Rational Psychology

Rational psychology is a part of mathematics, the conceptual investigation of psychology.

``Rational'' here indicates psychological investigations based on reason alone, rather than on
experiment, engineering, or computation, the rational analysis of the concepts and theories
whose applicability and feasibility are studied in experimental, engineering, and computational
projects. Rational psychology is not the study of rational agents, but instead the mathematical
approach to the problems of agents and their actions, whether these agents and actions are
themselves thought rational or irrational. The name stems from the rational mechanics of
NEWTON, and is merely adaptation to the realm of mental philosophy of the principles, aims, and
methods found in his natural philosophy. Although I contrast rational psychology with other
disciplines, the term is not meant to exclude others so much as to name something excluded by
everyone else, and to highlight the common project occurring in specialized and isolated
manifestations. It is not meant merely to agglomerate numerous disciplines, as unfortunately
seems to be the situation in cognitive science, nor to prevent specialization. The aim is instead
to reset the common foundations of mental fields to make the unity apparent mathematically
while aiding the prosecution and communication of specialized inquiries.
https://www.csc2.ncsu.edu/faculty/jdoyle2/publications/wirp83/
Kant identifies rational psychology as a bogus doctrine of the soul and of self-knowledge which
"arises from the common and natural reason of men"; rational psychologists attempt to extend
knowledge beyond possible experience, and thus employed rational psychology "is entirely made up
of paralogisms (i.e., a certain type of bogus inferences mired in dialectical reason). Kant discusses--
and critiques--rational psychology and rational psychologists in the Paralogisms.

http://www.philosophy-dictionary.org/RATIONAL_PSYCHOLOGY

Political Philosophy
Political philosophy is the study of fundamental questions about
the state, government, politics, liberty, justice and the enforcement of a legal
code by authority. It is Ethics applied to a group of people, and discusses how
a society should be set up and how one should act within a society.
Individual rights (such as the right to life, liberty, property, the pursuit of happiness, free
speech, self-defence, etc) state explicitly the requirements for a person to benefit rather
than suffer from living in a society.

Political philosophy asks questions like: "What is a government?", "Why are

governments needed?", "What makes a government legitimate?", "What rights and
freedoms should a government protect?", "What duties do citizens owe to a legitimate
government, if any?" and "When may a government be legitimately overthrown, if ever?"

http://www.philosophybasics.com/branch_political.html
Political philosophy, branch of philosophy that is concerned, at the most
abstract level, with the concepts and arguments involved in political opinion.
The meaning of the term political is itself one of the major problems of political
philosophy. Broadly, however, one may characterize as political all those
practices and institutions that are concerned with government.
The central problem of political philosophy is how to deploy or limit
public powerso as to maintain the survival and enhance the quality of human
life. Like all aspects of human experience, political philosophy is conditioned
by environmentand by the scope and limitations of mind, and the answers
given by successive political philosophers to perennial problems reflect the
knowledge and the assumptions of their times. Political philosophy, as distinct
from the study of political and administrative organization, is more theoretical
and normative than descriptive. It is inevitably related to
general philosophy and is itself a subject of cultural anthropology, sociology,
and the sociology of knowledge. As a normative discipline it is thus concerned
with what ought, on various assumptions, to be and how this purpose can be
promoted, rather than with a description of facts—although any realistic
political theory is necessarily related to these facts. The political philosopher is
thus not concerned so much, for example, with how pressure groups work or
how, by various systems of voting, decisions are arrived at as with what the
aims of the whole political process should be in the light of a particular
philosophy of life.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/political-philosophy

Social Philosophy
An individual is born in the society and thereafter interacts with the society throughout his life. The
society is the soil where his personality is nurtured. Social Philosophy is the philosophy of human
relations in Society. Society is a group of individuals united together with a definite end in view. Society
is a web social relationship. The nucleus of the society is man. Society is a dynamic organization of
purposive individuals.

According to Mackenzie, ‘Social Philosophy seeks to explain the nature of society in the light of the
principle of social solidarity’. Social Philosophy aims at interpretation of society with reference to the
norm of ‘social unity’.

