Unlike most other sciences, psychology has no true core theory to guide a coherent research programme. It does have James J Gibson’s ecological approach to visual perception, however, which we suggest should serve as an example of the benefits a good theory brings to psychological research. Here we focus on an example of how the ecological approach has served as a guide to discovery, shaping and constraining a recent hypothesis about how humans perform coordinated rhythmic movements (Bingham 2004a, b). Early (...) experiments on this task were framed in a dynamic pattern approach. This phenomenological, behavioural framework (e.g. Jeka & Kelso 1989) classifies the behaviour of complex action systems in terms of the key order parameters, and describes the dynamical stability of the system as it responds to perturbations. Dynamical systems, however, while a valuable toolkit, is not a theory of behaviour, and this style of research is unable to successfully predict data it is not explicitly designed to fit. More recent work by Bingham & colleagues has used dynamical systems to formalise hypotheses derived from Gibson’s ecological approach to perception and action, with a particular emphasis on perceptual information. The resulting model (Bingham 2001, 2004a, b; Snapp-Childs et al. 2011) has had great success with both the phenomena it was designed to explain as well as a wide range of empirical results from a version of the task it is not specifically designed to explain (specifically, learning a novel coordination). This model and the research programme that produced it stand as an example of the value of theory driven research, and we use it to illustrate the contemporary importance the ecological approach has for psychology. (shrink)

This paper presents an argument for the realism about mechanisms, contents, and vehicles of mental representation at both the personal and subpersonal levels, and showcases its role in instrumental rationality and proper cognitive functioning. By demonstrating how misrepresentation is necessary for learning from mistakes and explaining certain failures of action, we argue that fallible rational agents must have mental representations with causally relevant vehicles of content. Our argument contributes to ongoing discussions in philosophy of mind and cognitive science by challenging (...) anti-realist views about the nature of mental representation, and by highlighting the importance of understanding how different agents can misrepresent in pursuit of their goals. While there are potential rebuttals to our claim, our opponents must explain how agents can be rational without having mental representations. This is because mental representation is grounded in rationality. (shrink)

SummaryInfand mortality for the period 1950—70 has been analysied in a North-Swedish isolate, a population characterized by a high incidence of schizopherenic psychoses and other neuorpsychiatric disorders. Infand mortality is higher than in Sweden generally. As many as 45·9% of the deceased infands in the population sccumbed during the first week of their life, compard to 28·1% in the general Swedish population.

In the article, composed of two parts with the titles Spektakl modernistyczny czy seans spirytystyczny? (A modernist spectacle or a spiritistic seance?) and Dlaczego Słowacki niszczy konterfekt księcia Józefa? (Why does Słowacki destroy the portrait of Prince Józef?), presents a contextual interpretation of Jan Lechoń’s poem Duch na seansie (A Ghost at a Seance). The author questions the opinion, which was widespread in literary criticism, that Lechoń together with other members of the Skamander group discredited Romantic poetry and national mythology (...) on the threshold of independence. The analysis of the poem made in the article leads to the conclusion that the poet fought stereotypes deeply rooted in public opinion, which in the eyes of the general public were also reinforced by Slowacki’s poetry. Thus, Słowacki appears at the seance to demystify a belief in the messianic, necrotic and patriotic tone of his poetry, in the bard-creator of the national Gospel, who is endowed with the power to discover absolute truths, and in the „master of the word” as well as the „creator of artistic beauty” as well as the only generally-accepted opinion. Optimistic signs of revival have dominated the symbols of suffering, the talkativeness has been replaced by silence, the word by the iconoclastic deed, the mystical heat by ironic distance. The symbols, images, references to literary texts and other signes of culture help to create a revalued portrait of Słowacki and mould a myth of gray heroism, which is a complete contrast to the myth of the „colourful uhlan”. The destruction of the portrait of Prince Józef Poniatowski and a reference to Piłsudski found in the last line of Karmazynowy poemat (The Crimson Poem) are the signs of the ideological declaration of the young poet, who referring to great Romantic tradition, discovers new and new meanings. (shrink)

Pro-social basic human values and civic involvement. The moderating role of survival vs self-expression cultural context The present study investigated a hypothesis that the pro-social values differentiated by S. Schwartz's model of basic human values - universalism and benevolence - would positively predict civic involvement. Most importantly, authors expected that the type of pro-social value that would play a dominant motivational role would depend on moderating role of the level of self-expression and benevolence - cultural value dimension developed by R. (...) Inglehart. Based on discriminant function analyses performed on the data gathered in 17 European countries through the European Social Survey conducted in 2002, authors found that universalism predicts civic involvement only in self-expression countries, whereas the role of benevolence is rather neglectable and independent of the cultural context. The results are discussed with reference to cross-cultural differences in Europe. (shrink)

