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Socializing willpower: Resolve from the outside in

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 April 2021

Stephen Setman Open the ORCID record for Stephen Setman [Opens in a new window]  and
Daniel Kelly Open the ORCID record for Daniel Kelly [Opens in a new window]
Stephen Setman
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47906-2098. ssetman@purdue.edu; drkelly@purdue.edu https://setman.carrd.co/, http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~drkelly/
Daniel Kelly
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47906-2098. ssetman@purdue.edu; drkelly@purdue.edu https://setman.carrd.co/, http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~drkelly/
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Abstract

Ainslie's account of willpower is conspicuously individualistic. Because other people, social influence, and culture appear only peripherally, it risks overlooking what may be resolve's deeply social roots. We identify a general “outside-in” explanatory strategy suggested by a range of recent research into human cognitive evolution, and suggest how it might illuminate the origins and more social aspects of resolve.

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Open Peer Commentary
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Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 44 , 2021 , e53
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The target article and response article are works of the U.S. Government and are not subject to copyright protection in the United States.
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Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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