How to get along with people and whether it's necessary

Erik Barker explores these well-known theses, trying to scientifically confirm or refute the truth of commonly accepted ideas about human relationships. Skillfully combining humor and captivating storytelling, he tells how an experienced con artist built a career as a professional football player for twenty years, what is common between hostage negotiations and family quarrels, and why people with diametrically opposed views sometimes become the closest and most reliable friends.

From the book you will learn:

•  What two factors are necessary for true friendship and where Dale Carnegie was wrong
•  How love is born, what gives it new life, and what helps to maintain it for many years
•  How to help a loved one change for the better: an ethical and effective way
•  What benefits relationships can bring through social networks
•  How to heal from loneliness and why traditional advice doesn't help

This is far from a complete list of useful information. Within the pages of the book, you will find remarkable stories about the greatest woman detective, the most successful liar in human history, a genius horse, a hermit thief, the traps of too good memory, and the placebo effect. Using the best available evidence—no clichés or conjectures—Barker considers the issue from different angles before rendering a final verdict. His discoveries are unexpected, paradoxical, and quite timely: they will help change your relationships with the world and with the people around you precisely when you need it most.