I'd be careful attributing this to an inability. I see lots of people at universities, trained to think systematically and expansively, making the same mistake.
Replies
Thanks for the input. How would we conceptualize this? Is it just egotropicism? I don't think it can be reduced to that. I should also state this is where I'm leaving my comfort zone. I do work on institutions not psychology.
aug 21, 2025, 3:58 pm • 1 0 • view
I don't really know. I think on the universities thing, it is just self-preservation, nothing more, and people can find ways to reduce dissonance by convincing themselves that they are somehow not being self-interested. 1/
aug 21, 2025, 7:08 pm • 3 0 • view
For others, perhaps especially conservatives, maybe Enke's theories of moral-universalism are useful, where political ideology is correlated with how far you extend your concern beyond yourself. If you are only concerned with whether a small circle benefits, maybe democracy isn't so important. 2/2
aug 21, 2025, 7:08 pm • 3 1 • view