The New York Times bestselling author Dan Ariely recently published a third book, The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty: How we Lie to Everyone—Especially Ourselves, which explores cheating and dishonesty as irrational behaviors.

Ariely, who also wrote Predictably Irrational and The Upside of Irrationality, is a professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University and founded the Center for Advanced Hindsight in Durham. He has spoken at Technology, Entertainment and Design conferences, and his recorded talks have accumulated more than 2.8 million views.

“People often don’t realize that trust is a kind of public good,” Ariely said. “So what happens when we don’t trust other people and institutions? It really hurts everybody.”

In the book, Ariely humorously yet professionally analyzes two conflicting human motivations: our desire to view ourselves as honorable people and our innate proclivity to lie to achieve our goals.

The book explores many ways in which we lie to ourselves, we lie to others and others lie to us, as well as the effect dishonesty has on our lives. 

“What interests me,” Ariely said, “is the fact that there are a lot of places where I would see behavior I think is not ideal, so is it not ideal or do I just think it’s not ideal, and can we do something about it?”

As it turns out, there are many ways in which we can combat and reduce cheating, and the beginning of the book contains a number of effective ways to do so. Typically, the best way to combat cheating, whether on a test or taxes, is to provide an individual with a moral reminder. Having a student sign an honor code before a test, for example, is a somewhat reliable means of combatting dishonesty.

Interestingly, Ariely notes a time in which he presented his findings to the IRS, proposing a few anti-cheating methods. The IRS, however, seemed disinterested and unmoved by the findings. The inclusion of this in the book spoke volumes about how authoritative figures are prone and susceptible to dishonest behavior.

Ariely uses a series of experiments to gauge how people behave — and cheat — given certain situations. The experiments typically follow a basic setup, which establishes a good, consistent set of control data. Not only are the experiments stable, but Ariely also considers every possible hole or flaw and acts accordingly by running more experiments. This way, he makes no conclusions without firm, valid evidence.

Not only does he give examples of how we cheat by only small margins when given the opportunity, he also demonstrates what factors play into our dishonest behavior. For instance, wearing fake designer merchandise has more influence on our dishonesty than the value of a reward would.

Several times in the book, Ariely points to businessmen, bankers and medical professionals as reliable examples of dishonest people. He outlines how conflicts of interest may influence behavior whether realized or not.

One chapter explores the world of pharmaceutical reps and their influence on doctors. The book sheds some light on how and why doctors recommend certain medications to patients who tend to trust their caretakers.

“This information and understanding how devastating conflicts of interest can be is actually a huge burden,” Ariely said. “So every time you go to see a banker or lawyer or dentist, you actually don’t trust him. It isn’t that these are bad people, just about conflicts of interest.” 

The author provides personal, relevant anecdotes, which helps readers better understand and empathize with the material. Ariely, a former burn victim, recalls one trusted doctor that wanted to tattoo small, black dots on his face to restore symmetry. When Ariely expressed hesitance, the doctor yelled and criticized young Ariely. As it turned out, the doctor only wanted to use equipment he had spent his own money on, and it led him to try to manipulate his patient.

The author’s personal stories help guide the book, making a more comfortable and relatable reading experience.

Through one experiment, Ariely explains how we lie to ourselves for a number of reasons, but mostly to better lie to others. He demonstrates how people who have knowingly cheated or received help on a task often believe their skill level to be higher than it actually is.

Dishonesty isn’t always a bad thing, though. Ariely points out that people can lie to make others feel better and not worry. He regards this as a good thing, recalling his time spent in the hospital, being told he looked better than he did. These “white lies” kept his optimism high and, he says, tend to do the same thing for others.

A number of things can influence our propensity to cheat. Among them, Ariely cites things such as tiredness and hunger as factors toward dishonesty. Once dishonesty starts, he warns, it grows and eventually contaminates those around us.

Ariely maintains humor despite the bleak picture he paints of everyone’s basic dishonesty and provides semi-optimism in the face of discouraging data. His research pertains to everybody, and The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty is a must-read for psychology and behavioral economics students, as well as for anyone interested in what leads us to cheat.