Reputation: What It Is and Why It Matters

　　名譽、聲望、口碑、名聲、信用、評價、聲譽……許多的詞彙都在描述這幾乎涉及一切，從無數層面影響我們行為和選擇的在意之事。關於這名詞的來龍去脈，總是籠罩著神秘的面紗。為什麼我們如此重視名聲？如果人與事物的好壞標準往往是隨心所欲訂定的，那為何這種威力如此強大呢？為什麼我們十分關心別人的目光，甚至為此做出非理性或有害的事情來影響他人的意見呢？在這本引人入勝的書中，哲學家Gloria Origgi借鑒了哲學、社會心理學、社會學、經濟學、文學和歷史學，為一個重要但卻被忽略的主題提供了一個有啟發性的敘述。

　　Origgi檢驗網路和社交媒體的影響力以及現代社會的無數排名系統，這些對我們在商業、政治、學術甚至紅酒等社會關係中影響著建立中的正式與非正式的聲譽。她強調信譽對經濟和電子商務有效運作的重要性。Origgi也討論了我們癡迷於聲譽的存在意義，正是此聲譽與行為的關係使我們更了解自己是誰，我們為何做那些事。精彩的寫作與見解，成功的探討名譽這難以捉摸、影響著全人類的主題。

　　長住巴黎的義大利哲學家Gloria Origgi是法國國家科學研究中心Jean Nicod研究所的高級研究員。她的編/著作品包括《何謂信任？》、《Text-E: 網路時代的文字》等。她以英文、法文與義大利文在gloriaoriggi.blogspot.com上撰文。(文/博客來編譯)

　　A compelling exploration of how reputation affects every aspect of contemporary life
　　
　　Reputation touches almost everything, guiding our behavior and choices in countless ways. But it is also shrouded in mystery. Why is it so powerful when the criteria by which people and things are defined as good or bad often appear to be arbitrary? Why do we care so much about how others see us that we may even do irrational and harmful things to try to influence their opinion? In this engaging book, Gloria Origgi draws on philosophy, social psychology, sociology, economics, literature, and history to offer an illuminating account of an important yet oddly neglected subject.

　　Origgi examines the influence of the Internet and social media, as well as the countless ranking systems that characterize modern society and contribute to the creation of formal and informal reputations in our social relations, in business, in politics, in academia, and even in wine. She highlights the importance of reputation to the effective functioning of the economy and e-commerce. Origgi also discusses the existential significance of our obsession with reputation, concluding that an awareness of the relationship between our reputation and our actions empowers us to better understand who we are and why we do what we do.

　　Compellingly written and filled with surprising insights, Reputation pins down an elusive subject that affects everyone.

Review

　　"This is a truly original, highly insightful, and highly readable book on a vital yet largely unexplored question: who do we trust, why should we trust, and how should we trust. Let's stop ignoring the expert problem. This is not a book, but the birth of a branch of applied knowledge."--Nassim Nicholas Taleb

　　"Having a good reputation is crucial for individuals, groups, and even objects. Through wide-ranging and well-crafted examples―from wine tasting to academic prestige―Gloria Origgi offers a grand tour of how the social sciences illuminate the process of reputation formation. Reputations might be imperfect, but they are unavoidable, and Origgi's book can help us make them more reliable."--Hugo Mercier, coauthor of The Enigma of Reason

　　"Fascinating, thought-provoking, and persuasive, this book deepens our understanding of the complexity and importance of reputation. Its engaging and accessible style ensures that the reader is never bored."--Carlo Invernizzi Accetti, City College of New York and the Institut d’Etudes Politiques, Paris