ENGLISH

Irrationality: An Essay on Akrasia, Self-Deception, and Self-Control

By Alfred R. Mele

Book information

Publisher
Oxford University Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0195080017, 9780195080018
Open Library ID
OL7387230M
Language
english
Format
PDF
Filesize
10 MB (10256494 bytes)
Pages
196\196
Orientation
yes
Scanned
yes
Time added
2011-08-31 04:54:40

Description

Although much human action serves as proof that irrational behavior is remarkably common, certain forms of irrationality--most notably, incontinent action and self-deception--pose such difficult theoretical problems that philosophers have rejected them as logically or psychologically impossible. Here, Mele shows that, and how, incontinent action and self-deception are indeed possible. Drawing upon recent experimental work in the psychology of action and inference, he advances naturalized explanations of akratic action and self-deception while resolving the paradoxes around which the philosophical literature revolves. In addition, he defends an account of self-control, argues that "strict" akratic action is an insurmountable obstacle for traditional belief-desire models of action-explanation, and explains how a considerably modified model accommodates action of this sort.

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