Ian Leslie (writer)

Ian Leslie is a British writer on human behaviour. He has written the books Born Liars (2011), Curious (2014), and Conflicted (2021).

Writing
Born Liars: Why We Can't Live Without Deceit is "about the useful role that deception plays in our lives". Much of Curious: the Desire to Know and Why Your Future Depends on It is "focused on how harnessing young people's innate curiosity about the world is key to their whole futures." In Conflicted: Why Arguments Are Tearing Us Apart and How They Can Bring Us Together he writes: "Open, passionate disagreement blows away the cobwebs that gather over even the most enduring relationships . . . It flushes out crucial information and insights that will otherwise lie inaccessible or dormant inside our brains. It fulfils the creative potential of diversity". "The second half of the book is devoted to 10 "rules of productive argument", which Leslie deduces from encounters with specialists in interrogation and hostage negotiation."

Leslie writes about psychology, culture, technology and business for the New Statesman, The Economist, The Guardian and the Financial Times.

Personal life
He lives in London with his wife and two young children.

Publications

 * Born Liars: Why We Can't Live Without Deceit (Quercus, 2011)
 * Curious: the Desire to Know and Why Your Future Depends on It (Quercus, 2014)
 * Conflicted: Why Arguments Are Tearing Us Apart and How They Can Bring Us Together (Faber and Faber, 2021)