We are learning much about the human brain, how it functions, and it’s impact on our behaviors. Unfortunately, while there is much research being conducted, it is not being considered as we in health care address our need to improve our health care system and engage patients as equal partners in their care.

I have reviewed other books in the past that have begun to address the challenges of changing human behavior and understanding how decisions are made, but this book was a revelation to me. While I thought I had gained a modicum of knowledge regarding why humans behaved as they do, Eagleman took me to a whole different level of discovery, and occasional epiphanies. For while we have for the most part continued to address behavior change by attending to education, training, and persuasion—focusing on the conscious part of our brain, Incognito blows much of that into smithereens. (perhaps an inappropriate term, but indicative of the book’s impact).

This book navigates the depths of the subconscious brain in addressing the overwhelming impact our subconscious, unknown to us at the intellectual level, drives much of our behavior. By doing that, he challenges us to think differently about how we might approach addressing the needed behavior changes we’ll need ourselves and ask of our patients as we continue our redesign efforts.

I would encourage any of you who are interested in learning more about what “makes us tick” to read this book. While you may disagree with some of his premises (he challenges many conventional thoughts about how we address behavior), his discussions of free will, criminal behavior, equality (of brain function) will shake existing beliefs and open you up to new thinking—and perhaps new approaches to improving health care.

What makes a woman attractive to men? Why do we hit a brake pedal before the actual danger is noted? Why did Thomas Edison electrocute an elephant in 1916? Why is it so difficult to keep a secret? Why do people named Dennis have a higher likelihood of becoming dentists? In an entertaining and provocative 250 pages, Eagleman will answer these and many questions—and rattle many of your assumptions about human behavior.