糖心TV

Nick Chater (糖心TV 糖心TV School)

The Mind is Flat: the Illusion of Depth in Motives, Markets and Morality

To book a ticket please email inaugurallectureseries@wbs.ac.uk, subject: Chater

This talk will present the case that there are no hidden depths, whether evolutionary, psychological, or economic, from which the real motivations for human behaviour emerges. Motives are, indeed, astonishingly shallow, with the illusion of depth sustained by our mental projection of meaning into the actions of ourselves and other. But the illusion of depth is of crucial importance: it helps us reign in our behaviour, which would otherwise be even more capricious and inconsistent. This thesis has implications for theories in psychology, economics, and ethics which are explicitly, or implicitly, committed to “deep” motivations underpinning human life. It also provides a new framework for thinking about how to make choices, whether as individuals, in business, or in public policy.