F W Blackmar maintained that Social Philosophy is based upon the general facts of society. It makes
general observations on the nature of society. Social Philosophy and Social sciences are closely
connected.
According to Morris Ginsberg, ‘Social Philosophy aims at the formulation of the general principles of
human behavior through speculation on social phenomena’.

For Bertrand Russell, ‘Social Philosophy seeks the conditions in which all the constructive tendencies of
man (such as love and sympathy) Social marriage and education can provide maximum possible
opportunities to produce the people who can save the world from future catastrophe.

™ Social Philosophy is Speculative.

Social Philosophy is the speculation upon the basic principles of human behavior, the supreme values of
human life and the purpose of entire existence. A social philosopher is deeply concerned with the study
of the inner implications of social phenomena. Social Philosophy attempts to understand the patterns,
changes and tendencies of societies. It explores philosophical questions about social issues, social
behavior and social values.

Social Philosophy is not based on empirical method. Social values are implied in social activities. The
principles of Social Philosophy are the basic conditions of any social relationship. The ideals of Social
Philosophy are a priori. They cannot be determined from our experiences.

https://www.slideshare.net/roxannetiffanydotillos/social-philosophy?qid=3c1827f4-d056-47d3-8aac-
5085a3f17a3b&v=&b=&from_search=6

8. Branches of Practical Philosophy

Ethics
Ethics (or Moral Philosophy) is concerned with questions of how people ought to
act, and the search for a definition of right conduct (identified as the one causing the
greatest good) and the good life (in the sense of a life worth living or a life that is
satisfying or happy).

The word "ethics" is derived from the Greek "ethos" (meaning "custom" or "habit").
Ethics differs from morals and morality in that ethics denotes the theory of right action
and the greater good, while morals indicate their practice. Ethics is not limited to
specific acts and defined moral codes, but encompasses the whole of moral ideals and
behaviours, a person's philosophy of life(or Weltanschauung).

It asks questions like "How should people act?" (Normative or Prescriptive Ethics),
"What do people think is right?" (Descriptive Ethics), "How do we take moral
knowledge and put it into practice?" (Applied Ethics), and "What does 'right' even
mean?" (Meta-Ethics). See below for more discussion of these categories.
Applied Ethics

Applied Ethics is a discipline of philosophy that attempts to apply ethical theory to real-
life situations. Strict, principle-based ethical approaches often result in solutions to
specific problems that are not universally acceptable or impossible to implement.
Applied Ethics is much more ready to include the insights
of psychology, sociology and other relevant areas of knowledge in its deliberations. It
is used in determining public policy.

http://www.philosophybasics.com/branch_ethics.html

The field of ethics (or moral philosophy) involves systematizing, defending, and recommending
concepts of right and wrong behavior. Philosophers today usually divide ethical theories into
three general subject areas: metaethics, normative ethics, and applied
ethics. Metaethics investigates where our ethical principles come from, and what they mean. Are
they merely social inventions? Do they involve more than expressions of our individual
emotions? Metaethical answers to these questions focus on the issues of universal truths, the
will of God, the role of reason in ethical judgments, and the meaning of ethical terms
themselves. Normative ethics takes on a more practical task, which is to arrive at moral
standards that regulate right and wrong conduct. This may involve articulating the good habits
that we should acquire, the duties that we should follow, or the consequences of our behavior on
others. Finally, applied ethics involves examining specific controversial issues, such as abortion,
infanticide, animal rights, environmental concerns, homosexuality, capital punishment, or
nuclear war.
By using the conceptual tools of metaethics and normative ethics, discussions in applied ethics
try to resolve these controversial issues. The lines of distinction between metaethics, normative
ethics, and applied ethics are often blurry. For example, the issue of abortion is an applied
ethical topic since it involves a specific type of controversial behavior. But it also depends on
more general normative principles, such as the right of self-rule and the right to life, which are
litmus tests for determining the morality of that procedure. The issue also rests on metaethical
issues such as, "where do rights come from?" and "what kind of beings have rights?"
http://www.iep.utm.edu/ethics/

Logic
Logic (from the Greek "logos", which has a variety of meanings including word,
thought, idea, argument, account, reason or principle) is the study of reasoning, or the
study of the principles and criteria of valid inference and demonstration. It attempts to
distinguish good reasoning from bad reasoning.

