Desire, belief and expectation

Abstract

In “Desire as Belief”, Mind, 97 ,1988, David Lewis attributes to some anti-Humeans the ‘desire-as-belief thesis’ that a rational person desires things just to the extent that he believes they would be good’, and he uses decision theory to prove this thesis false. The present paper explains that Humeans and anti-Humeans alike should accept the ‘desire-as-expectation thesis’ that a rational person desires things to an extent equal to their expected goodness, but that neither Humeans nor anti-Humeans need accept the desire-as-belief thesis. The desire-as-expectation thesis is consistent with decision theory.