In this paper, we defend a representational approach to at least some kinds of non-human psychopathology. Mentally-ill non-human minds, in particular in delusions, obsessive-compulsive disorders and similar cognitive states, are traditionally understood in purely behavioral terms. In contrast, we argue that non-human mental psychopathology should be at least sometimes not only ascribed contentful mental representation but also understood as really having these states. To defend this view, we appeal to the interactivist account of mental representation, which is a kind of (...) a constructive approach to meaning. We follow Mark Bickhard in assuming that only an organism – either human or non-human – capable of detecting its own misrepresentations is representational. However, under his autonomy-based account of biological function these minds are incapable of misrepresentations because these minds are, ex hypothesi, unable to detect error in such representations. To solve this problem, we argue that adding a historical dimension – as in Millikan’s view on mental representations – to Bickhard’s account of function makes mental misrepresentation of mentally-ill minds possible. Using Bickhard’s dynamic account of function, it is possible to explain why delusions and other mental disorders can be seen as locally functional. However, an etiological dimension can further explain why misrepresentations seem to be globally dysfunctional. Even if representational or biosemiotic hypotheses about non-human psychopathology are difficult to confirm empirically, we defend the view that they can enrich our understanding of the causes and development of such pathologies, and may constitute a new progressive research programme. (shrink)

The main aim of the present article is an outline of an intuitively adequate system of logic of the operator "being informed". Such a system should be different from the familiar systems of epistemic and doxastic logic. The principle of veracity occurring in epistemic logics does not describe adequately the information operator, since the information may be true as well as false. On the other hand, the principle of consistency of beliefs, occurring in doxastic logics, cannot be applied to information, (...) because the information can be inconsistent. Our logic of information, although it is based on Kripke's semantics, includes principles not occurring in the systems of epistemic and doxastic logics, such as the principle of incompleteness of information and the Brouwerian Axiom. We prove that this system is incomplete. We also suggest that it can be generalized to a dynamic logic in the sense of van Benthem. (shrink)

In this paper, I analyze a type of externalist enactivism defended by Riccardo Manzotti. Such radical versions of enactivism are gaining more attention, especially in cognitive science and cognitive robotics. They are radical in that their notion of representation is purely referential, and content is conflated with reference. Manzotti follows in the footsteps of early causal theories of reference that had long been shown to be inadequate. It is commonly known that radical versions of externalism may lead to difficulties with (...) the notion of representation, especially if they cannot help themselves with the notion of syntax. I argue that a type of externalism present in Manzotti’s enactivism may well lead to anti-representationalism. (shrink)

Author: Zamiara Krystyna Title: JERZY KMITA’S CREATIVE JOURNEY AS A SEQUENCE OF PROBLEM-SHIFTS (Droga twórcza Jerzego Kmity jako sekwencja przesunięć problemowych) Source: Filo-Sofija year: 2011, vol:.12, number: 2011/1, pages: 109-127 Keywords: KMITA, SOCIO-REGULATORY THEORY OF CULTURE, HISTORICAL EPISTEMOLOGY, SCIENCE, CULTURE, MARXISM Discipline: PHILOSOPHY Language: POLISH Document type: ARTICLE Publication order reference (Primary author’s office address): E-mail: www:This paper presents meta-philosophical considerations concerning evolution of Jerzy Kmita’s intellectual standpoint. The author focuses on two crucial “problem-shifts” which lead Kmita to his (...) genuine philosophical and scientific perspective. First “shift” consists in transition from Popper’s logic of scientific discovery to philosophical project of “historical epistemology” based on original interpretation of Marxian historical materialism. In this way Kmita transfers strictly epistemological and logical reflection on science into the field of history of science and historicism. Second “shift” suggests a transformation of “historical epistemology” in terms of descriptive cultural studies. In this case the problem of scientific cognition is understood as a socio-cultural fact and consequently analyzed within the framework of Kmita’s socio-regulatory conception of culture. (shrink)

HERMENEUTIC INDICATORS OF PRESENTING THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY The aim of the article is to discuss Hans-Georg Gadamer’s and Paul Ricoeur’s hermeneutic way of understanding the history of philosophy. I assume that hermeneutic reference to philosophical past appears as a unique dialogue with tradition, whereas their way of understanding the history of philosophy might be defined as “hermeneutic interpretation of tradition.” In order to show what its indicators are, I characterize the conception of hermeneutic experience (H.-G. Gadamer) as well as (...) the issue of the interpretation process (P. Ricoeur). Those thinkers are convinced that understanding of the history of philosophy involves the recognition of our own historicity. Keywords: HANS-GEORG GADAMER, PAUL RICOEUR, HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY, HERMENEUTICS. (shrink)