Why we do what we do is hard to grasp but don't give up

Our conscious mind has far less control of decisions than we like to think. The effects of it are profound

- BIJU DOMINIC

Why have so many intelligent people, who had access to quality information, made the right decisions, made horrific mistakes? I posed this question in an article for Mint just after the 2008 financial crisis. Over the past nine years, through my Behaviour By Brain column, I've continued to explore the mysterious forces behind human behaviour. Why do 10–12 people in Mumbai get hit by a train every single day? At the peak of the Covid pandemic, the big question was how do we motivate every citizen to take both doses of the vaccine? And now, with artificial intelligence (AI) advancing at a breakneck pace, the crucial question is: How do we ensure AI remains human-centric so that it is used for the greater good of humanity?

In trying to answer such intriguing questions about human behaviour, data analytics can tell us what people are doing. However, without understanding why people do what they do, a comprehensive understanding of human behaviour remains elusive.