The Philosophy and Psychology of Ambivalence : Being of Two Minds

"This book collects original essays by top scholars that address questions about the nature, origins, and effects of ambivalence. While the nature of agency has received an enormous amount of attention, relatively little has been written about ambivalence or how it relates to topics such as agency, rationality, justification, knowledge, autonomy, self-governance, well-being, social cognition, and various other topics. Ambivalence presents unique questions related to many major philosophical debates. For example, it relates to debates about virtues, rationality, and decision-making, agency or authenticity, emotions, and social or political metacognition. It is also relevant to a variety of larger debates in philosophy and psychology, including nature vs. nature, objectivity vs. subjectivity, or nomothetic vs. idiographic. The essays in this book offer novel and wide-ranging perspectives on this emerging philosophical topic. They will be of interest to researchers and advanced students working in ethics, epistemology, philosophy of mind, philosophy of psychology, and social cognition"-- Provided by publisher Cover Half Title Series Page Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents List of Contributors Chapter 1: The Philosophical and Psychological Significance of Ambivalence: An Introduction To Be or Not to Be? Ambivalence, Rationality, and Truth Ambivalence, Emotions, and Intentionality Ambivalence, Racism, and Global Justice Ambivalence, Well-Being, and Subjectivity Conclusions References Part I: Ambivalence, Rationality, and Truth Chapter 2: Ambivalence, Incoherence, and Self-Governance Ambivalence Incoherence Self-Governance Too Few Reasons Too Many Reasons Conclusion Notes References Chapter 3: Ambivalence-Autonomy Compatibilism Ambivalence and Its Degrees: Paralyzing and Residual Ambivalence and Autonomy Ambivalence and Identification Accounts of Autonomy Ambivalence and Coherence Accounts of Autonomy In Sum [Residual Ambivalence-Autonomy Compatibilism] Responding to Paralyzing Ambivalence and (Potentially) Restoring Autonomy Identifying the Cause Responses When Gathering More Information and Reflection Reach Their Limits: Creativity, Compromise, and Existential Leaps Conclusion Note References Chapter 4: Irrationality, Charity, and Ambivalence Five Ways to be Charitable Is Akrasia Possible? The Priority of the Moves Conclusion Notes References Chapter 5: Rational Epistemic Akrasia for the Ambivalent Pragmatist The Akratic Pragmatist and Her Imaginary Friend Pragmatism about Epistemic Justification How Pragmatism Can Be Rational Titelbaum versus Pragmatism Why Epistemic Akrasia Is Stable and Rational For Pragmatists, Akrasia Is an Instance of Disconnected Ambivalence Why Evidentialists Shouldn’t Apply the Enkratic Principle to Pragmatists Notes References Chapter 6: Ambivalence, Uncertainty, and Modality Ambivalence, Uncertainty, and the Inner Jury Ambivalence about Facts Open and Settled Questions Modality and Open Questions Ambivalence and Uncertainty in the Penumbra Superprobabilities Ambivalence and Rationality Notes References Chapter 7: Epistemic Vertigo Philosophical Paradoxes Wittgensteinian Anti-skepticism Epistemic Vertigo Philosophical Vertigo Notes References Part II: Ambivalence, Emotions, and Intentionality Chapter 8: Fitting Inconsistency and Reasonable Irresolution Ambivalence as Unresolved Inconsistent Desire A Case of Appropriate Ambivalence Alternative Accounts Jackson’s Argument Greenspan’s Argument Fitting Inconsistent Desires The Inconsistency of the Good Fitting Desire and the Good Reasonable Irresolution Wholeheartedness Conclusion Notes References Chapter 9: Self-Love and Self-Acceptance Introduction From Self-Hatred to Self-Love Accepting Oneself Loving and Valuing Self-Acceptance’s Place in This Valuing Orientation Self-Love and Value Self-Love’s Defeating Conditions Notes References Chapter 10: To Express or Not to Express? Ambivalence about Emotional Expression Ambivalence and Its Discontents The Rise and Fall of Emotional Restraint The Social Function of Emotion Suppression A New Function for Suppression Social Capital and Self-Control Signaling Self-Control Why Suppression? Ambivalence as Social Information Ambivalence and Alienation Notes References Chapter 11: Intentionalism, Ambivalent Emotions, and the Body Strong Intentionalism, the Body, and the Emotions The Body is a Problem for Intentionalism about the Emotions Three Types of Ambivalent Emotions How Strong Intentionalism can Accommodate Ambivalent Emotions What is the Fate of Strong Intentionalism about Emotions? Conclusion Notes References Part III: Ambivalence, Racism, and Global Justice Chapter 12: Cognitive Dissonance and the Logic of Racism Introduction Ambivalence versus Cognitive Dissonance Implicit Racial Biases and Habitual Racism Explicit Racism, Cognitive Dissonance, and Social Taboos Notes References Chapter 13: The Body Politic Is of Two Minds: Political Ambivalence on Norms of Justice Defining Objective Theories An Objection to Objective Theories: The Ambivalence Problem Social Contract Theory Can Fill the Gap Left by Objective Theories Conclusion Notes References Part IV: Ambivalence, Well-Being, and Subjectivity Chapter 14: Ambivalence, Well-Being, and Prudential Rationality Concepts of Ambivalence The Values-Realization Theory of Well-being: Atomistic Version The Values-Realization Theory of Well-Being: Holistic Version Conclusion Acknowledgements Notes References Chapter 15: Bridling the Mindless Ambivalence: Langerian Mindfulness and Suspension of Intentionality References Chapter 16: Ambivalence and the Borderline Position in the Existential-Phenomenology of Merleau-Ponty: On Being and Having a Body-in-the-World from Primal Ambivalence to Intersubjective Ambiguity Love and Aggression: On the Ambivalent Ground of the Life World I am a Body, and I Have a Body: On the Ambivalent Root of Intersubjectivity From the Ambiguity of Lived Space and the Ambiguity of Embodied Time to the Ambiguity of Subjectivity On the Difference between Pathological Subjective Ambivalence and Subjective Ambiguity Notes References Index This book collects essays by top scholars that address questions about the nature, origins, and effects of ambivalence. It seeks to explain how ambivalence relates to philosophical topics such as agency, rationality, justification, knowledge, autonomy, self-governance, well-being, and social cognition.