Pleasurable beliefs and hedonic belief-based utility
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: Humans are consistently biased towards pleasurable beliefs, for example, that we are better than average regarding desirable traits and that our futures will be brighter than statistically plausible. According to an influential theory within psychology, neuroscience, and behavioural economics, we are biased towards these (and other) pleasurable beliefs because they maximise hedonic belief-utility. I challenge this theory and suggest alternative explanations for pleasurable beliefs and the psychological processes that produce them. According to the view I present, such beliefs stem from processes that have little to do with maximising belief-utility.
Source: PsyArXiv (OSF Preprints)
Author: Stephen Gadsby
Language: English
Subfield: General Decision Sciences
Field: Decision Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7215058149