Oh wow. Yes that is quite pricey - I can't promise I'll be shelling out for that.
I must say I'm always a bit sceptical about philosophical theories of delusions. I remember hearing someone like Martin Davies talking about how patients don't act on their delusions and being struck by how little his description reflected the patients I actually saw where they certainly did act on their delusions in various rather serious ways.
Personally I tend towards a salience description of delusions - there's a balance of internal and external salience and a lot of what I might call "overvalued ideas" like AI psychosis, conspiracy theories etc seems to depend on external reinforcement and/or lack of friction against such ideas. But in the true delusional experiences I see esp delusional perceptions, nihilistic delusions, and thought alienation and passivity phenomena I'm a lot more sceptical of any kind of social explanation. Sure delusional content is often related to what is going on in the world around the patient - I don't see so many fears about the IRA but a lot more about being called a paedophile now. But these really do seem to be driven by internal rather than external features.
You really have to debate with someone who is psychotic (e.g. trying to persuade someone to eat who is fasting for months because God has told them they can exist on air) to understand just how outside of normal discourse and argument they are. To have a doctoral student explain to you that they understand how what they are saying sounds incredible *but it is really happening to them*!
So I'm a little intrigued how you thread the needle of delusions being both social generated and the sufferer being socially disconnected through epistemic vigilance.
104 pounds? At the present exchange rate, that's over 140 dollars. That's absolutely ridiculous for an organization whose reason for existence is transmitting knowledge. On Amazon, you can pre-order the American publication for "only" 135 dollars.
Have you written about this for *The Conversation*? You would be confined to 800 words, but would get a five-figure or even six-figure varied and in part very well-informed readership. When I have published to them, it was a very pleasant process, with total time from pitch to publication of around two weeks. I look forward to reading the (I have institutional access) and wonder about two topics; how much of this is already closely guarded state-of-the-art knowledge in the advertising and political influence industries, and whether you discuss the deliberate use of social pressures to promote delusions in what seems to me at times the entire strategy of the MAGA-MAHA-Christian Nationalist movement?
Gosh, this is fantastic. Thank you for sharing. It seems to me that online communities are significant drivers of a higher percentage of people believing delusions, compared to, say, 1990 (but maybe not compared to when we lived in smaller communities?).
I particularly like how succinct these lines are in covering so much important info:
"Outside of narrow domains, knowledge of our reality is not the default state of human minds, even when they are healthy or functioning well.
"...enables perfectly rational, healthy individuals to co-create spectacular forms of madness and irrationality"
You weren’t joking about OED prices. Still less than my (now out of print) boxed set of
The Complete Anti-Federalist
Edited by Herbert J. Storing. Glad I bought it when I did. Now egregiously the University of Chicago press is trying to get $500 for a PDF! Or a time limited PDF (45 days) for $12.50!
Anyway your book sounds interesting. I had a moment in grad school (legal history) where I was interested in witch trials and boundary policing. And later somewhat related at least as I see it the ways authority/legitimacy develops or collapses.
Thanks Dan, this looks so interesting that I'd like to buy two copies -one for me and another one for a close friend who is a professional psychiatrist- but it is indeed expensive. Have you considered writing a more popular book on the subject, with a more affordable price? The "technical" book published today, together with your posts and academic articles, would provide a very solid ground for such a popular book, and many of us would buy many copies of it!😄
The madness of the masses and the intelligencia is not baffling, it's normal. Take for instance the word "free", which is worshipped as a profound talismanic truth. Free market, free sex, freedom, free love, free anything. All have a large audiences of worshippers. But nothing is "free". Everything has costs, consequences, complications, and controversy. So, my one comment is that people are easily duped by language as meaningful, but are willfully self deceived.
Oh wow. Yes that is quite pricey - I can't promise I'll be shelling out for that.
I must say I'm always a bit sceptical about philosophical theories of delusions. I remember hearing someone like Martin Davies talking about how patients don't act on their delusions and being struck by how little his description reflected the patients I actually saw where they certainly did act on their delusions in various rather serious ways.
