How Belief Works

'Belief … is the central problem in the analysis of mind.' – philosopher Bertrand Russell

Our capacity to form beliefs, from the profound to the mundane, is fundamental to human psychology, and therefore our lives. However, the prevailing understanding of how belief works is wrong – and not just a bit wrong but the-Sun-goes-around-the-Earth wrong.

And just as the reality of the Sun and the Earth’s relationship had profound implications for our understanding of the cosmos, the reality of how belief works has profound implications for our understanding of the human mind. But this reality is so counterintuitive that it can, ironically, seem unbelievable – as did the idea that the Earth isn’t the stationary centre of the universe but sweeps around the Sun while spinning about an axis.

This ongoing series reveals the truth about how belief works and explores its implications.

• What Is Belief?
• Next three articles:
• How Beliefs Form – Part 1
• How Beliefs Form – Part 2
• The Impossibility of Degrees of Belief

Previously published versions of these three articles are available on a live archive copy of this site. Although I think the core logic in these versions is sound, I decided that the form of the arguments presenting that logic needs improvement, along with the writing.

The standalone article [Article X] will eventually be incorporated into this series.