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Original Title:	Doing Good Better: Effective Altruism and a Radical New Way to Make a Difference
ISBN:	1592409105 (ISBN13: 9781592409105)
Edition Language:	English

Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Make a Difference

William MacAskill

Hardcover | Pages: 272 pages

Rating: 4.24 | 3399 Users | 395 Reviews

List Of Books Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Make a Difference

Title	:	Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Make a Difference
Author	:	William MacAskill
Book Format	:	Hardcover
Book Edition	:	Anniversary Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 272 pages
Published	:	July 28th 2015 by Avery
Categories	:	Nonfiction. Philosophy. Economics. Self Help

Explanation Concering Books Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Make a Difference

Most of us want to make a difference. We donate our time and money to charities and causes we deem worthy, choose careers we consider meaningful, and patronize businesses and buy products we believe make the world a better place. Unfortunately, we often base these decisions on assumptions and emotions rather than facts. As a result, even our best intentions often lead to ineffective—and sometimes downright harmful—outcomes. How can we do better? While a researcher at Oxford, trying to figure out which career would allow him to have the greatest impact, William MacAskill confronted this problem head on. He discovered that much of the potential for change was being squandered by lack of information, bad data, and our own prejudice. As an antidote, he and his colleagues developed effective altruism, a practical, data-driven approach that allows each of us to make a tremendous difference regardless of our resources. Effective altruists believe that it’s not enough to simply do good; we must do good better. At the core of this philosophy are five key questions that help guide our altruistic decisions: How many people benefit, and by how much? Is this the most effective thing I can do? Is this area neglected? What would have happened otherwise? What are the chances of success, and how good would success be? By applying these questions to real-life scenarios, MacAskill shows how many of our assumptions about doing good are misguided. For instance, he argues one can potentially save more lives by becoming a plastic surgeon rather than a heart surgeon; measuring overhead costs is an inaccurate gauge of a charity’s effectiveness; and, it generally doesn’t make sense for individuals to donate to disaster relief. MacAskill urges us to think differently, set aside biases, and use evidence and careful reasoning rather than act on impulse. When we do this—when we apply the head and the heart to each of our altruistic endeavors—we find that each of us has the power to do an astonishing amount of good.

Rating Of Books Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Make a Difference

Ratings: 4.24 From 3399 Users | 395 Reviews

Rate Of Books Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Make a Difference

If you're at all like me, you know how important it is to do your part by contributing your money and time to worthy causes, but the decision-making involved can be exhausting. Whenever you read statistics about global health crises and the number of people living in grinding poverty, it is easy to wind up feeling overwhelmed and guilty, like your efforts would be just a drop in the bucket. It can seem much easier to donate to domestic programs where you feel like you may identify with the

This book is not a 'fast' read so much as it is a book that is so fascinating that one wants to keep going. And I certainly did, with many stops to take notes, jot things down, and look up names and references. I anticipated in advance that the author would be a liberal do-gooder, and of course, he is. But that did not diminish my respect for him and his writing. His photo makes him appear to be a young man, but he is one very smart young man.Pay attention to what he writes because his analysis

MacAskill convinced me that effective altruism is not the way to go. He does make some good points, but his utilitarian philosophical approach is so narrow, it seems like something only Mr. Spock would consider appropriate. Charity is not just about doing the most good in terms of saving lives. There are so many different reasons to give money and ones time. And even MacAskills idea of doing the most good is too narrow, in that he rejects the idea of giving to an organization that is taking

Brilliant review of this by Amia Srinivasan in the LRB: "Stop the Robot Apocalypse".http://www.lrb.co.uk/v37/n18/amia-sri...

As someone who works in the social profit (also known as the nonprofit) sector, I picked up Doing Good Better because the topic is endlessly interesting to me and because of his apparent emphasis on evidence-based programming. Unfortunately, this book was an all-around disappointment. Here's a short summary of my issues with this book:1) MacAskill's apparent misunderstanding of programs and causes. CAUSES are things that individuals and organizations want to do. PROGRAMS are the means by which

Brilliant review of this by Amia Srinivasan in the LRB: "Stop the Robot Apocalypse".http://www.lrb.co.uk/v37/n18/amia-sri...

There is a desperate need for plain English sources of information that accurately describe what works and what doesn't. This book presents a scale for determining the effectiveness of charities, but something on the scale smells awfully fishy.When the author gets to what you should donate to, he and his allies at GiveWell highlight Give Directly. Okay fine. Except that I looked up the evaluation paper and I also looked up the online supplement for the results: