Irrationality

Hegels Theorie der Intelligenz als Grundlegung der Unmöglichkeit des Unvernünftigen

by Hector Ferreiro

Paper read at the Conference “Irrationalität: Schattenseite der Moderne”,
7. Jahrestagung des Internationalen Forschungsnetzwerks Transzendentalphilosophie - Deutscher Idealismus, Technische Universität Berlin, Germany, February 19-21, 2009.

Truthiness, Self-Deception, and Intuitive Knowledge

by Amber Griffioen

Published in The Daily Show and Philosophy: Moments of Zen in the Art of Fake News, ed. by Jason  Holt (Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing 2007).

An article for the layperson, introducing the philosophical problems regarding self-deception by appealing to Stephen... more An article for the layperson, introducing the philosophical problems regarding self-deception by appealing to Stephen Colbert's notion of 'truthiness'.

The Maximization Paradox: The costs of seeking alternatives

by Ilan Dar-Nimrod

Dar-Nimrod, I., Rawn C., Lehman D. R., & Schwartz, B. (2009). The Maximization Paradox: The costs of seeking alternatives. Personality and Individual Differences, 46, 631-635.

Implicit and Explicit Self-Esteem and Irrational Beliefs

by Laurentiu Maricutoiu

Self-deception, delusion and the boundaries of folk psychology

by Lisa Bortolotti

Published in HumanaMente in 2012. Co-authored with M Mameli.

To what extent do self-deception and delusion overlap? In this paper we argue that both self-deception and delusions... more To what extent do self-deception and delusion overlap? In this paper we argue that both self-deception and delusions can be understood in folk-psychological terms. ‘Motivated’ delusions, just like self-deception, can be described as beliefs driven by personal interests. If self-deception can be understood folk-psychologically because of its motivational component, so can motivated delusions. Non-motivated delusions also fit (to a large extent) the folk-psychological notion of belief, since they can be described as hypotheses one endorses when attempting to make sense of unusual and powerful experiences. We suggest that there is continuity between the epistemic irrationality manifested in self-deception and in delusion.

Selbsttäuschung: Wer ist hier (ir-)rational und warum? (Self-deception: Who is (ir)rational and why?)

by Thomas Sturm

Published in Studia Philosophica, 68 (2009), 229-254. (In German; English translation in preparation.)

This is a revised and extended version of parts of my (2007) papers on self-deception (one of which you can download... more This is a revised and extended version of parts of my (2007) papers on self-deception (one of which you can download below). Before, the focus was primarily on the role of the self in self-deception; here the issue at stake is the (ir)rationality of self-deception.
I argue that both psychological and philosophical studies in self-deception suffer from serious, albeit different, weaknesses. On the one hand, psychologists often employ various indiscriminative conceptions of self-deception in their research. On the other hand, philosophers either proceed heedless of psychological research – or take findings from empirical studies on human cognition and reasoning without realizing the extent to which the underlying theories and data rely on highly problematic assumptions. These weaknesses are significant for the question of whether self-deception is rational or irrational. Both sides present their views without clearly stating which normative theory of rationality it is to which they are committed, and without expounding how that theory serves to study and assess the phenomenon of self-deception. More thorough interdisciplinary work must be done to eliminate naive conceptions and biased methodologies from the study of self-deception.

Preliminary Observations on the Mythic Psychology of War

by Ronald L. Boyer

Draft only. Paper accepted for presentation at The Mythology of Violence (2008), the Second Annual Academic Conference of the Foundation for Mythological Studies. Co-Sponsored by Pacifica Graduate School in Santa Barbara. Proceedings published in Spring, Issue No. 81.

This first draft of a paper accepted for presentation at the Mythology of Violence Conference briefly suggests the... more This first draft of a paper accepted for presentation at the Mythology of Violence Conference briefly suggests the implications for understanding war and the epidemics of mass violence of our times within the context of Jungian psychology.  An expanded version of the paper intends to explore the works of cultural historian Lewis Mumford and parallel works by sociologist Ernest Becker on the religious and mythico-ritual dimensions of the institution of warfare embedded in the unconscious mythologies that inform the very structure of societies since ancient times.