Universität Wien

180135 SE Interdisciplinary Research Seminar in Philosophy and Economics (2025S)

Motivated Reasoning

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 18 - Philosophie
Continuous assessment of course work

Summary

1 Schmid
Tu 10.06. 15:00-16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
2 Tyran , Moodle
Tu 10.06. 13:15-14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).
Registration information is available for each group.

Groups

Group 1

Hinweis der SPL Philosophie:

Das Abgeben von ganz oder teilweise von einem KI-tool (z.B. ChatGPT) verfassten Texten als Leistungsnachweis (z.B. Seminararbeit) ist nur dann erlaubt, wenn dies von der Lehrveranstaltungsleitung ausdrücklich als mögliche Arbeitsweise genehmigt wurde. Auch hierbei müssen direkt oder indirekt zitierte Textstellen wie immer klar mit Quellenangabe ausgewiesen werden.

Die Lehrveranstaltungsleitung kann zur Überprüfung der Autorenschaft einer abgegebenen schriftlichen Arbeit ein notenrelevantes Gespräch (Plausibilitätsprüfung) vorsehen, das erfolgreich zu absolvieren ist.

max. 15 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

The seminar is co-taught by Bernhard Schmid and Jean-Robert Tyran, in a combination of individual and co-taught seminar sessions. The allocation of
students to a 90-minute group time slot on u:space is purely a formality, and students are taught and assessed by both lecturers jointly. Therefore,
*please reserve the 13:15 - 16:30 time slot in each week*. The precise class schedule will be announced on Moodle. Overall, the amount of seminar time is
equivalent to 2 semester-hours.

  • Tuesday 11.03. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 18.03. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 25.03. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 01.04. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 08.04. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 29.04. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 06.05. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 13.05. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 20.05. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 27.05. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 03.06. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 17.06. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 24.06. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228

Group 2

Hinweis der SPL Philosophie:

Das Abgeben von ganz oder teilweise von einem KI-tool (z.B. ChatGPT) verfassten Texten als Leistungsnachweis (z.B. Seminararbeit) ist nur dann erlaubt, wenn dies von der Lehrveranstaltungsleitung ausdrücklich als mögliche Arbeitsweise genehmigt wurde. Auch hierbei müssen direkt oder indirekt zitierte Textstellen wie immer klar mit Quellenangabe ausgewiesen werden.

Die Lehrveranstaltungsleitung kann zur Überprüfung der Autorenschaft einer abgegebenen schriftlichen Arbeit ein notenrelevantes Gespräch (Plausibilitätsprüfung) vorsehen, das erfolgreich zu absolvieren ist.

max. 15 participants
Language: English
LMS: Moodle

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

The seminar is co-taught by Bernhard Schmid and Jean-Robert Tyran, in a combination of individual and co-taught seminar sessions. The allocation of
students to a 90-minute group time slot on u:space is purely a formality, and students are taught and assessed by both lecturers jointly. Therefore,
*please reserve the 13:15 - 16:30 time slot in each week*. The precise class schedule will be announced on Moodle. Overall, the amount of seminar time is
equivalent to 2 semester-hours.

  • Tuesday 11.03. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 18.03. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 25.03. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 01.04. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 08.04. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 29.04. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 06.05. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 13.05. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 20.05. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 27.05. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 03.06. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 17.06. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Tuesday 24.06. 13:15 - 14:45 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

This seminar serves to discuss “motivated reasoning” from various perspectives in philosophy and economics. The basic idea behind motivated reasoning is (in the words of Epley and Gilovich, JEP 2016) that “People generally reason their way to conclusions they favor, with their preferences influencing the way evidence is gathered, arguments are processed, and memories of past experience are recalled. Each of these processes can be affected in subtle ways by people’s motivations, leading to biased beliefs that feel objective”. The course addresses theoretical arguments and empirical evidence related to this claim and discusses potential practical implications for choices in the economic, political, and social sphere.

The seminar is co-taught by Hans Bernhard Schmid and Jean-Robert Tyran meaning that students are taught and assessed by both lecturers jointly. Therefore, make sure to show up on all time slots independent of your group assignment (which is a pure formality).

Date Topic
11.3. Organization / introduction
18.3. [1] Mele: Motivated belief and agency
25.3. [2] Peels: Believing at will is possible
1.4.. [3] Paul: Doxastic self-control
8.4. [4] Rinard: Believing for practical reasons
15.4. easter break
22.4. easter break
29.4. [5] Roeber: Evidence, judgment, and belief at will
6.5. [6] Townsend: Staying true with the help of others
13.5. [7] Bénabou and Tirole: Mindful economics
20.5. [8] Cefala et al.: Sorting fact from fiction (unpublished Working Paper)
27.5. [9] Celniker and Ditto: Of preferences and priors
3.6. [10] Hagenbach and Saucet: Motivated skepticism
10.6. [11] Zimmermann: The dynamics of motivated beliefs
17.6. [12] Schwardmann et al: Self-persuasion: Evidence from field experiments
24.6. Summary, Wrap-up

Assessment and permitted materials

Requirements
1. Each student presents (max 15 min.) a paper as scheduled (in the first session on March 11 – participation is required). Hand in
your presentation and the questions intended to guide the discussion by the Sunday preceding your presentation the latest.
2. Each student provides a statement or questions for discussion in writing (max. 1 page) to at least 3 papers presented by other students.
Deadline: Sunday before the respective seminar (best 3 count for grading).
3. Students actively participate in classroom discussion (must not miss more than 2 meetings).

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

20% presentation, 60% written comments and questions, 20% active participation.

Examination topics

see above

Reading list

Readings (in order of discussion)
1. Mele, A.R. (1998): Motivated belief and agency. Philosophical Psychology 11(3): 353-369.
2. Peels, R. (2015): Believing at Will is Possible. Australasian Journal of Philosophy 93(3): 1-18.
3. Paul, S.K. (2015): Doxastic Self-Control. American Philosophical Quarterly 52(2): 145-58.
4. Rinard, S. (2018): Believing for Practical Reasons. Noûs 4: 763-784.
5. Roeber, B. (2019): Evidence, Judgment, and Belief at Will. Mind 128(511): 837-859.
6. Townsend, L.C. (2020): Staying True with the Help of Others: Doxastic Self-Control through Interpersonal Commitment. Philosophical
Explorations 22 (3): 243-258.
7. Bénabou, R. and Tirole, J. (2016): Mindful Economics: The Production, Consumption, and Value of Beliefs. Journal of Economic Perspectives
30(3): 141-164.
8. Cefala, E., Kartal, M., Kritzinger and Tyran, J.-R. (2024): Sorting Fact from Fiction when Reasoning is Motivated. Mimeo. Nov. 2024 (work in
progress, draft is provided on Moodle)
9. Celniker, J.B. and Ditto, P.H. (2024): Of Preferences and Priors: Motivated Reasoning in Partisans’ Evaluations of Scientific Evidence. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology: Attitudes and Social Cognition 127, No. 5, 986-1011.
10. Hagenbach, J. and Saucet, C. (2024): Motivated Skepticism. Review of Economic Studies, forthcoming.
11. Zimmermann, F. (2020): The Dynamics of Motivated Beliefs. American Economic Review 110(2): 337-361.
12. Schwardmann, P., Tripodi, E. and van der Weele, J.J. (2022): Self-Persuasion: Evidence from Field Experiments at International Debating
Competitions. American Economic Review 112(4): 1118-1146.
(links to papers will be provided on moodle)

Association in the course directory

Last modified: We 12.03.2025 10:46