Jennifer Greenwood
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262029780
- eISBN:
- 9780262329828
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262029780.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General
Contemporary orthodoxy in philosophy and psychology of emotion construes emotions as falling into two distinct groups, one being largely innate, the Basic Emotions and, the other, being largely ...
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Contemporary orthodoxy in philosophy and psychology of emotion construes emotions as falling into two distinct groups, one being largely innate, the Basic Emotions and, the other, being largely socially-constructed, the Higher Cognitive Emotions. In addition, current orthodoxy construes emotions as operating primarily in individual psychological economies, that is, as individualistic. In this monograph I argue that both of these construals are mistaken. I argue that Basic Emotions and, subsequently, Higher Cognitive Emotions develop from inborn emotion precursors (affect expressions) concurrently with language and, by implication, symbolic thought and through the same developmental mechanisms. I argue, further, that emotions operate primarily in social economies to enable human social life, firstly through interpersonal regulation and, subsequently, through intrapersonal regulation. In light of these analyses, I also argue that emotional ontogenesis, which includes the ontogenesis of emotional intentionality, is a world-to-brain transcranial achievement, that is, it is radically externalistic. The development of human emotionality, language and thought is dependent upon the deep functional integration of two exquisitely complementary repertoires of constraints, one neonatal and, the other, maternal (or primary caregiver). Drawing on insights primarily from developmental sciences and philosophy, I show how a limited range of shared developmental mechanisms results in the concurrent development of at least some aspects of human emotionality and language. The deep functional integration of neonatal and maternal constraints repertoires results in the progressively synchronised, mutual modulation of relevant causal processes in both partners together with the neurogenesis and close, linguistically-mediated social relationship prerequisite to such development.Less
Contemporary orthodoxy in philosophy and psychology of emotion construes emotions as falling into two distinct groups, one being largely innate, the Basic Emotions and, the other, being largely socially-constructed, the Higher Cognitive Emotions. In addition, current orthodoxy construes emotions as operating primarily in individual psychological economies, that is, as individualistic. In this monograph I argue that both of these construals are mistaken. I argue that Basic Emotions and, subsequently, Higher Cognitive Emotions develop from inborn emotion precursors (affect expressions) concurrently with language and, by implication, symbolic thought and through the same developmental mechanisms. I argue, further, that emotions operate primarily in social economies to enable human social life, firstly through interpersonal regulation and, subsequently, through intrapersonal regulation. In light of these analyses, I also argue that emotional ontogenesis, which includes the ontogenesis of emotional intentionality, is a world-to-brain transcranial achievement, that is, it is radically externalistic. The development of human emotionality, language and thought is dependent upon the deep functional integration of two exquisitely complementary repertoires of constraints, one neonatal and, the other, maternal (or primary caregiver). Drawing on insights primarily from developmental sciences and philosophy, I show how a limited range of shared developmental mechanisms results in the concurrent development of at least some aspects of human emotionality and language. The deep functional integration of neonatal and maternal constraints repertoires results in the progressively synchronised, mutual modulation of relevant causal processes in both partners together with the neurogenesis and close, linguistically-mediated social relationship prerequisite to such development.
Edina Bećirević
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780300192582
- eISBN:
- 9780300206807
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300192582.003.0005
- Subject:
- History, European Modern History
This chapter examines how various forms of genocide denial, guilt evasion, and different experiences of guilt contribute to narratives about wartime events that sometimes revise history so ...
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This chapter examines how various forms of genocide denial, guilt evasion, and different experiences of guilt contribute to narratives about wartime events that sometimes revise history so significantly as to enable and encourage future violence or genocide. The question of why a handful of Serbs chose to act as saviors to Bosnian Muslims during the war is also explored – along with how emotional ego development is linked to such choices – as well as why so many more people choose to be bystanders in conflict, employing indifference as a mechanism of denial. The chapter further analyzes the bystander behavior of international community actors, who similarly employed a kind of indifference, or even ignorance, regarding events in Bosnia in order to plausibly deny responsibilities to engage or intervene.Less
This chapter examines how various forms of genocide denial, guilt evasion, and different experiences of guilt contribute to narratives about wartime events that sometimes revise history so significantly as to enable and encourage future violence or genocide. The question of why a handful of Serbs chose to act as saviors to Bosnian Muslims during the war is also explored – along with how emotional ego development is linked to such choices – as well as why so many more people choose to be bystanders in conflict, employing indifference as a mechanism of denial. The chapter further analyzes the bystander behavior of international community actors, who similarly employed a kind of indifference, or even ignorance, regarding events in Bosnia in order to plausibly deny responsibilities to engage or intervene.
