Being Wrong

Journalist Kathryn Schulz examines why people assume they are right about almost everything, why being right feels so good, and why finding a mistake brings surprise, denial and shame. Using philosophy and neuroscience, she looks at error in four areas: religion, as when a predicted apocalypse never comes, plus politics, memory and love. Her examples run from false memories and failed prophecies to wrongful convictions and medical mistakes, and she cites thinkers such as Darwin, Augustine, Groucho Marx and Freud. Schulz treats error as both inevitable and valuable, able to change how people see the world, their relationships and themselves, and argues that the dread of being wrong strains relationships between relatives and nations alike.

Peter Attia includes it among the books he considers important reading for people interested in his career path, in the profile Peter Attia: In Search of Still Water. Fabrice Grinda also lists it among his recommended books.