This paper reviews some recent literature on emotions by economists and philosophers, especially Robert Frank and his critics. We endorse the general stance of this literature, according to which emotions evolved as devices for minimize incidence of social dilemmas. However, we reject the prevailing theory of emotions themselves, on grounds that it involves simplistic cognitive science and lead...

We review studies that document the role of interest in promoting academic achievement, course choices, and career decisions, and discuss the process of interest development. In particular, we focus on the role of achievement goals in promoting the perception of task values and subsequent interest, and review randomized field trials in which we tested an experimental utility value intervention ...

In a competit ive and morally imperfect world, business people are often faced with serious ethical challenges. Harboring suspicions about the ethics of others, many feel justif ied in engaging in less-than-ideal conduct to protect their own interests. The most sophisticated moral arguments are unlikely to counteract this behavior. We believe that this morally defensive behavior is responsible,...

LITTLEDID I KNOW when I attended Judith Bardwick’s presentation on plateauing at the ALA annual convention in 1988 that it would turn out to be one of the most valuable sessions I would attend at any library conference, since it has enabled me to understand the phenomenon of plateauing and to use the strategies she suggested to rejuvenate my career and personal life continually. Key concepts an...

ed from actual and possible preferences. Welfare interests consist in just that set of generalized resources that will be necessary for people to have before pursuing any of the more particular preferences that they might happen to have. Health, money, shelter, sustenance, and such like are all demonstrably welfare interests of this sort, useful resources whatever people’s particular projects a...

Cultural producers, including screenwriters and film directors, create fictional and imagined spaces as the locations – and sometimes subjects – of the stories they tell. Through the depiction of characters interacting with fictional spaces, storytellers illuminate the significance of spatial relationships in the real world. An examination of spaces in fictional narratives can therefore reveal ...