Jennifer Greenwood
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262029780
- eISBN:
- 9780262329828
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262029780.003.0004
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General
Human emotional ontogenesis is the focus of this chapter. It draws heavily on empirical research from developmental psychology and the relevant cognitive neurosciences to address the limitations of ...
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Human emotional ontogenesis is the focus of this chapter. It draws heavily on empirical research from developmental psychology and the relevant cognitive neurosciences to address the limitations of traditional views of emotionality. It identifies the range of inbuilt constraints in terms of affect expressions and sensory-motor competencies and intuitive parenting skills, respectively, with which neonates and primary caregivers are preadapted and how they interact. It demonstrates how caregivers shape discrete emotions, in terms of both BEs and HCEs, starting from referentially opaque affect expressions. The analysis provides grounds for the new theory’s claims that emotions are ostensive-expressive devices which evolved to enable mammalian social life, that BEs are as language-dependent as HCEs and that their ontogenesis in humans is a genuine world-to-mind transcranialist achievement. The analysis demonstrates clearly that there is no causal coupling/constitution fallacy operational in the theory.Less
Human emotional ontogenesis is the focus of this chapter. It draws heavily on empirical research from developmental psychology and the relevant cognitive neurosciences to address the limitations of traditional views of emotionality. It identifies the range of inbuilt constraints in terms of affect expressions and sensory-motor competencies and intuitive parenting skills, respectively, with which neonates and primary caregivers are preadapted and how they interact. It demonstrates how caregivers shape discrete emotions, in terms of both BEs and HCEs, starting from referentially opaque affect expressions. The analysis provides grounds for the new theory’s claims that emotions are ostensive-expressive devices which evolved to enable mammalian social life, that BEs are as language-dependent as HCEs and that their ontogenesis in humans is a genuine world-to-mind transcranialist achievement. The analysis demonstrates clearly that there is no causal coupling/constitution fallacy operational in the theory.
Jennifer Greenwood
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262029780
- eISBN:
- 9780262329828
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262029780.003.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General
This chapter introduces the theory to be developed in the book, namely, a novel theory of human emotional ontogenesis and expression and a metaphysics consistent with this. Human emotional ...
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This chapter introduces the theory to be developed in the book, namely, a novel theory of human emotional ontogenesis and expression and a metaphysics consistent with this. Human emotional ontogenesis takes place largely concurrently with language development and, by implication, symbolic thought. This concurrent development is due to the continuous interaction of inbuilt neonatal and maternal constraints repertoires which supports both the neurogenesis/maturation of neural circuits and the very close, linguistically-mediated social relationship of neonate and mother upon which further development depends. A radical externalist or transcranialist metaphysics supports this development. The chapter also outlines opposing perspectives in philosophy and psychology of emotion, and philosophy of mind, the problems associated with these positions and indicates how the new theory deals with them in the chapters which follow.Less
This chapter introduces the theory to be developed in the book, namely, a novel theory of human emotional ontogenesis and expression and a metaphysics consistent with this. Human emotional ontogenesis takes place largely concurrently with language development and, by implication, symbolic thought. This concurrent development is due to the continuous interaction of inbuilt neonatal and maternal constraints repertoires which supports both the neurogenesis/maturation of neural circuits and the very close, linguistically-mediated social relationship of neonate and mother upon which further development depends. A radical externalist or transcranialist metaphysics supports this development. The chapter also outlines opposing perspectives in philosophy and psychology of emotion, and philosophy of mind, the problems associated with these positions and indicates how the new theory deals with them in the chapters which follow.
