Without Good Reason: The Rationality Debate in Philosophy and Cognitive Science (Clarendon Library of Logic and Philosophy)

In this book, Edward Stein offers a clear critical account of the debate about rationality in philosophy and cognitive science. He discusses concepts of rationality--the pictures of rationality on which the debate centers--and assesses the empirical evidence used to argue that humans are irrational. He concludes that the question of human rationality must be answered not conceptually but empirically, using the full resources of an advanced cognitive science. Furthermore, he extends this conclusion to argue that empirical considerations are also relevant to the theory of knowledge--in other words, that epistemology should be naturalized. Are humans rational? Various experiments performed over the last several decades have been interpreted as showing that humans are irrational, we make significant and consistent errors in logical reasoning, probabilistic reasoning, similarity judgements, and risk-assessment, to name a few areas. But can these experiments establish human irrationality, or is it a conceptual truth that humans must be rational, as various philosophers have argued? In this book, Edward Stein offers a clear critical account of this debate about rationality in philosophy and cognitive science. He discusses concepts of rationality - the pictures of rationality that the debate centres - on and assesses the empirical evidence used to argue that humans are irrational. He concludes that the question of human rationality must be answered not conceptually but empirically, using the full resources of an advanced cognitive science. Furthermore, he extends this conclusion to argue that empirical considerations are also relevant to the theory of knowledge - in other words, that epistemology should be naturalized. 1. Introduction......Page 2 2. Competence......Page 38 3. Psychological Evidence......Page 80 4. Charity......Page 112 5. Reflective Equilibrium......Page 138 6. Evolution......Page 173 7. The Standard Picture......Page 215 8. Conclusion......Page 267 Bibliography......Page 279 Index......Page 290 A critical account of the debate in philoposhy and cognitive science about whether humans are rationale, in the CLARENDON LIBRARY OF LOGIC AND PHILOSOPHY series. Stein argues that the question of human rationality must be answered empirically. Originally published in 1996 Edward Stein. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [279]-289) And Index.