Who: Stuart Vyse, 57, of Stonington.

Why you should know him: In addition to his post at Connecticut College, where he is a professor of psychology, Vyse is also the author of the books “Believing in Magic,” an examination of superstition, and the recently published and presciently written “Going Broke - Why Americans Can't Hold On To Their Money” (Oxford University Press). Since the new book came out, Vyse has appeared on “The News Hour With Jim Lehrer” and is quoted in the November issue of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine.

Well, why can't you hold on to your money? Actually, as a perfectly responsible young professor getting started in academia, Vyse himself went through serious credit card problems. Yet, while the experience was a lesson learned, it was only part of the reason he wrote the book. “The primary impetus was a new line of research showing how we all struggle with self-control,” he says, “but once I knew about this research it helped me understand my own period of indebtedness. I had dug myself into a hole, spade by spade, never living exorbitantly and never believing I had been particularly imprudent … “ Vyse's research with folks in similar or more extreme circumstances suggests that most of them are not shopaholics but that, as is far too easy, “many small decisions eventually led to big pain.”

But he's not just speaking from personal experience: In the book, Vyse alternates chapters with case studies of individuals who had experienced serious debt problems. Not only was there no shortage of folks in such predicaments to interview, the embarrassment and shame of these situations was reflected in the small percentage of people Vyse contacted who were willing to speak on the record. A few have stayed in touch since the book came out, and Vyse says several who had declared bankruptcy “have made good use of the second chance it was designed to provide.”

Speaking of debt, this whole advertising thing has reached a pervasive level in our culture: That can't be good in the context of going broke. Try real hard to think of a moment of consciousness in today's society when you're NOT being pitched for one product or another. In addition to the barrage of “acknowledged” advertising on television and in movie theaters and on radio, there is also subtle product placement - all designed to get the consumer to buy. Vyse says that, while we complain about advertising, we're often unaware to what extent advertising is in our lives. “ … gradually we have become habituated to widening advertising assault,” Vyse says. “Almost everywhere the eye falls we see a brand symbol, and the result is we often measure ourselves by the brands we buy. Young people ask, 'Are you Abercrombie? American Eagle? Hollister?' Adults ask, 'Are you Mac or PC?' “

No, the author of a book on superstition is not superstitious. But he understands and appreciates if you are: “Believing in Magic” won the prestigious William James Award. Vyse says that, so far as he knows, he himself is not superstitious. But in reading the book, which, like “Going Broke” is eminently enjoyable for us lay folks, one easily senses a compassion and empathy by the author for those who are: “I feel like I owe a debt (no pun intended) to those who are superstitious,” Vyse says. “They provided a fascinating subject. And, over 10 years after the book was published, I still get calls from the media every Friday the 13th.”

Come to think of it, both of Vyse's books seem to target a general readership as opposed to academia. How did he pull that off? Vyse was an English major as an undergraduate and still harbors a dream of writing a novel. “I enjoy my academic writing,” he says, “but I take even greater pleasure from packaging ideas from the world of academia in a way that any curious reader can understand and appreciate. It's the same reason I enjoy teaching introductory psychology. Most of those students will never take another psychology course again. This is our one shot to teach them what the science of human behavior reveals about how we work.”

Yes, you can learn more: Go to the author's web site: www.stuartvyse.com.

- RICK KOSTER

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