Bentham, torture, modernity

Phenomenology and Post-Modernity

Phenomenology and Post-Modernity

Contributory torture.

Sir, Contributory torture occurs when the behavior of the offender influences the behavior of the interrogator or, in a broader sense, anyone disciplining the offender. The word contributory is used because if the offender acts up, he/she is part of the reason for the type of punishment he/she receives. For example, if two people are arrested and one follows the directions of the officer and th...

Surviving torture.

Back to Bentham? Explorations of Experienced Utility

Two core meanings of “utility” are distinguished. “Decision utility” is the weight of an outcome in a decision. “Experienced utility” is hedonic quality, as in Bentham’s usage. Experienced utility can be reported in real time (instant utility), or in retrospective evaluations of past episodes (remembered utility). Psychological research has documented systematic errors in retrospective evaluati...