A lecture and panel discussion:
"Practical wisdom vs. Rules & Protocols" with
Prof. Barry Schwartz, Swarthmore College (USA)
Friday, February 12, 2010,
1-3 pm.
Boothzaal, Universiteitsbibliotheek, De Uithof, Utrecht (directions)
Announcment
of
the
lecture
on
the
Studium Generale web page (with links to the
video)
Barry Schwartz is
the Dorwin Cartwright Professor of Social
Theory and Social Action at Swarthmore College. He is the author
of:
- The Paradox of Choice:
Why More Is Less, Ecco, 2004.
- Psychology of Learning and Behavior, with Edward Wasserman
and Steven Robbins
- The Costs of Living: How Market Freedom Erodes the Best Things
in Life.
- The Battle for Human Nature: Science, Morality and
Modern Life
- Behaviorism, Science, and Human Nature, with Hugh Lacey,
W. W. Norton & Company, 1983.
He frequently publishes editorials in the New York Times
applying his research in psychology to current events.
In the Feb. 12 lecture, Schwartz will be presenting work from his new
book manuscript, Practical Wisdom
and the Moral Improvisations of Everyday Life, coauthored with
Kenneth Sharpe. Here he draws on everything from
Aristotle to cases of rule-driven
bureaucracy
run
amok to argue that societies are increasingly
moving towards a culture of protocols and
regulations in which there is less and less room for "moral
improvisation" and common sense, resulting in a troubling form of
of social and moral deskilling. These
newer
ideas have been presented in his
lecture in the TED lecture series, in an interview with Wired
magazine and in a recent
interview with the Australian HR Monthly.
Following the lecture, there will be a panel of commentators, including:
...and then a discussion with the audience.
The program is open to the public and free of charge.