George AinslieCambridge University Press, 1/12/2008EAN 9780521596947, ISBN10: 0521596947Paperback, 272 pages, 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.7 cmLanguage: EnglishAinslie argues that our responses to the threat of our own inconsistency determine the basic fabric of human culture. He suggests that individuals are more like populations of bargaining agents than like the hierarchical command structures envisaged by cognitive psychologists. The forces that create and constrain these populations help us understand so much that is puzzling in human action and interaction: from addictions and other self-defeating behaviors to the experience of willfulness, from pathological over-control and self-deception to subtler forms of behavior such as altruism, sadism, gambling, and the 'social construction' of belief. This book integrates approaches from experimental psychology, philosophy of mind, microeconomics, and decision science to present one of the most profound and expert accounts of human irrationality available. It will be of great interest to philosophers and an important resource for professionals and students in psychology, economics and political science.PrefacePart I. Breakdowns of WillThe Puzzle of Akrasia1. Introduction2. The dichotomy at the root of decision sciencedo we make choices by destres or by judgments?3. The warp in how we evaluate the future4. The warp can create involuntary behaviorspains, hungers, emotionsPart II. A Breakdown of the WillThe Components of Intertemporal Bargaining5. The elementary interaction of interests6. Sophisticated bargaining among internal interests7. The subjective experience of intertemporal bargaining8. Getting evidence about a nonlinear motivational systemPart III. The Ultimate Breakdown of WillNothing Fails Like Success9. The downside of willpower10. An efficient will undermines appetite11. The need to maintain appetite eclipses the will12. ConclusionsNotesReferencesIndexes.
