From wish to reality: Find happiness! If you follow 6 steps, you will make good decisions
We can actively shape our lives with decisions ─ both professionally and privately. But how do we make decisions that are likely to influence our lives in the way we want them to? Decision scientist Johannes Siebert provides answers. We often invest a lot of time and energy in important decisions. Nevertheless, sometimes we are dissatisfied with ourselves afterward. But when is self-criticism justified? What makes a good decision anyway? Only when we are clear about how we can make good decisions can we increase our own life satisfaction through our actions. First of all, a key point: the results of our decisions are not a criterion for their quality. Although we can influence the future, it is never entirely up to us how it turns out. There is always a residual uncertainty. Imagine we decide to travel to a destination known for its white sandy beaches and reliably sunny…
Despite pressure from fans and the media: why clubs should think twice when sacking coaches
When a team in professional soccer fails to achieve the hoped-for results, many fans almost reflexively call for a new coach. In my article on Focus Online, I explain why it is often a bad idea to give in to this demand. A team is behind and needs two goals in the last quarter of an hour to turn the game around. In this critical situation, the coach decides to substitute a striker for a defender. The striker scores the two long-awaited goals and the team wins. Was the substitution of the striker a good decision by the coach? Many fans, commentators and media clearly say “Yes!”. In the event of a defeat, they would have vehemently demanded the dismissal of the coach, whom they are now celebrating for his tactical foresight. In terms of decision-making theory, this reaction – as understandable as it may seem at first glance –…
Realize your dreams through sound decision making
In an article in the FOCUS Online Expert Circle, I explain the biggest mistake made in decision-making and how to avoid it easily. The biggest mistake is that many people are content with the default decision-making situations and don’t actively engage with what they should (actually) be deciding on. It’s important to think outside the box and (pro-)actively take control of our own decisions. And there is hope! Proactive decision making is a skill that anyone can learn. An effective approach is to think through every decision-making situation with three key questions in mind: 1. how can we best define decision-making situations? 2. how can we identify the objectives relevant to a decision? 3. how do we discover particularly good options for action? I answer these and other questions in the interview. Read the full article here: https://www.focus.de/experts/fundierte-entscheidungsfindung-stellen-sie-sich-drei-schluesselfragen-um-traeume-zu-verwirklichen_id_259706293.html I also talk about the importance of being your own decision architect…
MCI-Prof. Johannes Siebert wins prestigious Best Paper Award
We are delighted that the article “Making a good career choice: A decision-analytical intervention to enhance proactive decision-making and career choice self-efficacy in high school students” by Prof. Johannes Siebert, Dr. Nadine Oeser, and Dr. Maxi Becker was awarded the Best Research Paper 2023 by the renowned Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education. In previous studies, Siebert/Kunz/Rolf (2020, 2021) were able to prove the effectiveness of decision-making skills training for students and managers. Taken together, the studies allow the conclusion that proactive cognitive decision-making skills can be improved through decision-making skills training and, as a result, participants experience greater self-efficacy and are more satisfied with their lives. Motivated by these research results, Prof. Siebert wanted to investigate the effectiveness of KLUG-decision-making competence trainings in analogy to these studies.Further details can be found here: https://www.mci.edu/en/news-filter-en/193-studyprogram-news/news-business-management-en/5453-best-paper-award-decision-sciences
What is important when it comes to career guidance at school: researchers explain how best to support pupils in choosing a course of study or training
The drop-out rates among trainees and first-year students are high – on average, around one in four drop out again. Schools have an important role to play in prior career guidance. Prof. Dr. Johannes Siebert from the Management Center Innsbruck explains which mistakes should be avoided. You can find the full, excellent article by Lena Sterz from Campus Schulmagazin here: https://www.campus-schulmanagement.de/magazin/was-bei-der-berufsorientierung-in-der-schule-wichtig-ist
“KLUGentscheiden!” research project: empowering high school students’ study and career choices
Making the right decisions in your own life is something that can be learned. The project “KLUGentscheiden!” at the University of Bayreuth shows: Young people who receive systematic training in decision-making skills shortly before leaving school consider their abilities and long-term interests far more thoroughly when choosing a course of study or vocational training than if they spontaneously follow their own wishes or simply trust the recommendations of others. In the coming weeks, the regional cooperation with selected schools that has been successfully established in the project will be further intensified and expanded. The coordinator of “KLUG entscheiden!” is Prof. Dr. Johannes Siebert, who set up the project at the University of Bayreuth and now teaches and researches at the MCI Management Center Innsbruck. Dr. Manuel Friedrich, head of the didactics of economics at the University of Bayreuth, is responsible for the didactics. The project is financially supported by the…
Applying Decision Analysis to Diverse Domains: An Introduction to the Special Issue
Decision analysis (DA) is one of the key tools in operations research (OR). DA is particularly effective at mapping the real world to the model representation to enable the application of formal analysis. DA is a flexible modeling paradigm that has existed since the 1960 s, based on statistical decision theory, elements of utility from economics, probability theory, dynamic programming, and stochastic programming. It aims to identify an optimal course of action for decision problems with uncertainties that affect outcomes and values. Optimal here means expected-utility maximizing, which decision theory shows to be equivalent to following axioms of rationality given a set of beliefs. DA articles have appeared with some regularity in Interfaces (the predecessor to INFORMS Journal on Applied Analytics (IJAA)), with early applications focusing on policy and later ones on research and development in consumer products, pharmaceuticals, and oil and gas, quite naturally because these applications have distinct…
About a literally life-changing decision: children, yes or no?
The decision to what extent one wants to have children has significant consequences for the individual, the couple, and the family. That’s why it’s a decision that needs to be thought about carefully. In the Sunday edition of Die Presse, I give some advice for this particular decision. You can find Ms. Gabriel’s article, which is well worth reading, here.
Reducing the impact of misinformation and fake news
New methods to effectively reduce the negative impact of misinformation and fake news on people’s opinions An investigation into Team Jorge’s activites has shown the sinister influence of misinformation and fake news on politics, society and the economy. Misinformation and fake news became a global phenomenon with the 2016 U.S. presidential election and the Brexit referendum, particularly because more and more people are using social media as a source of news without reflection. The use of artificial intelligence (e.g. chat GPT) in the generation and dissemination of misinformation and fake news will strengthen their influence in the future.The spread of misinformation and fake news on the internet and its consequences are being intensively discussed in the European Parliament. Nevertheless, so far, there is no clear agreement on how to reduce the influence of misinformation and fake news. “The problem with misinformation and fake news is that even if it is…
How to finish a bachelor or master thesis successfully
Many students struggle to finish their thesis. In this weekend’s edition of the Standard, I share some tips on how you can outsmart yourself to finally finish your thesis or dissertation. However, the tips are applicable to almost any task you might be putting off. You can find Ms. Ostermann’s article, which is well worth reading, here. The basic idea of the extension of classical nudging is to be your own decision architect. I explain the background in this #TEDxTalk: https://www.ted.com/talks/johannes_siebert_nudge_yourself_to_make_better_decisions If you’re even more interested in the topic, you’ll find enough exciting material for the football-less, rainy pre-Christmas season in this free MOOC Smart Decisions (https://imoox.at/course/smartentscheiden) In the weekend edition of the Standard, I give decision-theoretically sound tips on how to finally finish your final paper