The Everyday Irrationality of Monothematic Delusion

TY - CHAP

T1 - The Everyday Irrationality of Monothematic Delusion

AU - Noordhof, Paul Jonathan Pitt

AU - Sullivan-Bissett, Ema

N1 - © Bloomsbury Publishing Plc 2023. This is an author-produced version of the published paper. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher’s self-archiving policy. Further copying may not be permitted; contact the publisher for details.

PY - 2023/5/18

Y1 - 2023/5/18

N2 - Everyday irrationality is instructive for research into monothematic delusion in tworespects. In the first three sections of the paper, we see that paranormal and other irrational beliefs result from strange experiences plus a normal range of cognitive styles not constitutive of clinical irrationality. No appeal is made to a clinically significant factor like a deficit resulting from brain damage or a distinctive form of bias. This throws into question the claim that delusion involves some more substantial form of irrationality than everyday irrationality. Second, monothematic delusions can display components of everyday motivated irrationalities like wishful thinking/weak self-deception and strong self-deception. However, these components constitute the ways in which more profound irrationality is involved and, often, the irrationality of monothematic delusion that occurs is less severe than these everyday cases of motivated irrationality. In general, there is no need to take delusion to involve a distinctive further irrationality that goes beyond the everyday and, indeed, many monothematic delusions involve less substantial irrationalities than many every day ones in either cold or hot forms.

AB - Everyday irrationality is instructive for research into monothematic delusion in tworespects. In the first three sections of the paper, we see that paranormal and other irrational beliefs result from strange experiences plus a normal range of cognitive styles not constitutive of clinical irrationality. No appeal is made to a clinically significant factor like a deficit resulting from brain damage or a distinctive form of bias. This throws into question the claim that delusion involves some more substantial form of irrationality than everyday irrationality. Second, monothematic delusions can display components of everyday motivated irrationalities like wishful thinking/weak self-deception and strong self-deception. However, these components constitute the ways in which more profound irrationality is involved and, often, the irrationality of monothematic delusion that occurs is less severe than these everyday cases of motivated irrationality. In general, there is no need to take delusion to involve a distinctive further irrationality that goes beyond the everyday and, indeed, many monothematic delusions involve less substantial irrationalities than many every day ones in either cold or hot forms.

M3 - Chapter (peer-reviewed)

SN - 9781350266322

SP - 87

EP - 111

BT - Advances in Experimental Philosophy of Action

A2 - Henne, Paul

A2 - Murray, Samuel

PB - Bloomsbury Publishing

CY - London

ER -