The folly of fools : the logic of deceit and self-deception in human life

A New York Times Notable Book of 2012 Whether it’s in a cockpit at takeoff or the planning of an offensive war, a romantic relationship or a dispute at the office, there are many opportunities to lie and self-deceive—but deceit and self-deception carry the costs of being alienated from reality and can lead to disaster. So why does deception play such a prominent role in our everyday lives? In short, why do we deceive? In his bold new work, prominent biological theorist Robert Trivers unflinchingly argues that self-deception evolved in the service of deceit—the better to fool others. We do it for biological reasons—in order to help us survive and procreate. From viruses mimicking host behavior to humans misremembering (sometimes intentionally) the details of a quarrel, science has proven that the deceptive one can always outwit the masses. But we undertake this deception at our own peril. Trivers has written an ambitious investigation into the evolutionary logic of lying and the costs of leaving it unchecked. Content: The evolutionary logic of self-deception : The evolution of self-deception Deception is everywhere What is self-deception Detecting deception in humans via cognitive load Self-deception is older than language Nine categories of self-deception The hallmarks of self-deception -- Deception in nature : The coevolutionary struggle between deceiver and deceived Frequency-dependent selection in butterflies An epic coevolutionary struggle Intelligence and deception Female mimics False alarm calls Camouflage Death and near-death acts Randomness as a strategy Deception may induce anger Animals may be conscious of deception Deception as an evolutionary game A deeper theory of deception -- Neurophysiology and levels of imposed self-deception : The neurophysiology of conscious knowledge The neurophysiology of thought suppression The irony of trying to suppress one's thoughts Improving deception through neural inhibition Unconscious self-recognition shows self-deception Can one half of the brain hide from the other? Imposed self-deception Implicit versus explicit self-esteem False confessions, torture, and flattery False memories of child abuse Is self-deception the psyche's immune system? The placebo effect -- Self-deception in the family, and the split self : Parent/offspring conflict Cases of extreme abuse Genomic imprinting Internal conflict from oppositely imprinted genes Parental manipulation and imprinting The effect of marital conflict on genetic conflict Imprinting and self-deception Deception in children Parental effects on children's deception -- Deceit, self-deception, and sex : Why sex? Two sexes, two coevolving species Deception and self-deception at courtship Whose baby is it? Male response to female infidelity Deceit and a woman's monthly cycle Men's self-deceit about female interest Male denial of homosexual tendencies Is self-deception good or bad for marriage? The appeal and danger of fantasy The pain of betrayal -- The immunology of self-deception : The immune system is expensive The importance of sleep Trade-offs with immunity Writing about trauma improves immune function Homosexuality and the effects of denial Positive affect and immune function The effects of music Positivity in old age An immunological theory of happiness -- The psychology of self-deception : Avoiding some information and seeking out other Biased encoding and interpretation of information Biased memory Rationalization and biased reporting Predicting future feelings Are all biases due to self-deception? Denial and projection Denial is self-reinforcing Your aggression, my self-defense Cognitive dissonance and self-justification Social effects of cognitive dissonance reduction Cognitive dissonance in monkeys and young children. Self-deception in everyday life : Sex differences in overconfidence Metaphors in the stock market Manipulative metaphors in life The name-letter effect Deceiving down and dummying up Face-ism Spam against anti-spam Humor, laughter, and self-deception Drugs and self-deception Vulnerability to manipulation by others Professional con artists Lie-detector tests -- Self-deception in aviation and space disasters : Air Florida Flight 90: doomed by self deception? Disaster 37,00 feet above the Amazon Eldar takes command: Aeroflot Flight 593 Simple pilot error: or pilot fatigue? Ice overpowers the pilots, airlines overpower the FAA The US approach to safety helps cause 9/11 The Challenger disaster The Columbia disaster Egypt and EgyptAir deny all Saved by lack of self-deception? -- False historical narratives : The US false historical narrative Control through small wars and installed proxies US history textbooks Larger view of US history The rewriting of Japanese history Turkey's holocaust denial