I am here concerned with how people’s beliefs are structured. That is, what are the mechanisms which govern their adoption and dissolution? How should we represent beliefs, and what exactly is a belief? How do the functions and disfunctions of beliefs interact with their form and application? How should we view discourse as an indicator of held beliefs and mechanism for their modification? I attempt to address these issues in light of prior research in many areas of the social sciences, and conclude with a call to action urging more systematic collection of data regarding people’s belief systems.