Aristotle defined logic as "new and necessary reasoning", "new" because it allows us
to learn what we do not know, and "necessary" because its conclusions are
inescapable. It asks questions like "What is correct reasoning?", "What distinguishes a
good argument from a bad one?", "How can we detect a fallacy in reasoning?"
Logic investigates and classifies the structure of statements and arguments, both
through the study of formal systems of inference and through the study of arguments
in natural language. It deals only with propositions (declarative sentences, used to
make an assertion, as opposed to questions, commands or sentences expressing
wishes) that are capable of being true and false. It is not concerned with
the psychological processes connected with thought, or with emotions, images and
the like. It covers core topics such as the study of fallacies and paradoxes, as well as
specialized analysis of reasoning using probabilityand arguments
involving causality and argumentation theory.

Logical systems should have three things: consistency (which means that none of the
theorems of the system contradict one another); soundness (which means that the
system's rules of proof will never allow a false inference from a true premise);
and completeness (which means that there are no true sentences in the system that
cannot, at least in principle, be proved in the system).

http://www.philosophybasics.com/branch_logic.html

Philosophy of logic, the study, from a philosophical perspective, of the nature and
types of logic, including problems in the field and the relation of logic to mathematics
and other disciplines.
The term logic comes from the Greek word logos. The variety of senses
that logospossesses may suggest the difficulties to be encountered in characterizing the
nature and scope of logic. Among the partial translations of logos, there are “sentence,”
“discourse,” “reason,” “rule,” “ratio,” “account” (especially the account of the meaning of
an expression), “rational principle,” and “definition.” Not unlike this proliferation of
meanings, the subject matter of logic has been said to be the “laws of thought,” “the
rules of right reasoning,” “the principles of valid argumentation,” “the use of certain
words labelled ‘logical constants’,” “truths (true propositions) based solely on the
meanings of the terms they contain,” and so on.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/philosophy-of-logic

9. 3 sorts of Philosophical Thinking

Speculative Thinking
"Speculative thinking" has two main senses in modern philosophy, one from Kant, the other
from Hegel.

Kant uses the expression "speculative thinking" in a negative sense. It is the metaphysical
thinking that pretends to know facts beyond the realm of possible experience. He refers by it
to the likes of Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz.

A cursory view of the present work will lead to the supposition that its use is merely negative,
that it only serves to warn us against venturing, with speculative reason, beyond the limits of
experience. This is, in fact, its primary use. (Critique of Pure Reason Preface to the Second
Edition)
Hegel uses the expression "speculative thinking" in a positive sense. It is the kind of
thinking that he supposedly exemplifies in his own work, a thinking that bridges all the gaps
until every item is necessarily connected and explained.

The method of empirical science exhibits two defects. The first is that the Universal . . . not on
its own account connected with the Particulars or the details. Either is external and accidental
to the other; and it is the same with the particular facts which are brought into union: each is
external and accidental to the others. The second defect is that the beginnings are in every case
data and postulates, neither accounted for nor deduced. In both these points the form of
necessity fails to get its due. Hence reflection, whenever it sets itself to remedy these defects,
becomes speculative thinking, the thinking proper to philosophy. (Shorter Logic § 9)
"Speculative Realism" seems to be a kind of late reaction against Kant. It uses "speculative"
in Kant's sense (overstepping the limits of possible experience) but with an opposite,
positive evaluation. It is a kind of return to pre Kantian metaphysics.

https://philosophy.stackexchange.com/questions/21450/what-does-speculative-exactly-mean-in-
philosophy

