Self–Deception, Motivation, and the Desire to Believe

In the debate over the nature of self–deception, “intentionalists” argue that self–deception requires an intention to deceive oneself, and “motivationists” argue that a desire, and not an intention, typically plays a crucial causal role in self–deception. Intentionalists have criticized motivationist views for ignoring what is distinctive about self–deception, and for failing to account for cases of “twisted” self–deception. I offer a new motivationist account whose distinctive element is the desire to believe. I argue that this account identifies what is common to cases of both “twisted” and “straight” self–deception, and that it captures what is distinctive about self–deception.