Transhumanist psychology
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Transhumanist psychology differs from normative psychology in a few predictable areas.
Commentary
Transhumanists often share interest in information technology, futurism, and technophilia. Little studies have been done into the underlying psychological predictor variables.
Attitudes to mind uploading study
A 2018 paper measured attitudes towards mind uploading, an archetypal transhumanist technology. They formed hypotheses from science fiction and communities such as Less Wrong. They measured several variables around interest in the technology over a series of experiments.[1]
- Reading the mind in the eyes (RMET) task
- Perceived vulnerability to diseases (PVD)
- Moral Foundations Questionnaire (MFQ)
- Rational-experiential inventory
- Schwartz’s value inventory
- Religiosity Scale
- Science Fiction Hobbyism Scale
- Three Domain Disgust Scale
- The Death Anxiety Scale
- Suicide condemnation measure
- Dependent variable - approval of mind upload
Condemnation was most associated associated disgust sensitivity (MFQ Purity and Sexual Disgust)
Approval was linked to science fiction Hobbyism, Death Anxiety and Suicide Condemnation.