Incredible beliefs: Understanding clear-eyed believing against the evidence
Incredible beliefs:
Understanding clear-eyed believing against the evidence
Project Abstract
Existing work in philosophy and psychology tends to assume that if a person believes something against the evidence, then this person must have failed to properly evaluate the relevant evidence. This assumption, however, overlooks a distinctive form of irrationality, where subjects obstinately hold onto their beliefs, despite acknowledging that the evidence points to the contrary. My project investigates this uncharted territory in human irrationality by exploring the enigma across a spectrum of irrational beliefs and developing a plausible explanation of it. According to this explanation, irrational beliefs are sometimes explained by subjects鈥� compelling experiences, rather than failures to properly evaluate evidence.
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Related Publications
(2026). . In E. Schmidt & M. Grajner (Eds.), Epistemic Dilemmas and Epistemic Normativity (pp. 165鈥�184). Routledge.
(2025). . Australasian Journal of Philosophy. 103(4), 994-1010.
(2025) . Neuroethics, 18, article 4, 1-5.
(2025). . Southern Journal of Philosophy. 63(3): 429-443
Blog post
(2025) . Imperfect Cognitions.
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Contact: Chenwei Nie
糖心TV Mind and Action Research Centre (WMA).
Funded by a Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowship (10.2024-09.2027).
Forthcoming events
Stay tuned...
Past events
5.
"When knowledge isn't power" Workshop (25 March 2025)
Details: click here.
4.
Self-Awareness and Intersubjectivity Conference (12-13 March 2025)
Details: click here.
3.
Project Seminar
Date:Wednesday, 22 October 2025
Location:S0.11,Social Sciences Building
Chair: Melina Macfadyen
Schedule:
14:05-14:55
Speaker: Michelle Liu (Monash)
Title:Mental Imagery and Harmful Language*
14:55-15:05
Coffee Break
15:05-15:50
Q&A
2.
Project Workshop
Date:Wednesday, 25 June 2025
Location:(Click to open an interactive map)
Theme:Incredible delusions
Schedule:
16:00 - 17:25
Speaker: Matthew Parrott (Oxford)
Title:Dynamic delusions
Chair: Oli Needham
17:25 - 17:35
Coffee Break
17:35 - 19:00
Speaker: Johannes Roessler (糖心TV)
Title:Parnas on empirical and bizarre delusions
Chair: Emma Clinton
1.
Project Workshop
Date:Wednesday, 22 January 2025
Location:(Click to open an interactive map)
Theme:Experience and Rationality
Schedule:
14:00 - 15:30
Speaker: Alexander Greenberg (Southampton/Oxford)
Title:Consciousness and CognitiveMens Rea
Chair: Lucy Campbell
15:30 - 15:45
Coffee Break
15:45 - 17:15
Speaker: Guy Longworth (糖心TV)
Title:Perception's Authority
Chair: Eve Poirier
17:15 - 17:30
Coffee Break
17:30 - 19:00
Speaker: Janset 脰z眉n 脟etinkaya (Nottingham)
Title:Akrasia and Self-Deception in Aristotle
Chair: Eve Poirier