Personally I tend towards a salience description of delusions - there's a balance of internal and external salience and a lot of what I might call "overvalued ideas" like AI psychosis, conspiracy theories etc seems to depend on external reinforcement and/or lack of friction against such ideas. But in the true delusional experiences I see esp delusional perceptions, nihilistic delusions, and thought alienation and passivity phenomena I'm a lot more sceptical of any kind of social explanation. Sure delusional content is often related to what is going on in the world around the patient - I don't see so many fears about the IRA but a lot more about being called a paedophile now. But these really do seem to be driven by internal rather than external features.
You really have to debate with someone who is psychotic (e.g. trying to persuade someone to eat who is fasting for months because God has told them they can exist on air) to understand just how outside of normal discourse and argument they are. To have a doctoral student explain to you that they understand how what they are saying sounds incredible *but it is really happening to them*!
So I'm a little intrigued how you thread the needle of delusions being both social generated and the sufferer being socially disconnected through epistemic vigilance.
104 pounds? At the present exchange rate, that's over 140 dollars. That's absolutely ridiculous for an organization whose reason for existence is transmitting knowledge. On Amazon, you can pre-order the American publication for "only" 135 dollars.
Have you written about this for *The Conversation*? You would be confined to 800 words, but would get a five-figure or even six-figure varied and in part very well-informed readership. When I have published to them, it was a very pleasant process, with total time from pitch to publication of around two weeks. I look forward to reading the (I have institutional access) and wonder about two topics; how much of this is already closely guarded state-of-the-art knowledge in the advertising and political influence industries, and whether you discuss the deliberate use of social pressures to promote delusions in what seems to me at times the entire strategy of the MAGA-MAHA-Christian Nationalist movement?
Gosh, this is fantastic. Thank you for sharing. It seems to me that online communities are significant drivers of a higher percentage of people believing delusions, compared to, say, 1990 (but maybe not compared to when we lived in smaller communities?).
I particularly like how succinct these lines are in covering so much important info:
"Outside of narrow domains, knowledge of our reality is not the default state of human minds, even when they are healthy or functioning well.
"...enables perfectly rational, healthy individuals to co-create spectacular forms of madness and irrationality"
A very worthy topic - glad you've tackled it. I hope to check it out soon.
Do you discuss the econ literature on rational herding/'informational cascades'?
If not you should check it out - very relevant and insightful I think
https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/jel.20241472
We cite Kuran I think but there's not enough engagement. agree this is highly relevant - thanks
I recommended it for purchase to my institutional librarian - fingers crossed!
Great - thanks!
You weren’t joking about OED prices. Still less than my (now out of print) boxed set of
The Complete Anti-Federalist
Edited by Herbert J. Storing. Glad I bought it when I did. Now egregiously the University of Chicago press is trying to get $500 for a PDF! Or a time limited PDF (45 days) for $12.50!
https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo5059201.html
Anyway your book sounds interesting. I had a moment in grad school (legal history) where I was interested in witch trials and boundary policing. And later somewhat related at least as I see it the ways authority/legitimacy develops or collapses.
Preordered and looking forward to reading it.
500 - wow! Great to hear - thanks.
Thanks Dan, this looks so interesting that I'd like to buy two copies -one for me and another one for a close friend who is a professional psychiatrist- but it is indeed expensive. Have you considered writing a more popular book on the subject, with a more affordable price? The "technical" book published today, together with your posts and academic articles, would provide a very solid ground for such a popular book, and many of us would buy many copies of it!😄
The madness of the masses and the intelligencia is not baffling, it's normal. Take for instance the word "free", which is worshipped as a profound talismanic truth. Free market, free sex, freedom, free love, free anything. All have a large audiences of worshippers. But nothing is "free". Everything has costs, consequences, complications, and controversy. So, my one comment is that people are easily duped by language as meaningful, but are willfully self deceived.