for thought [about gender bias], but a guide for effective practical action as well.”―Sarah Gordon, Financial Times

“What Works delivers! I have long been inspired by Iris Bohnet’s impressive research on gender bias. In this book, she has distilled years of work into practical approaches that any organization―business, education or government―can adapt to start changing the environments in which we all live, learn, and work. This is a must-read for everyone who actually wants to do something to address the stubborn and costly issue of gender inequality.”―Beth A. Brooke-Marciniak, Global Vice Chair of Public Policy, Ernst & Young Global Limited

“A game changer. In this brilliant and practical book, Bohnet explains how behavioral insights can collapse gender inequality in our lifetime. It’s terrific.”―Linda Babcock, James M. Walton Professor of Economics at Carnegie Mellon University and coauthor of Women Don’t Ask: Negotiation and the Gender Divide

“A refreshingly clear, meticulously researched manual for eliminating gender inequality in the workplace.”―The Guardian

“Thoroughly evidence-based and intensely practical. This book will provide employers with ways to think about what changes they can and should be making to address unintentional discrimination in the workplace, and how such changes would benefit everyone.”―Jessica Abrahams, Prospect

Edition details

• Publisher: Belknap Press: An Imprint of Harvard University Press
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 0674089030
• ISBN 13: 9780674089037
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 400