Episode 361: Alex Edmans - Finding "The Truth" in Economics, Finance, and Life
The Rational Reminder Podcast · 2025-06-12 · 1h 5m
Episode notes
Today, Ben plays lone host for the first time as we welcome Alex Edmans to the show. Alex is a Professor of Finance at London Business School as well as an accomplished speaker, author, investment banker, and financial advisor. To start, Alex describes his involvement in the formation of a new law in the UK before defining 'misinformation' and where confirmation bias fits in. Then, we assess the impact severity of confirmation bias, biased search versus biased interpretation, the role of generative AI in confirmation bias, and the levels of susceptibility within confirmation bias. We also explore the role of black-and-white thinking in concealing the truth, Alex's Ladder of Misinference as seen in May Contain Lies, the 10,000-hour rule and other famous statements of misinformation, and how the idea of a narrative may influence how people interpret and misinterpret facts. We end with how to guard against the plague of data mining in research, data as evidence and what this implies for evidence in financial economics, and Alex shares helpful advice for determining truth in any circumstance.