I’m looking for some solid resources to understand how illusions shape our perception. Like, why does one person believe in conspiracy theories while most don’t? And why are some people naturally better at spotting scams—maybe because their sense of reality works differently?
I also wonder how the mind should ideally be shaped and what kind of outcomes we can expect based on that. For instance, there are beliefs about God and certain philosophical ideas that people hold onto, even when they seem less probable. Is it okay to live with illusions if it helps maintain mental health? Or is it better to be a rationalist, even if that means seeing reality in a harsher light?
And what about psychosis? It blurs the line between illusion and reality, but where exactly does the difference lie? Should we sometimes hold onto illusions for a healthier, more stable mind?
I’d appreciate authentic resources—mainstream or underrated, classics or modern—but no pop-psychology fluff.
Thank You!!
by fakephysicist21
6 Comments
Maybe check out my man Daniel Dennett, can’t go wrong.
The Invisible Gorilla explores how cognitive biases shape perception, or for a more philosophical take The User Illusion discusses consciousness and how much of our perception is an illusion.
Great topic!
Robert Trivers, *The Folly of Fools* (possibly reissued/published in the UK as *Deceit and Self-Deception*)
Thomas Gilovich, *How We Know What Isn’t So: The Fallibility of Human Reason in Everyday Life*
Lars Svendsen, *A Philosophy of Lying*
Adrian Bardon, *The Truth About Denial: Bias and Self-Deception in Science, Politics, and Religion*
Hans Vaihinger, *The Philosophy of ‘As-If’*
Kwame Anthony Appiah, *As If: Idealization and Ideals*
Nietzsche, “On Truth and Lie in an Extra-Moral Sense” (abbreviated translation [here](https://jpcatholic.edu/NCUpdf/Nietzsche.pdf))
La Rochefoucauld, *Maxims*
Thinking: fast and slow by Kahneman. Book about everyday mistakes we make in our reasoning.
It gets used so many times in business discussions he won a Nobel in economics as a psychologist.
I’m beginning to worry about this black box of doom, by Jason Pargin. His Zoe Ashe series (futuristic violence and fancy suits, ) is also about this.
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Sleights of Mind: What the Neuroscience of Magic Reveals About Our Everyday Deceptions.
Fascinating account of neuroscientists partnering with magicians to better undserstand how we are fooled by magic and more.
“Magic tricks fool us because humans have hardwired processes of attention and awareness that are hackable—a good magician uses your mind’s own intrinsic properties against you in a form of mental jujitsu.
Now magic can reveal how our brains work in everyday situations. For instance, if you’ve ever bought an expensive item you’d sworn you’d never buy, the salesperson was probably a master at creating the “illusion of choice,” a core technique of magic. The implications of neuromagic go beyond illuminating our behavior; early research points to new approaches for everything from the diagnosis of autism to marketing techniques and education. Sleights of Mind makes neuroscience fun and accessible by unveiling the key connections between magic and the mind.”