Knowledge, Dexterity, and Attention: A Theory of Epistemic Agency

206 Pages·2017·1.655 MB·English

by  Abrol Fairweather, Carlos Montemayor

Knowledge, Dexterity, and Attention
Contemporarycognitivescienceclearlytellsusthatattentionismodulatedfor
speechandaction.Whiletheseformsofgoal-directedattentionareverywell
researchedinpsychology,theyhavenotbeensufficientlystudiedbyepiste-
mologists.Inthisbook,AbrolFairweatherandCarlosMontemayordevelop
anddefendatheoryofepistemicachievementsthatrequiresthemanifestation
of cognitive agency. They examine empirical work on the psychology of
attentionandassertion,anduseittogroundanormativetheoryofepistemic
achievementsandvirtues.Theresultingstudyisthefirstsustainednaturalized
virtue epistemology, and will be of interest to readers in epistemology,
cognitivescience,andbeyond.
abrol fairweather is Lecturer in Philosophy at San Francisco State
University.Hehaseditedseveralvolumesonvirtueepistemology,including
(withLindaZagzebski)VirtueEpistemology(2001),(withOwenFlanagan)
Naturalizing Epistemic Virtue (2014), and (with Mark Alfano) Epistemic
Situationism(2016).
carlos montemayor is Associate Professor of Philosophy at San
FranciscoStateUniversityandtheauthorofMindingTime:APhilosophical
and Theoretical Approach to the Psychology of Time (2013) and (with
H.H.Haladjian)Consciousness,Attention,andConsciousAttention(2015).

