An edition of The 7 laws of magical thinking (2012)

The 7 laws of magical thinking

how irrationality makes us happy, healthy, and sane

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Last edited by ImportBot
March 22, 2022 | History
An edition of The 7 laws of magical thinking (2012)

The 7 laws of magical thinking

how irrationality makes us happy, healthy, and sane

  • 0 Ratings
  • 8 Want to read
  • 0 Currently reading
  • 1 Have read

"Drawing on evolution, cognitive science, and neuroscience, Matthew Hutson takes us on this fascinating tour of magical thinking in everyday life. So-called cognitive biases are crucial to our survival, Hutson shows, whether we're deciding where to invest our money or avoiding awareness of our own mortality. Everyone - even the most rational, jaded, and sceptical thinkers - believe in magic, whether that be luck, mind over matter, jinxes, evil, or heavenly helpers. The key to happiness, health, creativity, social intelligence, and good fortune is knowing when you don't have free will and then embracing magical thinking instead." --Publisher description.

Publish Date
Publisher
Oneworld
Language
English
Pages
296

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Previews available in: English

Book Details


Published in

Oxford

Edition Notes

Includes bibliographical references (pages 283-286) and index.

Other Titles
Seven laws of magical thinking

Classifications

Dewey Decimal Class
153.42
Library of Congress
BF1621 .H88 2012, BF441

The Physical Object

Pagination
viii, 296 pages
Number of pages
296

ID Numbers

Open Library
OL28372827M
Internet Archive
7lawsofmagicalth0000huts
ISBN 10
1851689346, 178074109X
ISBN 13
9781851689347, 9781780741093
OCLC/WorldCat
782998214

Work Description

"Psychologists have documented a litany of cognitive biases--misperceptions of the world--and explained their positive functions. Now, Matthew Hutson shows us that even the most hard-core skeptic indulges in magical thinking all the time--and it's crucial to our survival. Drawing on evolution, cognitive science, and neuroscience, Hutson shows us that magical thinking has been so useful to us that it's hardwired into our brains. It encourages us to think that we actually have free will. It helps make us believe that we have an underlying purpose in the world. It can even protect us from the paralyzing awareness of our own mortality. In other words, magical thinking is a completely irrational way of making our lives make rational sense. With wonderfully entertaining stories, personal reflections, and sharp observations, Hutson reveals our deepest fears and longings"--

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History

Download catalog record: RDF / JSON
March 22, 2022 Edited by ImportBot import existing book
August 14, 2020 Edited by ImportBot import existing book
July 30, 2011 Created by LC Bot import new book