Posted by smokeymadison on January 17, 2005, at 18:24:09
In reply to Folk Psychology and the Nature of Belief., posted by alexandra_k on January 17, 2005, at 16:59:13
> We use mental states to predict and explain behaviour. Both in our own case and in the case of other people. If we see someone running and ask 'why is that person running' then an acceptable explanation is that
> (1) She believed that she needed to run to catch the bus
> (2) She wanted to catch the bus
> (3) She was 'rational' enough to put these together. To realise that she should therefore run so as to catch the bus.
>
> It is a foundational part of folk psychology that a person will act in such a way as to satisfy their desires were their beliefs true. Of course we can have many many desires, but it is thought that the 'strongest' desire is the one that comes into play with respect to the causation of behaviour.
>
> -Belief is a state designed to fit (represent) the world.
> -Desire is a state that seeks to alter the world to fit with it.
> -Fantasy does neither...I would think that fantasy would be a state in which the person considers options, a step between belief and desire. the person believes something, has an idea about the world, and then considers alternative options (fantasy) about what the world could be, and then has the desire to change something about the world. Or the other way around--the person has the desire to change the world, then considers options, and then forms the belief either about what should be done, or if action is taken, what the result is.
SM
poster:smokeymadison
thread:443284
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/write/20041210/msgs/443322.html