Rationality in action
(discussion protocol of the) meeting of monday, feb. 19, 1940
pp. 59-60
in: Helmut Staubmann, Victor Lidz (eds), Rationality in the social sciences, Berlin, Springer, 2018Abstract
The protocol starts with a brief summary of a presentation delivered at the last rationality group meeting, which had dealt with questions of a definition of rationality. The question has been raised whether the criterion of rational action is a matter of thinking or a matter of a judgment of the acts in themselves. The difference between rationality and truth was emphasized. Further discussion points were the facts that rational conclusions can be drawn from irrational premises and rational behavior may be grounded in non-rational ultimate ends.The main part of the session focused on "pseudo-rational explanations' like ideologies or rationalizations in a psychological sense. Thereby the problem arises of how the real forces and motives behind such constructs could be explored. Psychoanalysis was mentioned as a suitable methodology as well as long-term observations with which inconsistencies could be revealed. Four conditions were identified for pseudo-explanations: Ignorance, conscious deception, emotional fixation and rationalization. The question was raised if Pareto 's "need for logical explanation" is grounded in a non-rational need for legitimation similar to Veblen 's instinct of idle curiosity or the idea of Malinowski of anxiety in the face of danger as a source of religious concepts and practices. Another example discussed in this context was the Marx -Engels thesis that ideologies are essentially false consciousness with the function of legitimation of the pursuit of class interests. (Eds.)
