E-Book Overview
This book provides a critical overview of significant developments in research and theory on counterfactual thinking that have emerged in recent years and spotlights exciting new directions for future research in this area. Key issues considered include the relations between counterfactual and casual reasoning, the functional bases of counterfactual thinking, the role of counterfactual thinking in the experience of emotion and the importance of counterfactual thinking in the context of crime and justice.
E-Book Content
416.qxd 9/29/2006 2:33 PM Page 1 Batch number: 1 CIRCULATED Date: SEEN BY DESK EDITOR: REVISE NEEDED Initial: Date: APPROVED FOR PRESS BY DESK EDITOR Initial: Date: Back board: ❑ ISBN ❑ Barcode THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COUNTERFACTUAL THINKING Edited by David R. Mandel, Denis J. Hilton, and Patrizia Catellani CHECKLIST (must be completed before press) (Please cross through any items that are not applicable) Front board: Spine: ❑ Title ❑ Title ❑ Subtitle ❑ Subtitle ❑ Author/edited by ❑ Author/edited by ❑ Series title ❑ Extra logo if required ❑ Extra logo if required General: ❑ Book size ❑ Type fit on spine The Psychology of Counterfactual Thinking Edited by David R. Mandel, Denis J. Hilton, and Patrizia Catellani ISBN 978-0-415-32241-6 ,!7IA4B Routledge research international series in social psychology www.routledge.com ï an informa business PC4 Royal Demy B-format Spine back edge The Psychology of Counterfactual Thinking People have a penchant for thinking about how things that matter to them might have turned out differently – either for the better or for the worse. For the past two decades psychologists have been intrigued by this phenomenon, which they call counterfactual thinking. Specifically, researchers have sought to answer “big” questions like: Why do people have such a strong propensity to generate counterfactuals, and what functions does counterfactual thinking serve? What are the determinants of counterfactual thinking, and what are its adaptive and psychological consequences? The Psychology of Counterfactual Thinking brings together a collection of thought-provoking papers by social and cognitive psychologists who have made important theoretical and empirical contributions to our understanding of this topic. The essays in this volume contain novel theoretical insights and, in many cases, descriptions of previously unpublished empirical studies. The Psychology of Counterfactual Thinking will provide an excellent overview of this fascinating topic for researchers, as well as advanced undergraduates and graduates in psychology, particularly those with an interest in social cognition, social judgment, decision making, thinking, and reasoning. David R. Mandel is a Defence Scientist with the Department of National Defence in Canada and an adjunct Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Toronto. His areas of research expertise include thinking and reasoning, judgment and decision making, and social cognition. Denis J. Hilton is Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Toulouse-II. His research interests include social cognition, reasoning, judgment, and experimental economics. Patrizia Catellani is Professor of Social Psychology at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy. Her research is focused on the area of cognitive social psychology, with particular emphasis on applications to the political and judicial contexts. Routledge research international series in social psychology Edited by W. Peter Robinson University of Bristol, UK This series represents a showcase for both the latest cutting-edge research in the field, and important critiques of existin