16½ behavioural science books that marketers should read to boost their effectiveness

In my book The Illusion of Choice  I cover 16½ psychological biases you can apply to influence the behaviour of your customer or target user.  There are some fantastic books out there on the topic — so I wanted to share my 16½ favourites here to get you warmed up.  

1. The Choice Factory by Richard Shotton [2018]

This will give you a decent grounding in 25 behavioural insights that will be useful for you if you’re in the business of changing behaviour..

2. Alchemy by Rory Sutherland [2019]

Anything written by Rory Sutherland is worth reading. He has a uniquely fertile imagination, so he’ll often surprise you with a left-field interpretation.

3. Blindsight: The (Mostly) Hidden Ways Marketing Reshapes Our Brains by Matt Johnson and Prince Ghuman [2020]

Most books on behavioural science are written for a generalist reader. This is specifically for marketers. 

4. How to Change by Katy Milkman [2021]

Milkman is one of the foremost authorities on behaviour change. I look at some of her work on the fresh start effect in my new book — you can get a much more detailed discussion here.

5. Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear [2018]

The single best book on habits. A wonderful blend of stories and studies which are valuable from both a professional and personal perspective. 

6. Priceless by William Poundstone [2010]

There’s no other book on pricing that comes anywhere close to being as interesting and informative as Poundstone’s book.

7. The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact by Chip and Dan Heath [2017]

This is just as good as their earlier one, Make it Stick, and has less overlap with other books on psychology. I drew on it while writing The Illusion of Choice.

8. Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz [2017]

The book covers one of the main themes of behavioural science: that you can’t rely on what people say motivates them to understand what genuinely motivates them. 

9. Influence by Robert Cialdini [1984]

This is one of the classics of social psychology, outlining six biases that shape human behaviour: reciprocity, commitment, social proof, authority, liking and scarcity.

10. Inside the Nudge Unit by David Halpern [2015]

This outlines four broad approaches to behaviour change: make it easy, attractive, social and timely. 

11. Irrationality by Stuart Sutherland [1992]

If I had to recommend one pure psychology book, it’d be this. It covers a huge range of biases, so whatever you’re working on, there’ll be a relevant experiment. And it's a joy to read. 

12. The Person and the Situation by Lee Ross and Richard Nisbett [1991]

Malcolm Gladwell said: “All of my books have been, in some sense, intellectual godchildren of The Person and the Situation.” What more do you need?

13. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman [2011]

Kahneman won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 2002 for his work on behavioural economics with Amos Tversky. This book gives an overview of his major ideas. Heavier than some others, but worth persevering.

14. The Social Animal by Elliot Aronson [1972]

First, make sure you buy the right book — there are two psychology books called The Social Animal. Aronson’s own research covered loss aversion and the pratfall effect, but this book covers a far broader range of biases.

15. Decoded: The Science Behind Why We Buy by Phil Barden [2013]

Decoded was one of the first books to address the gap between theory and practice in marketing psychology. There’s a new edition out too!

16. The Art of Thinking Clearly by Rolf Dobelli [2013]

Dobelli’s book has 99 chapters, each dedicated to a specific bias. Since his chapters are only three to four pages long, it makes for a remarkably easy read. 

16½. The Illusion of Choice by Richard Shotton [2023]

Here’s the half — you knew this one would be here, right?  I look at 16½ psychological biases that impact decision making, and how you can use them to solve your challenge, whatever behaviour you’re trying to influence.