Knowledge, Dexterity,
and Attention
A Theory of Epistemic Agency
Abrol Fairweather
SanFranciscoStateUniversity
Carlos Montemayor
SanFranciscoStateUniversity
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DOI:10.1017/9781316105849
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Contents
Acknowledgments pagevii
Introduction:WhyOnlyAgentsAreKnowers 1
I.1 AimsandMotivations 1
I.2 Dexterity,Attention,andIntegration 5
I.3 ABriefSummaryofChapters 7
I.4 ATensioninVirtueEpistemology 11
I.5 VirtueTheoreticEpistemicPsychology 13
I.6 TheAttention-AssertionModel 17
I.7 MethodologyinEpistemology 18
1 EpistemicVirtue,ReliableAttention,andCognitiveConstitution 27
1.1 TheArgumentfromAttention 27
1.2 DispositionsandEpistemicAbilities 33
1.3 TheSituationistChallenge 38
1.4 KnowledgeofSyntax 44
1.5 KnowledgeofLogic 47
1.6 ArgumentsagainstConsequentialistEpistemicNorms 48
2 Meta-epistemologyandEpistemicAgency 53
2.1 OntheRoleofMotivationalStates 53
2.2 TheDirectionofAttention:SelforWorld 54
2.3 CognitiveNeeds 57
2.4 TheDesiretoAssert:TheContentofEpistemicMotivation 59
2.5 EpistemicNeedsandtheGripofEpistemicNorms 60
2.6 FregeontheGripofAssertion 64
2.7 TheFrameProblemandVirtuousInsensitivity 66
2.8 SomeConcernsaboutInternalNormativeForce 69
3 SuccessSemanticsandtheEtiologyofSuccess 72
3.1 The“Becauseof”RequirementforKnowledge 72
3.2 Greco’sContextualistEtiology 74
3.3 Causality:Folksy,Metaphysical,andPsychologicallyConstrained 79
3.4 SuccessSemanticsandtheEtiologyofSuccess 81
3.5 Peirce,Wittgenstein,andRamsey:ReliabilityandAssertion 85
3.6 TheNormofAssertion 86
3.7 AssertionandAction 90
v
vi Contents
4 EpistemicAgency 94
4.1 TensionsbetweenCredit,Agency,andAutomaticity 94
4.2 Sosa’sJudgmentsandFunctionings:PersonalandSub-personal
Success 98
4.3 MentalandEpistemicAction 100
4.4 ResolvingtheTension 104
4.5 LanguageandAgency 109
5 AssertionasEpistemicMotivation 112
5.1 AttentionandCommunication 112
5.2 DispositionstoAssertandSuccessfulCommunication 114
5.3 FormsofAssertoricForceandFormsofEpistemicAttention 118
5.4 Factivity,Credit,andSocialEnvironments 123
5.5 EpistemicallyVirtuousHaltingThresholdsandAssertableContents:
TheCaseofEpistemicModals 128
5.6 RetractionandVirtuousSensitivity 132
5.7 Conclusion 136
6 CuriosityandEpistemicAchievement 138
6.1 EpistemicallyVirtuousCuriosity 138
6.2 BasicPrinciplesofCuriosity 141
6.3 CuriosityandHaltingThresholds 143
6.4 CuriosityandVirtuousInsensitivity 148
6.5 Attention,Curiosity,andCreativity 151
7 CollectiveAgency,Assertion,andInformation 156
7.1 CollectiveEpistemicAgencyandCognitiveIntegration 156
7.2 CollectiveAgencyandReliableSocialCommunication 160
7.3 SocialEpistemologyandCollectiveAssertion 163
7.4 CollectiveAttentionandCollectiveMotivation 166
7.5 Reflection,ExplicitJudgment,andReliability 170
7.6 ComplexCollectiveAgency 173
Bibliography 178
Index 189
Acknowledgments
Ourbookexaminesaversionofreliabilismthatappealstoabilities.Bothofus
havebenefitedfromeitherexchangeswithorthedirectmentorshipofthemain
proponentsoftheproposalsthisbookfocuseson,AlvinGoldmanandErnest
Sosa.Theircontributionstoepistemologyareinvaluableandwearepersonally
indebttothem.
The psychology and philosophy of attention is a critical aspect of the
proposal we defend. Montemayor would like to thank the constant support
andadviceofZenonPylyshyn.TheObjectGroupwasawonderfulopportunity
tolearnaboutthephilosophicalimplicationsoftheincrediblyinterestingand
complexevidenceonattention.MontemayorisparticularlythankfultoRandy
Gallistel,RochelGelman,HarryH.Haladjian,andFuatBalci,whoparticipated
andhelpedorganizetheObjectGroup.
This book is the result of a 5-year collaboration, which started in earnest
when we co-taught a seminar on naturalized virtue epistemology at San
FranciscoStateUniversityduringthefallof2011.Webenefitedfrompresenta-
tionsbyMarkAlfano,DavidCopp,andPeterGrahaminthatseminar,which
have helped this project mature in many ways. Thanks to the students who
participated in that seminar and a different version of the seminar that
Montemayor taught in Spring 2015. Particular thanks are due to Spencer
Horne, Christopher Masciari (both of whom gave us valuable feedback),
RebekaFerreira,andJenniferWhite.
A critical development during our collaboration was the presentation of
a paper at the Pacific Division meeting of the American Philosophical
Association in Seattle, in 2012. We would like to thank Adam Morton for
organizingthissessionandforgivingusvaluablefeedback,aswellasLauren
Olin and members of the audience. This paper was also presented at the
workshop Cognitive Perspectives on Mind and Language at UNAM.
We thank Ángeles Eraña, Maite Ezcurdia, Eduardo García Ramírez, Claudia
Lorena García Aguilar, and members of the audience at the Instituto de
InvestigacionesFilosóficas.
We also benefited from feedback at the Philosophy Department at Oregon,
where we presented material on dispositions and linguistic skills in December
vii
viii Acknowledgments
2013.WeareparticularlythankfultoColinKoopmanforhisvaluablefeedbackon
theRamseyandPeircematerial.WearealsothankfultoCherylMisak,whowe
met through Colin, for sharing her manuscript on the Cambridge pragmatists
withus.
Thanks to audience members at the Bellingham conference on curiosity
inMarch2015,specificallytoDennisWhitcombfororganizingitandforhis
feedback,andalsotoIlhanInanforco-organizingit.Thefeedbackwereceived
therehelpedusstructurematerialthatmatteredfortheprojectasawhole.
Montemayor has benefited from constant discussions on new findings in
cognitivesciencewithEzequielMorsellaandthemembersofhisActionand
Consciousness Laboratory. The quality and intensity of the conversations at
Morsella’slab,combinedwithhissophisticatedviewsabouthowactioninflu-
encesattentionandconsciousness,wereveryusefulindevelopingsomeideas
inthisbook.
BothofuswouldliketothankAllisonKeikoAllenforhelpingusproofread
the manuscript. Allen is a memberof Morsella’slabanda student andcolla-
boratorofMontemayor.
Finally,MontemayorwouldliketothankVictoriaFredeforhersupportand
love.FairweatherwouldliketothankhisdaughterBarbaraforherpatienceand
supportaswell.