Practical Thinking
Practical thinking is defined as considering ways to adapt to your environment, or changing your
environment to fit you, so that you are able to pursue a goal. Practical sense is sometimes referred
to as street smarts or common sense. Practical thinking is not concerned with gathering additional
information or analyzing what you already know in multiple ways. It is concerned with taking the
knowledge that you already have and effectively using it to solve problems in the real-world. In other
words, practical knowledge is not concerned with gaining new knowledge, but rather using or
applying knowledge to guide some action.

https://study.com/academy/lesson/practical-thinking-definition-examples-quiz.html

Critical Thinking
Critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally about what to do or what
to believe. It includes the ability to engage in reflective and independent thinking. Someone
with critical thinking skills is able to do the following :

 understand the logical connections between ideas

 identify, construct and evaluate arguments
 detect inconsistencies and common mistakes in reasoning
 solve problems systematically
 identify the relevance and importance of ideas
 reflect on the justification of one's own beliefs and values
Critical thinking is not a matter of accumulating information. A person with a good memory
and who knows a lot of facts is not necessarily good at critical thinking. A critical thinker is
able to deduce consequences from what he knows, and he knows how to make use of
information to solve problems, and to seek relevant sources of information to inform himself.
Critical thinking should not be confused with being argumentative or being critical of other
people. Although critical thinking skills can be used in exposing fallacies and bad reasoning,
critical thinking can also play an important role in cooperative reasoning and constructive
tasks. Critical thinking can help us acquire knowledge, improve our theories, and strengthen
arguments. We can use critical thinking to enhance work processes and improve social
institutions.
Some people believe that critical thinking hinders creativity because it requires following the
rules of logic and rationality, but creativity might require breaking rules. This is a
misconception. Critical thinking is quite compatible with thinking "out-of-the-box",
challenging consensus and pursuing less popular approaches. If anything, critical thinking is
an essential part of creativity because we need critical thinking to evaluate and improve our
creative ideas.
http://philosophy.hku.hk/think/critical/ct.php

Critical thinking is the ability to reflect on (and so improve) your thoughts, beliefs, and
expectations. It’s a combination of several skills and habits such as:
 Curiosity, the desire for knowledge and understanding. Curious people are never
content with their current understanding of the world, but are driven to raise
questions and pursue the answers. Curiosity is endless — the better you understand a
given topic, the more you realize how much more there is to learn!
 Humility, or the recognition that your own understanding is limited. This is closely
connected to curiosity — if you’re arrogant and think you know everything already,
then you have no reason to be curious. But a humble person always recognizes the
limitations and gaps in their knowledge. This makes them more receptive to
information, better listeners and learners.
 Skepticism, a suspicious attitude toward what other people say. Skepticism means
you always demand evidence and don’t simply accept what others tell you. At the
same time, skepticism has to be inwardly focused as well! You have to be equally
skeptical of your own beliefs and instincts as you are of others’.
 Rationality or logic. The formal skills of logic are indispensable for critical thinkers.
Skepticism keeps you on the lookout for bad arguments, and rationality helps you
figure out exactly why they’re bad. But rationality also allows you to
identify good arguments when you see them, and then to move beyond them and
understand their further implications.
 Creativity, or the ability to come up with new combinations of ideas. It’s not enough
to just be skeptical and knock the holes in every argument that you hear. Sooner or
later you have to come up with your own ideas, your own solutions, and your own
visions. That requires a creative and independent mind, but one that is also capable of
listening and learning.
  Empathy, the ability to see things from another person’s perspective. Too often,
people talk about critical thinkers as though they’re solitary explorers, forging their
own path through the jungle of ideas without help from others. But this isn’t true at
all. Real critical thinking means you constantly engage with other people, listen to
what they have to say, and try to imagine how they see the world. By seeing things
from someone else’s perspective, you can generate far more new ideas than you could
by relying on your own knowledge alone.
http://philosophyterms.com/critical-thinking/

