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How do minds make societies, and how do societies change? Paul Thagard systematically connects neural and psychological explanations of mind with major social sciences (social psychology, sociology, politics, economics, anthropology, and history) and professions (medicine, law, education, engineering, and business). Social change emerges from interacting social and mental mechanisms.
Many economists and political scientists assume that individuals make rational choices, despite the abundance of evidence that people frequently succumb to thinking errors such as motivated inference. Much of sociology and anthropology is taken over with postmodernist assumptions that everything is constructed on the basis of social relations such as power, with no inkling that these relations are mediated by how people think about each other.
Mind-Society displays the interdependence of the cognitive and social sciences by describing the interconnections among mental and social mechanisms, which interact to generate social changes ranging from marriage patterns to wars. Validation comes from detailed studies of important social changes, from norms about romantic relationships to economic practices, political institutions, religious customs, and international relations.
This book belongs to a trio that includes Brain-Mind: From Neurons to Consciousness and Creativity and Natural Philosophy: From Social Brains to Knowledge, Reality, Morality, and Beauty. They can be read independently, but together they make up a Treatise on Mind and Society that provides a unified and comprehensive treatment of the cognitive sciences, social sciences, professions, and humanities.
Preface
Acknowledgments
Part I. Mechanisms
1. Explaining Social Change
Social Change
Explanatory Styles
Mental, Neural, and Social Mechanisms
Emergence
The Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Applications
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 1: Social Change
2. Mental Mechanisms
Cognition and Emotion
Brains and Semantic Pointers
Images
Concepts
Beliefs
Rules
Analogies
Emotions
Mapping Values
Inference and Coherence
Emotion-Driven Inferences
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 2: Mental Mechanisms
3. Social Mechanisms
Social Mechanisms and Communication
What are Social Mechanisms?
Structural Connections
Social Interactions
Verbal Communication
Inter-Agent Inference
Social Mechanisms for Spreading Emotions
Multilevel Explanations
Change and Emergence
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 3: Social Mechanisms
Part II. Social Sciences
4. Social Psychology: Romantic Relationships
Relationships Matter
Social Cognition and Microsociology
Mechanisms in Relationships
Murray and Holmes on Interdependent Minds
Romantic Relationships: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Trust and Commitment
Love
Romantic Interactions
Contrast with Gottman
Relationship Success and Failure
Does the Heart Want What It Wants?
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 4: Social Psychology
5. Sociology: Prejudice and Discrimination
Discrimination and Prejudice
Stereotypes
Women: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Jews: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Social Norms and Institutions
Overcoming Prejudice
Conceptual Change
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 5: Sociology
6. Politics: Ideology
Political Change
Political Mechanisms
Ideology: 3-Analysis
Ideology: Value Maps
Ideological Change
The Islamic State: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Nazi Ideology
Anarchism
Extreme Right-Wing Political Movements
Explaining Rwanda Atrocities
Power
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 6: Politics
7. Economics: Bubbles and Crashes
Beyond Animal Spirits
Economic Decisions
Booms and Bubbles: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Panics and Crashes: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Mindful Economics
Reflexivity
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 7: Economics
8. Anthropology: Religion
Cultures
Religion
The Latter-Day Saint Religion: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Why is the LDS Church Successful?
Why is Religion Generally So Successful?
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 8: Anthropology
9. History and International Relations: War
Explaining War
History
International Relations
Nationalism
Origins of the First World War: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Minds and Groups
Historical Explanation
Social Cognitivism as a Theory of International Relations
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 9: History
Part III. Professions
10. Medicine: Mental Illness
Mind, Society, and the Professions
Medicine
Mental Illness
Depression: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Depression: Multilevel Mechanisms
Treating Depression
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 10: Medicine
11. Law: Wrongful Conviction and Criminal Responsibility
Legal Mechanisms
Legal Coherence
Wrongful Conviction: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Explaining Wrongful Convictions
The Brain and Legal Responsibility
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 11: Law
12. Education: Teaching and Conceptual Change
Learning and Teaching
Vaccination: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Conceptual Change
Teaching Better
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 12: Education
13. Engineering: Creative Design
Creative Engineering
Steve Jobs and Apple: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Engineering Creativity
Teaching Creativity
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 13: Engineering
14. Business: Leadership and Marketing
Vision
Emotional Intelligence
Charisma
Leadership of Ed Catmull: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Marketing and Emotional Coherence
Apple's Marketing: Social Cognitive-Emotional Workup
Enhancing Collective Emotional Intelligence
Professions and Social Change
Summary and Discussion
Notes to Chapter 14: Business
References
Index
Description
How do minds make societies, and how do societies change? Paul Thagard systematically connects neural and psychological explanations of mind with major social sciences (social psychology, sociology, politics, economics, anthropology, and history) and professions (medicine, law, education, engineering, and business). Social change emerges from interacting social and mental mechanisms.
Many economists and political scientists assume that individuals make rational choices, despite the abundance of evidence that people frequently succumb to thinking errors such as motivated inference. Much of sociology and anthropology is taken over with postmodernist assumptions that everything is constructed on the basis of social relations such as power, with no inkling that these relations are mediated by how people think about each other.
Mind-Society displays the interdependence of the cognitive and social sciences by describing the interconnections among mental and social mechanisms, which interact to generate social changes ranging from marriage patterns to wars. Validation comes from detailed studies of important social changes, from norms about romantic relationships to economic practices, political institutions, religious customs, and international relations.
This book belongs to a trio that includes Brain-Mind: From Neurons to Consciousness and Creativity and Natural Philosophy: From Social Brains to Knowledge, Reality, Morality, and Beauty. They can be read independently, but together they make up a Treatise on Mind and Society that provides a unified and comprehensive treatment of the cognitive sciences, social sciences, professions, and humanities.
