Everything I ever needed to know about economics I learned from online dating

255 Pages·2014·4.203 MB·English

by  Oyer, Oyer Paul Edward

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oyer US$25.00 / CAN$28.00
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that i’m guessing many marriages will result from his book. A hilarious, thought-
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Paul Oyer is the fred h. merrill Professor New York Times bestselling author, Marry Him: mh i lEarnEd from
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Stanford, california, with his two children dE
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“‘brave and funny’ is an unusual thing to say about an introduction to ino
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economic thinking, but the description fits both paul oyer and his book.” E
d a and dating work, oyer shows how you can
—alvin e. rOth, ab apply these ideas to take advantage of the
Nobel Laureate in economic Sciences tinou economics in everyday life, all around you,
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all the time.

for all online daters—and for anyone else
jacket design: stephani finks
swimming in the vast sea of the information
ISBN-13: 978-1-4221-9165-1 economy—this book uses oyer’s own
Stay informed. Join the diScuSSion. 90000
Paul oyer experiences, and those of millions of others,
ViSit hbr.org/bookS
to help you navigate the key economic
follow @harVardbiz on twitter
find uS on facebook, linkedin, youtube, and google+ hbr.org/bookS 9 781422 191651 harVard buSineSS reView PreSS concepts that drive the modern age.
EVERYTHING I EVER NEEDED
TO KNOW ABOUT ECONOMICS
I LEARNED FROM
ONLINE DATING
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EVERYTHING I EVER NEEDED
TO KNOW ABOUT ECONOMICS
I LEARNED FROM
ONLINE DATING
PAUL OYER
HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW PRESS
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
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Copyright 2014 Paul Oyer
All rights reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced
into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means
(electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without
the prior permission of the publisher. Requests for permission should be
directed to [email protected], or mailed to Permissions,
Harvard Business School Publishing, 60 Harvard Way, Boston,
Massachusetts 02163.
The web addresses referenced in this book were live and correct at the
time of the book’s publication but may be subject to change.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Oyer, Paul E. (Paul Edward), 1963-
Everything I ever needed to know about economics I learned from
online dating / Paul Oyer.
pages cm
1. Online dating—Economic aspects. 2. Economics—Sociological
aspects. 3. Economics—Psychological aspects. I. Title.
HQ801.82.O94 2014
306.730285—dc23
2013029760
eISBN: 978-1-4221-9167-5
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IN MEMORY OF MY MOTHER
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CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 1
1 SEARCH THEORY 5
Deciding When to Settle
2 CHEAP TALK 25
Hedges, Omissions, and Just Plain Lies
3 NETWORK EXTERNALITIES 43
The Facebook Effect
4 SIGNALING 63
Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth Is
5 STATISTICAL DISCRIMINATION 91
Stereotypes
6 THICK VERSUS THIN MARKETS 111
Big Fish or Big Pond?
7 ADVERSE SELECTION 131
Stigma
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viii CONTENTS
8 POSITIVE ASSORTATIVE MATING 149
Why Everyone in the Office and the
Neighborhood Is Similar
9 THE RETURNS TO SKILLS 169
Education and Good Looks Pay
10 THE FAMILY 189
Negotiating at Home
EPILOGUE 211
Notes 217
Index 227
Acknowledgments 239
About the Author 243
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EVERYTHING I EVER NEEDED
TO KNOW ABOUT ECONOMICS
I LEARNED FROM
ONLINE DATING
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