Dr Michael Lacewing
Director of Research
Senior Lecturer in Philosophy
Email: m.lacewing@heythrop.ac.uk
Telephone: 020 7795 4223
Current teaching
I teach on the following undergraduate courses:
Issues in Metaethics
Contemporary Philosophical Problems
Philosophy of Mind and Psychology
Psychoanalysis Assessed
Psychoanalysis and Philosophy
I supervise MA and research students in these areas, and run a weekly research seminar on Issues in Philosophy of Psychology.
Research and Publications
My research interests lie in moral psychology, metaethics and the philosophy of psychoanalysis. My early work focused on philosophy of emotions, in particular the nature of unconscious emotions, the implications of psychoanalytic theory for the role of emotions in moral deliberation and in self-knowledge, and the understanding of emotions in therapy. I then turned to traditional epistemological and methodological objections to psychoanalysis. I brought these together with issues relating to the nature of explanation in commonsense psychology and work in social psychology on biases, especially the fundamental attribution error and confirmation bias, and their correction. Two papers, on inferring motives and on the scientific standing of psychoanalysis, are forthcoming; two more, on suggestion and clinical data, and on suggestion and cure, are under development. My next project will return to moral psychology, looking at the implications of recent empirical psychology and the psychodynamic model of mind for the viability of virtue ethics.
Books and Articles
“The problem of suggestion: an analysis and solution” (under submission)
“Could Psychoanalysis Be a Science?”, in Fulford, W. et. al. (eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Philosophy and Psychiatry (Oxford University Press, forthcoming)
“Inferring Motives in Psychology and Psychoanalysis”, Philosophy, Psychiatry and Psychology (forthcoming)
“Psychoanalysis, emotions and living a good life”, Ethical Record, Sept 2011
The Psychology of Evil: a Contribution from Psychoanalysis', in Tabensky, P. (ed.), The Positive Function of Evil (Palgrave Macmillan 2009), 112-126
'What Reason Can't Do', in Athanassoulis & Vice (ed.) Morality and the Good Life: Essays in Honour of John Cottingham, Palgrave MacMillan, 2008, 139-63.
“Do Unconscious Emotions Involve Unconscious Feelings”, Philosophy of Psychology 20, Feb 2007, 81-104
The Academic Face of Psychoanalysis (ed. with Louise Braddock), Routledge, 2007.
“Emotional Self-Awareness and Ethical Deliberation”, Ratio XVIII, March 2005, 65-81
'Real Love', The Philosophers' Magazine 29, January 2005, 63-66
“Emotion and Cognition: Current Developments and Theraputic Practice”, Philosophy, Psychiatry and Psychology 11 , 2004, 175-186
“A Relative Defence”, Think 3, Spring 2003, 71-77
Book Reviews
Brakel, L. Philosophy, Psychoanalysis and the A-rational Mind, Philosophical Quarterly (forthcoming, Jan 2012)
Cavell, M. Becoming a Subject, Notre Dame Philosophical reviews, October 2006
Dancy, J. Ethics Without Principles, The Philosophical Quarterly 55, October 2005
Roberts, R. Emotions: An Essay in Aid of Moral Psychology, Journal of Moral Philosophy, 1, April 2004
Trigg, R. Philosophy Matters, Think 3, Spring 2003, 107-111
McMahan, J. The Ethics of Killing, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews, Nov. 2002
Pugmire, D. Rediscovering Emotions, Ratio XIII, Sept 2000, 287-92
A Level Philosophy
I give talks to schools and organize conferences for students and INSET days for teachers of the AS and A2 levels in philosophy and in religious studies. I have written three textbooks, published by Routledge, for the new AQA Philosophy syllabus, Philosophy for AS, Philosophy for A2: Unit 3, and Philosophy for A2: Unit 4. For further information, or to make a booking for a conference, please visit my website, http://www.alevelphilosophy.co.uk/.