New Books Network

Sandra Matz, "Mindmasters: The Data-Driven Science of Predicting and Changing Human Behavior" (HBRP, 2025)

May 7, 2025

Sandra Matz, a Zalaznik Associate Professor of Business at Columbia Business School, dives into the intriguing world of algorithms and behavior. She discusses how data infiltrates our lives, influencing decisions from consumer habits to political choices. Matz highlights the dual-edged sword of big data: while it can empower us to make better choices, it also poses ethical dilemmas and risks of manipulation. The conversation explores the challenges faced by empathetic individuals in finances and the transformative potential of algorithms in therapy and mental health support.

41:31

Episode guests

Sandra Matz

AI Summary

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Algorithms can predict and manipulate human behavior through extensive data analysis, raising concerns about privacy and ethical implications.

While data-driven insights empower interventions for better decision-making, they also risk eroding personal agency and self-determination.

Deep dives

The Digital Village and Human Behavior

The digital world is compared to a small village where every individual's actions and preferences can be observed and influenced by others. Just as village neighbors would closely monitor social interactions, algorithms track our digital footprints to understand our psychological needs and behaviors. This parallels how technological advancements are reshaping human interaction, with algorithms gaining the ability to manipulate choices much like neighbors sought to influence one another’s lives. The implications highlight the balance between connection and intrusion in our digital lives.

Intro

3min

Digital Intimacy: Data and Identity

8min

Understanding the Financial Struggles of Agreeable Individuals

5min

Reframing Challenges through Empathy and Support

2min

The Ethics of Data Influence

6min

Algorithms, Free Will, and Empathy

15min

A fascinating exploration of how algorithms penetrate the most intimate aspects of our psychology—from the pioneering expert on psychological targeting.

There are more pieces of digital data than there are stars in the universe. This data helps us monitor our planet, decipher our genetic code, and take a deep dive into our psychology.

As algorithms become increasingly adept at accessing the human mind, they also become more and more powerful at controlling it, enticing us to buy a certain product or vote for a certain political candidate. Some of us say this technological trend is no big deal. Others consider it one of the greatest threats to humanity. But what if the truth is more nuanced and mind-bending than that?

In Mindmasters: The Data-Driven Science of Predicting and Changing Human Behavior (Harvard Business Press, 2025), Columbia Business School professor Sandra Matz reveals in fascinating detail how big data offers insights into the most intimate aspects of our psyches and how these insights empower an external influence over the choices we make. This can be creepy, manipulative, and downright harmful, with scandals like that of British consulting firm Cambridge Analytica being merely the tip of the iceberg. Yet big data also holds enormous potential to help us live healthier, happier lives—for example, by improving our mental health, encouraging better financial decisions, or enabling us to break out of our echo chambers.

With passion and clear-eyed precision, Matz shows us how to manage psychological targeting and redesign the data game.

Mindmasters is a riveting look at what our digital footprints reveal about us, how they're being used—for good and for ill—and how we can gain power over the data that defines us.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network