science

Irrationality

Irrationality is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Irrationality rather than just read about it. In short: Irrationality is cognition, thinking, talking, or acting without rationality. Irrationality often has a negative connotation, as thinking and actions that are less useful or more illogical than other more rational alternatives.

Key takeaways

Irrationality belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Irrationality to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Irrationality from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Irrationality is cognition, thinking, talking, or acting without rationality. Irrationality often has a negative connotation, as thinking and actions that are less useful or more illogical than other more rational alternatives. The concept of irrationality is especially important in Albert Ellis's rational emotive behavior therapy, where it is characterized specifically as the tendency and leaning that humans have to act, emote and think in ways that are inflexible, unrealistic, absolutist and most importantly self-defeating and socially defeating and destructive. However, irrationality is not always viewed as a negative. Much subject matter in literature can be seen as an expression of human longing for the irrational. The Romantics valued irrationality over what they perceived as the sterile, calculating and emotionless philosophy which they thought to have been brought about by the Age of Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution. Dada Surrealist art movements embraced irrationality as a means to "reject reason and logic". André Breton, for example, argued for a rejection of pure logic and reason which are seen as responsible for many contemporary social problems.

See also Absurdism Absurdity Irrationalism

Notes

References Stuart Sutherland Irrationality: Why We Don't Think Straight, 1992, reissued 2007 by Pinter & Martin ISBN 978-1-905177-07-3 William B. Helmreich (2011). What Was I Thinking? The Dumb Things We Do and How to Avoid Them. Taylor. ISBN 978-1589795976. Lisa Bortolotti, Irrationality, Cambridge, Polity Press, 2014

External links

Craig R. M. McKenzie. Rational models as theories – not standards – of behavior. Trends in Cognitive Sciences Vol.7 No.9 September 2003 REBT-CBT NET – Internet Guide to Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Irrationality

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Irrationality claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Irrationality before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Irrationality ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Irrationality

In research: Irrationality appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Irrationality in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Irrationality is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Error, Human behavior, Reasoning, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Irrationality outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Irrationality in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Irrationality means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Irrationality out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Irrationality in simple terms?

Why does Irrationality matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Irrationality?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Irrationality.