Arguing to better conclusions : a human odyssey /

Preface p. ix
Gaining a Sensible and Useful Conceptual Framework
Beliefs, Knowledge, Arguments, and Decisions p. 3
Why Study False Beliefs and Inadequate Arguments? p. 3
True Beliefs and Forceful Arguments Serving Social Progress p. 6
Beliefs and Knowledge p. 13
Ends and Means p. 14
Rationality of Beliefs About Mundane Matters of Fact p. 16
Rationality of Beliefs About Virtues and Values p. 18
Inferential Relationships Among Beliefs in Arguments p. 23
Being Rational About Rationality p. 27
Selective Behavior and Decisions p. 30
The Representational Status of Statements: True or False p. 37
Setting the Scene p. 37
English as a Language With Limitations p. 45
The Epistemological Jungle p. 48
Ways Out p. 50
Domains of Representation p. 55
Introduction p. 55
Formal Calculi p. 60
Aesthetics p. 62
Ethics/Morality and Justice p. 64
Claims to Describe and Explain Empirical Matters p. 68
Each to Its Own Domain p. 77
Each to Its Own Domain, but... p. 79
Differential Progress Across Domains p. 84
General Origins of False Beliefs p. 87
Apparent Representation Only: Pragmatic Priorities p. 89
Introduction p. 89
Falsification p. 91
Entertainment p. 93
Socialization p. 95
Incitement to Action p. 97
Marking of Personal States, Identity, Social Identity, and Social Relations p. 98
False Declaratives About the Self Becoming True p. 99
Commentary p. 101
Combinations of Statements in Arguments p. 104
Quarrels, Arguments, and Explanations p. 104
Units of an Argument p. 110
Induction p. 116
The 'If-Then' Arguments of Experiments: Conditional Reasoning p. 117
Rendering Arguments Systematic and Explicit p. 119
Evaluating Explicit Arguments p. 120
Formal Calculi in Beliefs and Arguments: Errors p. 121
Introduction p. 121
The Peculiar Status of the Propositional Calculus p. 125
Propositional and Predictive Calculi p. 127
The Hegemony of the Formal Calculi p. 129
Truth in Formal Calculi p. 750
Language Systems as Formal Calculi p. 132
Classifying Errors and Weaknesses in Arguments p. 136
Introduction p. 136
Individual Propositions p. 142
Invalidity, Weakness, and Other Misleading Devices in Arguments p. 144
Who are the Victims of Mistaken Beliefs and Weak and Invalid Arguments and Why?
Beliefs and Arguments in Action p. 153
Introduction p. 153
Levels of Analysis: Micro, Meso, and Macro p. 158
Skills in Argumentation: Individual Competence With Social Science Issues p. 159
Law Courts in Action p. 164
History and Its Utilization p. 169
Governments p. 180
Human Sources of Errors in Beliefs and Inadequacies in Argumentation p. 188
Introduction p. 188
Erroneous Beliefs: Their Origins in Persons p. 188
Idols of the Market Economy p. 197
Human Motivation p. 199
Motivational Influences on False Beliefs and Inadequate Arguments p. 203
Gaining Competence in the Critical Evaluation of Beliefs and Arguments p. 213
Introduction p. 213
Critical Thinking p. 219
Probability, Statistical Phenomena, and Risk Analysis p. 225
Reasoning in Laboratory Puzzles and Dilemmas p. 235
Implications p. 239
La Condition Humaine in 21st-Century Quasi-Democracies p. 243
Introduction p. 243
The Predators p. 247
Preserving Power in Societies' Ruling Elites p. 251
Countering the Predators and Their Beneficiaries p. 259
Sensible Realism p. 264
Without Vision the People Perish p. 271
Postscript p. 273
References p. 281
Author Index p. 291
Subject Index p. 297