Assumptions about Human Nature

Assumptions about Human Nature

Author: Lawrence S. Wrightsman

Publisher: SAGE

Published: 1992

Total Pages: 379

ISBN-13: 0803927754

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"This book, which is in its second edition, provides a provocative mirror from which to discern more clearly one's own assumptions about human nature. . . . I found myself reflecting on the subject matter and its impact on my own life, including relationships, teaching, research, and therapy. . . . The author has done a superb job of raising our consciousness about human nature in this book, an I strongly recommend it to academic and applied psychologists. If you need an invitation to examine your views about human nature, this book is it." --C. R. Snyder, University of Kansas, Lawrence In general, are people trustworthy or unreliable, altruistic or selfish? Are they simple and easy to understand or complex and beyond comprehension? Our assumptions about human nature color everything from the way we bargain with a used-car dealer to our expectations about further conflict in the Middle East. Because our assumptions about human nature underlie our reactions to specific events, Wrightsman designed this second edition to enhance our understanding of human nature--the relationship of attitudes to behavior, the unidimensionality of attitudes, and the influence of social movements on beliefs. Psychologists, social workers, researchers, and students will find Assumptions About Human Nature an illuminating exploration into the philosophies of human nature.


Essential Building Blocks of Human Nature

Essential Building Blocks of Human Nature

Author: Ulrich J. Frey

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2010-11-08

Total Pages: 166

ISBN-13: 364213968X

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To understand why we humans are as we are, it is necessary to look at the essential building blocks that comprise our nature. The foundations of this structure are our evolutionary origins as primates and our social roots. Upon these rest features such as our emotions, language and aesthetic preferences, with our self-perceptions, self-deceptions and thirst for knowledge right at the top. The unifying force holding these blocks together is evolutionary theory. Evolution provides a deeper understanding of human nature and, in particular, of the common roots of these different perspectives. To build a reliable and coherent model of man, leading authors from fields as diverse as primatology, anthropology, neurobiology and philosophy have joined forces to present essays each describing their own expert perspective. Together they provide a convincing and complete picture of our own human nature.


Emotions and Personality in Personalized Services

Emotions and Personality in Personalized Services

Author: Marko Tkalčič

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-07-13

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 3319314130

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Personalization is ubiquitous from search engines to online-shopping websites helping us find content more efficiently and this book focuses on the key developments that are shaping our daily online experiences. With advances in the detection of end users’ emotions, personality, sentiment and social signals, researchers and practitioners now have the tools to build a new generation of personalized systems that will really understand the user’s state and deliver the right content. With leading experts from a vast array of domains from user modeling, mobile sensing and information retrieval to artificial intelligence, human-computer interaction (HCI) social computing and psychology, a broad spectrum of topics are covered. From discussing psychological theoretical models and exploring state-of-the-art methods for acquiring emotions and personality in an unobtrusive way, as well as describing how these concepts can be used to improve various aspects of the personalization process and chapters that discuss evaluation and privacy issues. Emotions and Personality in Personalized Systems will help aid researchers and practitioners develop and evaluate user-centric personalization systems that take into account the factors that have a tremendous impact on our decision-making – emotions and personality.


Human Nature and the Limits of Science

Human Nature and the Limits of Science

Author: John Dupré

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 212

ISBN-13: 0199248060

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Dupré warns that our understanding of human nature is being distorted by two faulty and harmful forms of pseudo-scientific thinking. He claims it is important to resist scientism - an exaggerated conception of what science can be expected to do.


Divination and Human Nature

Divination and Human Nature

Author: Peter T. Struck

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 2018-10-23

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 0691183457

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Divination and Human Nature casts a new perspective on the rich tradition of ancient divination—the reading of divine signs in oracles, omens, and dreams. Popular attitudes during classical antiquity saw these readings as signs from the gods while modern scholars have treated such beliefs as primitive superstitions. In this book, Peter Struck reveals instead that such phenomena provoked an entirely different accounting from the ancient philosophers. These philosophers produced subtle studies into what was an odd but observable fact—that humans could sometimes have uncanny insights—and their work signifies an early chapter in the cognitive history of intuition. Examining the writings of Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, and the Neoplatonists, Struck demonstrates that they all observed how, setting aside the charlatans and swindlers, some people had premonitions defying the typical bounds of rationality. Given the wide differences among these ancient thinkers, Struck notes that they converged on seeing this surplus insight as an artifact of human nature, projections produced under specific conditions by our physiology. For the philosophers, such unexplained insights invited a speculative search for an alternative and more naturalistic system of cognition. Recovering a lost piece of an ancient tradition, Divination and Human Nature illustrates how philosophers of the classical era interpreted the phenomena of divination as a practice closer to intuition and instinct than magic.


