Philipp Koralus (Oxford): Decisions; Questions; and Illusory Reasons

Decisions; Questions; and Illusory Reasons

Philipp Koralus (Oxford)

It is a remarkable fact that we make seemingly irrational choices in systematic ways; amply documented in the experimental literature. It is an equally remarkable fact that we are capable of systematically rational decisions. An explanation of the nature of human decision-making that gives equal weight to these facts is elusive. I propose that we can make sense of these facts as the result of a cognitive strategy of raising questions and answering them in the most direct way. I have argued elsewhere that when made formally precise; this model can explain successes and failures in reasoning (Koralus and Mascarenhas; forthcoming). Rational inferences result from a kind of