How society can shape individual actions in times of uncertainty When we make decisions our
thinking is informed by societal norms guardrails” that guide our decisions like the laws and
rules that govern us. But what are good guardrails in today’s world of overwhelming information
flows and increasingly powerful technologies such as artificial intelligence? Based on the
latest insights from the cognitive sciences economics and public policy Guardrails offers a
novel approach to shaping decisions by embracing human agency in its social context. In this
visionary book Urs Gasser and Viktor Mayer-Schönberger show how the quick embrace of
technological solutions can lead to results we don’t always want and they explain how society
itself can provide guardrails more suited to the digital age ones that empower individual
choice while accounting for the social good encourage flexibility in the face of changing
circumstances and ultimately help us to make better decisions as we tackle the most daunting
problems of our times such as global injustice and climate change. Whether we change jobs buy
a house or quit smoking thousands of decisions large and small shape our daily lives.
Decisions drive our economies seal the fate of democracies create war or peace and affect
the well-being of our planet. Guardrails challenges the notion that technology should step in
where our own decision making fails laying out a surprisingly human-centered set of principles
that can create new spaces for better decisions and a more equitable and prosperous society.
