I agree. Whatever process copies rational conclusions back into subconscious emotional drivers of behavior doesn't seem to work too well. For me, I enjoy cookies just about every day, despite having no rational reason to eat them that often. Eating cookies does not fit into my long term utility-maximizing plans, but I am reluctant to brainwash myself.
Comment author:rosecongou
18 July 2013 10:02:24AM
1 point
[-]
In all seriousness, how do you know that you're not simply brainwashed into believing cookies are making you happy?
For example, during my religious years, attending a 5-hour prayer meeting made me feel happier -- even ones where not much English was spoken. Much of this was a learned association between attendance and the feeling of "doing the right thing," in retrospect. Once I no longer thought of it as "the right thing," the happiness I derived from it waned.
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I agree. Whatever process copies rational conclusions back into subconscious emotional drivers of behavior doesn't seem to work too well. For me, I enjoy cookies just about every day, despite having no rational reason to eat them that often. Eating cookies does not fit into my long term utility-maximizing plans, but I am reluctant to brainwash myself.
In all seriousness, how do you know that you're not simply brainwashed into believing cookies are making you happy?
For example, during my religious years, attending a 5-hour prayer meeting made me feel happier -- even ones where not much English was spoken. Much of this was a learned association between attendance and the feeling of "doing the right thing," in retrospect. Once I no longer thought of it as "the right thing," the happiness I derived from it waned.