Why do we make the decisions we do about how to manage our money? The psychology behind financial matters provides insight on everything from how good and bad money decisions are made — from mean-spirited scams to smart savings plans and everything in between.

Just like there are people who can play blackjack all night at the casino and others who will only risk a few quarters in the slots, there are people who play the stock market, or trust others to play it for them on both sides of the coin. As part of a new series called “Your Mind, Your Money”, Nightly Business Report examines the mentality behind investing.

Here’s an excerpt from a recent Susie Gharib interview with Prof. Richard Thaler at the University of Chicago, co-author of the book “Nudge”:

GHARIB: I understand that neuro scientists are doing studies to find out if the errors that people make in financial decision making are actually hard-wired into the brain. Do you think that there’s going to be evidence of that?

THALER: Well, I think the research, so-called neural economics is a pretty young field and it’s just getting started. In some sense it doesn’t really matter whether it’s wired into the brain or not. We are what we are. We’ve evolved into the pretty smart beings that we are. But we’re not perfect. We make mistakes. We are subject to emotion and that leads us to sometimes choosing things not right .

GHARIB: So I there anything that investors can do to keep emotions from dominating their financial decisions like more self-control, for example?

THALER: Well, yes. I mean, the biggest problem most Americans have is just not saving enough. There’s been a little increase in savings in the last few months, but for most of this decade, the personal saving rate was zero. The best way of overcoming that is to save it before you have a chance to spend it. Max out your 401(k) plan and don’t touch it.

And in a totally different type of behavior modification, Tim Harford at Marketplace examines the state of the workplace in the wilds of downtown Los Angeles. Keeping your personal brand under control and understanding your value as an employee can help you weather the recession in your office.