全学自由研究ゼミナール　(The Behavioral Science of Fundamental Philosophical Inquiries)

This course confronts philosophy's most profound questions about the human condition with data-driven insights from modern behavioral science. For millennia, philosophers have used reason and introspection to ask: What is knowledge? What does it mean to be moral? What is love and happiness? How to deal with human violence? How to be free? What is the self? In this class, we will place these classical debates about the human nature/condition in direct conversation with cognitive psychology, behavioral economics, and social/evolutionary psychology. We will explore how far science can answer philosophical questions.

<<Learning Goals>>
- Identify and articulate key classical philosophical problems in epistemology (knowledge), ethics (morality), and metaphysics (self, love, free will).
- Explain core concepts from behavioral science, such as dual-process theory, cognitive biases, moral foundations theory, and affective forecasting, while reasoning about major philosophical inquiries.
- Analyze how empirical findings from behavioral science challenge, support, or reframe traditional philosophical arguments.
- Critically Evaluate the limits of both "armchair" philosophical reasoning and purely descriptive scientific data in addressing normative ("ought") questions.
- Synthesize insights from both fields to develop more nuanced and empirically-grounded positions on complex human issues.