Fooling ourselves : self-deception in politics, religion, and terrorism /

A respected, internationally known expert on cross-cultural issues in psychology, Triandis (emer., Univ. of Illinois) offers here what is perhaps his most important piece of work. He argues that many of the problems confronting the world can be traced to discrepancies between the way people would "like the world to be" and what is real in the world. To understand how and why people engage in self-deception, one must look first at how humans learn to process information--thus, Triandis's first chapter, "How Can We Avoid Fooling Ourselves." The author goes on to show how flaws in information processing influence views about politics, religion, and terrorism. How, he asks, can individuals interact successfully with others in the world if they see things in such a black-and-white perspective? Triandis believes that conflict will be inevitable until such time as people learn to accept that the world is not "either-or." Triandis closes on an up-note, with a chapter titled, "What Can We Do?" A significant start, he observes, would be emphasizing the need for equity (fairness) in dealing with others and not just equality (treating everyone the same). Required reading for all concerned citizens. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers. R. E. Osborne Texas State University--San Marcos