Book & podcast collection

When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows . . .: Common Knowledge and the Mysteries of Money, Power, and Everyday Life

Steven Pinker explores common knowledge: not simply what people know, but what everyone knows that everyone else knows. Through examples involving money, social conventions, political power, humor, diplomacy, and everyday relationships, he shows how shared awareness coordinates behavior and transforms private information into collective action. The book draws on psychology, economics, game theory, and language to explain why indirect speech can preserve relationships, why public signals can destabilize authority, and how seemingly mysterious features of social life become clearer once we understand the layered knowledge behind them.

Publisher: Scribner
Publication date: 2025
Format: Print edition
Pages: 364
ISBN: 9781668011577

Subjects

Common Knowledge Social Psychology Game Theory

Choose a subject to discover similar books and author interviews.

Buy on Amazon Buy on Bookshop.org Publisher website

Listen now

Interview with the Author

4 available interview links

1. Van Leer Institute Series on Ideas — Steven Pinker, "When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows...: Common Knowledge and the Mysteries of Money, Power, and Everyday Life" (Scribner, 2025)Checked

No verified Spotify link found.

2. New Books in Psychology — Steven Pinker, "When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows...: Common Knowledge and the Mysteries of Money, Power, and Everyday Life" (Scribner, 2025)Checked

No verified Spotify link found.

3. NBN Book of the Day — Steven Pinker, "When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows...: Common Knowledge and the Mysteries of Money, Power, and Everyday Life" (Scribner, 2025)Checked

No verified Spotify link found.

4. New Books in American Studies — Steven Pinker, "When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows...: Common Knowledge and the Mysteries of Money, Power, and Everyday Life" (Scribner, 2025)Checked

No verified Spotify link found.