Predictability of Things

Predictability of Things

Author: Charles Nehme

Publisher: Independently Published

Published: 2024-03-09

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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In the realm of human inquiry and endeavor, the pursuit of predictability stands as a cornerstone of our collective aspirations. From the early civilizations' attempts to forecast celestial events to the modern era's sophisticated predictive analytics, the quest to anticipate future outcomes has been a driving force behind scientific inquiry, technological innovation, and human progress. This preface serves as an introduction to the multifaceted concept of predictability and its myriad implications across diverse domains. As we embark on a journey through the intricacies of prediction, we find ourselves grappling with fundamental questions about uncertainty, causality, and the limits of human knowledge. In the pages that follow, we will explore the principles, methodologies, and applications of predictability in fields as varied as meteorology, finance, epidemiology, and beyond. We will delve into the tools and techniques that enable us to decipher patterns, discern trends, and make informed decisions in an uncertain world. But beyond the technical intricacies lies a deeper philosophical inquiry into the nature of prediction itself. What does it mean to predict? How do we reconcile the tension between determinism and randomness in our understanding of the world? And what are the ethical and societal implications of harnessing predictive power for human ends? As we navigate these questions and embark on a voyage into the realm of predictability, we invite you, dear reader, to join us on a journey of exploration and discovery. For in the pursuit of predictability lies not only the promise of foresight and control but also a deeper understanding of the mysteries that surround us and the boundless potential of the human intellect.


The Map and the Territory

The Map and the Territory

Author: Alan Greenspan

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2013-10-22

Total Pages: 402

ISBN-13: 1101638745

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Like all of us, though few so visibly, Alan Greenspan was forced by the financial crisis of 2008 to question some fundamental assumptions about risk management and economic forecasting. No one with any meaningful role in economic decision making in the world saw beforehand the storm for what it was. How had our models so utterly failed us? To answer this question, Alan Greenspan embarked on a rigorous and far-reaching multiyear examination of how Homo economicus predicts the economic future, and how it can predict it better. Economic risk is a fact of life in every realm, from home to business to government at all levels. Whether we’re conscious of it or not, we make wagers on the future virtually every day, one way or another. Very often, however, we’re steering by out-of-date maps, when we’re not driven by factors entirely beyond our conscious control. The Map and the Territory is nothing less than an effort to update our forecasting conceptual grid. It integrates the history of economic prediction, the new work of behavioral economists, and the fruits of the author’s own remarkable career to offer a thrillingly lucid and empirically based grounding in what we can know about economic forecasting and what we can’t.The book explores how culture is and isn't destiny and probes what we can predict about the world's biggest looming challenges, from debt and the reform of the welfare state to natural disasters in an age of global warming. No map is the territory, but Greenspan’s approach, grounded in his trademark rigor, wisdom, and unprecedented context, ensures that this particular map will assist in safe journeys down many different roads, traveled by individuals, businesses, and the state.


The Laws of Human Nature

The Laws of Human Nature

Author: Robert Greene

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2018-10-23

Total Pages: 626

ISBN-13: 0698184548

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From the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The 48 Laws of Power comes the definitive new book on decoding the behavior of the people around you Robert Greene is a master guide for millions of readers, distilling ancient wisdom and philosophy into essential texts for seekers of power, understanding and mastery. Now he turns to the most important subject of all - understanding people's drives and motivations, even when they are unconscious of them themselves. We are social animals. Our very lives depend on our relationships with people. Knowing why people do what they do is the most important tool we can possess, without which our other talents can only take us so far. Drawing from the ideas and examples of Pericles, Queen Elizabeth I, Martin Luther King Jr, and many others, Greene teaches us how to detach ourselves from our own emotions and master self-control, how to develop the empathy that leads to insight, how to look behind people's masks, and how to resist conformity to develop your singular sense of purpose. Whether at work, in relationships, or in shaping the world around you, The Laws of Human Nature offers brilliant tactics for success, self-improvement, and self-defense.


The Success Sequence

The Success Sequence

Author: Herman J. Diehl

Publisher:

Published: 2009-03-06

Total Pages: 168

ISBN-13: 9781439203507

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An entertaining yet instructional account on how to go for success and have fun in the process.