A land without people for a people without land The founding of the state of Israel Voluntary flight or ethnic cleansing? Arab deceit and self-deception Christian Zionism First line of defense: cry "anti-Semite" Why false historical narratives? -- Self-deception and war : Chimpanzee raiding [arrow] human warfare Self-deception encourages warfare Derogation of others [arrow] fatal overconfidence The 2003 US war on Iraq Creating knowledge and then walling it off Can wars by won through bombing? Bombing to eradicate history and to reinforce it Carnage in Gaza Self-deception and the history of war -- Religion and self-deception : Cooperation within the group Religion: a recipe for self-deception Religion and health Parasites and religious diversity Why the bias against women? Power corrupts Religions impose mating systems Religion preaches against self-deception Intercessory prayer: does it work? Religion and support for suicide attacks Religion [arrow] self-righteousness [arrow] warfare -- Self-deception and the structure of the social sciences : Precedence of justice over truth? Success of science is based on anti-self-deception devices The more social the discipline, the more retarded its development Self-deception in biology Is economics a science? Cultural anthropology Psychology Psychoanalysis: self-deception in the study of self-deception Self-deception deforms disciplines -- Fighting self-deception in our own lives : To fight one's own self-deception or not? A series of minor victories followed by a major disaster Signals of underlying mental screw-ups Correcting of our own biases Why are we so compulsive? The value of being conscious The danger of fantasy in propagating deception The benefits of prayer and meditation Value of friends and counselors An invitation to self-deception and personal disaster A never-ending extravaganza. Whether it's in a cockpit at takeoff or the planning of an offensive war, a romantic relationship or a dispute at the office, there are many opportunities to lie and self-deceive -- but deceit and self-deception carry the costs of being alienated from reality and can lead to disaster. So why does deception play such a prominent role in our everyday lives? In short, why do we deceive? In his bold new work, prominent biological theorist Robert Trivers unflinchingly argues that self-deception evolved in the service of deceit -- the better to fool others. We do it for biological reasons -- in order to help us survive and procreate. From viruses mimicking host behavior to humans misremembering (sometimes intentionally) the details of a quarrel, science has proven that the deceptive one can always outwit the masses. But we undertake this deception at our own peril. Trivers has written an ambitious investigation into the evolutionary logic of lying and the costs of leaving it unchecked. Explores The Author's Theorized Evolutionary Basis For Self-deception, Which He Says Is Tied To Group Conflict, Courtship, Neurophysiology, And Immunology, But Can Be Negated By Awareness Of It And Its Results. The Evolutionary Logic Of Self-deception -- Deception In Nature -- Neurophysiology And Levels Of Imposed Self-deception -- Self-deception In The Family -- And The Split Self -- Deceit, Self-deception, And Sex -- The Immunology Of Self-deception -- The Psychology Of Self-deception -- Self-deception In Everyday Life -- Self-deception In Aviation And Space Disasters -- False Historical Narratives -- Self-deception And War -- Religion And Self-deception -- Self-deception And The Structure Of The Social Sciences -- Fighting Self-deception In Our Own Lives. Robert Trivers. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 355-383) And Index. Why did intellect and language evolve to include lies and self- deception? Trivers (anthropology and biological sciences, Rutgers U.) presents a general theory based on evolutionary logic to answer this intriguing question. He argues that deception, which occurs even between our brain hemispheres, is closely tied to group conflict, courtship, neurophysiology and immunology, but can be overridden by awareness of it and its consequences. The accessible book is based on extensive reference material, and bears an endorsement by Richard Dawkins (The Selfish Gene). Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) **A __New York Times__ Notable Book of 2012**In his bold new work, prominent biological theorist Robert Trivers unflinchingly argues that self-deception evolved in the service of deceit—the better to fool others. We do it for biological reasons—in order to help us survive and procreate. From viruses mimicking host behavior to humans misremembering (sometimes intentionally) the details of a quarrel, science has proven that the deceptive one can always outwit the masses. But we undertake this deception at our own peril.