Self-deception unmasked / Alfred R. Mele.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mele, Alfred R., 1951-

Series:

Princeton monographs in philosophy.

Princeton paperbacks.

Princeton monographs in philosophy

Princeton paperbacks

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Self-deception.

Deception.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (161 p.)

Edition:

Core Textbook

Place of Publication:

Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, c2001.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Self-deception raises complex questions about the nature of belief and the structure of the human mind. In this book, Alfred Mele addresses four of the most critical of these questions: What is it to deceive oneself? How do we deceive ourselves? Why do we deceive ourselves? Is self-deception really possible? Drawing on cutting-edge empirical research on everyday reasoning and biases, Mele takes issue with commonplace attempts to equate the processes of self-deception with those of stereotypical interpersonal deception. Such attempts, he demonstrates, are fundamentally misguided, particularly in the assumption that self-deception is intentional. In their place, Mele proposes a compelling, empirically informed account of the motivational causes of biased beliefs. At the heart of this theory is an appreciation of how emotion and motivation may, without our knowing it, bias our assessment of evidence for beliefs. Highlighting motivation and emotion, Mele develops a pair of approaches for explaining the two forms of self-deception: the "straight" form, in which we believe what we want to be true, and the "twisted" form, in which we believe what we wish to be false. Underlying Mele's work is an abiding interest in understanding and explaining the behavior of real human beings. The result is a comprehensive, elegant, empirically grounded theory of everyday self-deception that should engage philosophers and social scientists alike.

Contents:

Front matter

Contents

Preface

CHAPTER 1. Introduction: Approaches, Puzzles, Biases and Agency

CHAPTER 2. Garden-Variety Straight Self-Deception: Some Psychological Processes

CHAPTER 3. Self-Deception without Puzzles

CHAPTER 4. Attempted Empirical Demonstrations of Strict Self-Deception

CHAPTER 5. Twisted Self-Deception

CHAPTER 6. Conclusion

Notes

References

Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9786613316899

9781283316897

1283316897

9781400823970

1400823978

9781400814466

1400814464

OCLC:

52522503