Interpreting minds / by Radu J. Bogdan.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bogdan, Radu J., author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Philosophy.

Psychology.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (318 pages)

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : MIT Press, 1997.

System Details:

text file

Summary:

Unlike most current researchers in philosophy and psychology, who view interpretation as a way to understand the minds and behavior of others, Radu J. Bogdan sets out to establish a new evolutionary and practical view of interpretation. According to Bogdan, the ability to interpret others' mental states has evolved under communal, political, and epistemic pressures to enable us to cope with the impact of other organisms on our own goals in the competition to survive. Interpretation evolved among primates by natural and then cultural selection. As an adaptation, it is a competence in the form of a battery of practical skills that serve the interpreter's interests in social interactions. Evolutionary theory does not just deepen our understanding of interpretation; without it, we cannot understand what interpretation is and how it does its job. Interpreting Minds raises many thought-provoking issues for philosophers of mind and culture; evolutionary, developmental, and social psychologists; ethologists; cognitive and cultural anthropologists; evolutionary biologists; and others interested in cognitive development.

Notes:

Includes index.

OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.

ISBN:

0262268892

9780262268899

OCLC:

1076492095

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.