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Behavioral and Brain Sciences Behavioral and Brain Sciences

Article contents

Why we don't need built-in misbeliefs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 January 2010

Carol S. Dweck
Carol S. Dweck
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305. dweck@stanford.edu
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Abstract

In this commentary, I question the idea that positive illusions are evolved misbeliefs on the grounds that positive illusions are often maladaptive, are not universal, and may be by-products of existing mechanisms. Further, because different beliefs are adaptive in different situations and cultures, it makes sense to build in a readiness to form beliefs rather than the beliefs themselves.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 32 , Issue 6 , December 2009 , pp. 518 - 519
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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