Ancient Greek Philosophy

From Thales, who is often considered the first Western philosopher, to the Stoics and
Skeptics, ancient Greek philosophy opened the doors to a particular way of thinking that
provided the roots for the Western intellectual tradition. Here, there is often an explicit
preference for the life of reason and rational thought. We find proto-scientific
explanations of the natural world in the Milesian thinkers, and we hear Democritus posit
atoms—indivisible and invisible units—as the basic stuff of all matter. With Socrates
comes a sustained inquiry into ethical matters—an orientation towards human living and
the best life for human beings. With Plato comes one of the most creative and flexible
ways of doing philosophy, which some have since attempted to imitate by writing
philosophical dialogues covering topics still of interest today in ethics, political thought,
metaphysics, and epistemology. Plato’s student, Aristotle, was one of the most prolific of
ancient authors. He wrote treatises on each of these topics, as well as on the investigation
of the natural world, including the composition of animals. The Hellenists—Epicurus, the
Cynics, the Stoics, and the Skeptics—developed schools or movements devoted to distinct
philosophical lifestyles, each with reason at its foundation.

With this preference for reason came a critique of traditional ways of living, believing, and
thinking, which sometimes caused political trouble for the philosophers themselves.
Xenophanes directly challenged the traditional anthropomorphic depiction of the gods,
and Socrates was put to death for allegedly inventing new gods and not believing in the
gods mandated by the city of Athens. After the fall of Alexander the Great, and because of
Aristotle’s ties with Alexander and his court, Aristotle escaped the same fate as Socrates
by fleeing Athens. Epicurus, like Xenophanes, claimed that the mass of people is impious,
since the people conceive of the gods as little more than superhumans, even though
human characteristics cannot appropriately be ascribed to the gods. In short, not only did
ancient Greek philosophy pave the way for the Western intellectual tradition, including
modern science, but it also shook cultural foundations in its own time.

a. The Milesians
Thales (c.624-c.545 B.C.E.), traditionally considered to be the “first philosopher,”
proposed a first principle (arche) of the cosmos: water. Aristotle offers some conjectures
as to why Thales might have believed this (Graham 29). First, all things seem to derive
nourishment from moisture. Next, heat seems to come from or carry with it some sort of
moisture. Finally, the seeds of all things have a moist nature, and water is the source of
growth for many moist and living things. Some assert that Thales held water to be a
component of all things, but there is no evidence in the testimony for this interpretation.
It is much more likely, rather, that Thales held water to be a primal source for all things—
perhaps the sine qua non of the world.
Like Thales, Anaximander (c.610-c.545 B.C.E.) also posited a source for the cosmos, which
he called the boundless (apeiron). That he did not, like Thales, choose a typical element
(earth, air, water, or fire) shows that his thinking had moved beyond sources of being that
are more readily available to the senses. He might have thought that, since the other
elements seem more or less to change into one another, there must be some source
beyond all these—a kind of background upon or source from which all these changes
happen. Indeed, this everlasting principle gave rise to the cosmos by generating hot and
cold, each of which “separated off” from the boundless. How it is that this separation took
place is unclear, but we might presume that it happened via the natural force of the
boundless. The universe, though, is a continual play of elements separating and
combining. In poetic fashion, Anaximander says that the boundless is the source of
beings, and that into which they perish, “according to what must be: for they give
recompense and pay restitution to each other for their injustice according to the ordering
of time” (F1).
If our dates are approximately correct, Anaximenes (c.546-c.528/5 B.C.E.) could have had
no direct philosophical contact with Anaximander. However, the conceptual link between
them is undeniable. Like Anaximander, Anaximenes thought that there was something
boundless that underlies all other things. Unlike Anaximander, Anaximenes made this
boundless thing something definite—air. For Anaximander, hot and cold separated off
from the boundless, and these generated other natural phenomena (Graham 79). For
Anaximenes, air itself becomes other natural phenomena through condensation and
rarefaction. Rarefied air becomes fire. When it is condensed, it becomes water, and when
it is condensed further, it becomes earth and other earthy things, like stones (Graham 79).
This then gives rise to all other life forms. Furthermore, air itself is divine. Both Cicero
and Aetius report that, for Anaximenes, air is God (Graham 87). Air, then, changes into
the basic elements, and from these we get all other natural phenomena.
http://www.iep.utm.edu/greekphi/