Top Dog
The Science of Winning and Losing
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- $18.99
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
Compete better...
In a competitive situation our bodies can experience the same level of stress hormones as jumping out of a plane. Competition is often the key to outstanding achievement. But what is it that makes the difference between rising to the challenge and buckling under pressure?
Using groundbreaking studies in diverse scientific fields, Bronson and Merryman demonstrate that understanding how to harness our competitive fire means we can perform our best – whether the contest is sporting, academic or in the workplace.
Why are men typically prepared to gamble on long or even stupid odds and women aren’t?
Why do some less talented students consistently outperform their smarter class mates in crucial exams?
Why do higher levels of testosterone actually make you less selfish and more cooperative and cognitively astute?
Why do so many market-leading companies cede their top position because they become risk averse at the wrong times?
Why do sports teams where the pay differential between players is the greatest win more?
The answer to all this and more is in New York Times no.1 bestselling authors Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman's Top Dog:The Science of Winning and Losing
‘A great read for those paralyzed by the fear of failure as well as thosewho hunger for success’
Huffington Post
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Bronson and Merryman (coauthors of NurtureShock) praise healthy competition as a force that not only spurs individuals to excel but drives the progress of entire cultures, convincingly pegging the development of democracy as a side-effect of the original Greek Olympics, and the composition of Bach's masterpieces as a product of musical/religious politics. Citing studies that explore individual performance in the contexts that offer only intrinsic motivators versus those that provide a peer challenge, they find that performance is most enhanced when a competitor feels externally judged, opponents are few, the roles and goals are clear, and the participants are well-enough matched that the outcome is uncertain until the end. The authors explore physiological components of performance (like enzymes that may correlate with whether an individual needs stress to perform optimally), the role of gender in competition (men are more likely than women to overestimate their chances and take a risk), as well as the culture of competition at large, postulating on the effects of teaching universal self-esteem and the replacement of a "playing to win" ethos with one of "playing not to lose." Accessible for fans of pop science, yet substantial enough to have practical applications, Bronson and Merryman's investigation will have folks rethinking the impulse to win at work and play.
