ERIC Number: EJ747055
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2005
Pages: 38
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0364-0213
EISSN: N/A
Deontic Reasoning with Emotional Content: Evolutionary Psychology or Decision Theory?
Perham, Nick; Oaksford, Mike
Cognitive Science, v29 n5 p681-718 2005
Three experiments investigated the contrasting predictions of the evolutionary and decision-theoretic approaches to deontic reasoning. Two experiments embedded a hazard management (HM) rule in a social contract scenario that should lead to competition between innate modules. A 3rd experiment used a pure HM task. Threatening material was also introduced into the antecedent, p, of a deontic rule, if p then must q. According to the evolutionary approach, more HM responses (Cosmides & Tooby, 2000) are predicted when p is threatening, whereas decision theory predicts fewer. All 3 experiments were consistent with decision theory. Other theories are discussed, and it is concluded that they cannot account for the behavior observed in these experiments.
Descriptors: Logical Thinking, Decision Making, Cognitive Psychology, Ideology, Moral Values, Social Science Research, Investigations, Behavior Theories, Predictor Variables, Evolution, Ethology
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A