Advances in Experimental Philosophy of Science

Description

This volume gathers together leading philosophers of science and cognitive scientists from around the world to provide one of the first book-length studies of this important and emerging field. Specific topics considered include learning and the nature of scientific knowledge, the cognitive consequences of exposure to explanations, climate change, and mechanistic reasoning and abstraction. Chapters explore how experimental methods can be applied to questions about the nature of science and show how to fruitfully theorize about the nature and role of science with well-grounded empirical research. Advances in Experimental Philosophy of Science presents a new direction in the philosophical exploration of science and paves a path for those who might seek to pursue research in experimental philosophy of science. Title page Copyright page Table of Content Chapter 1: Introduction Experimental philosophy and philosophy of science What might experimental philosophy of science be? Why experimental philosophy of science? Forthcoming attractions Notes References Part One: Explanation and Understanding Chapter 2: Scientific Discovery and the Human Drive to Explain The role of explanation in learning Explaining in a nonideal world: Two novel experiments General discussion Appendix A: Better and worse rules for all stimulus types Appendix B: Rated rules Notes References Chapter 3: The Challenges and Benefits of Mechanistic Explanation in Folk Scientific Understanding The rise of mechanism in the philosophy of science Apparent mechanistic ignorance An early love of mechanisms? The role of higher-level causal abstractions Some consequences of knowledge outsourcing Remaining questions Conclusions References Part Two: Theories and Theory Change Chapter 4: Information That Boosts Normative Global Warming Acceptance without Polarization: Toward J. S. Mill’s Political Ethology of National Character Introduction Experiment 1: Boosting GW acceptance with graphs and averaging Results Discussion Experiment 2: Changing GW acceptance with representative (and misleading) statistics Experiment 3: Changing GW beliefs with supra-nationalistic (and super-nationalistic) statistics Experiment 4: Increasing GW acceptance with scientific statistics, texts, and videos General discussion Acknowledgments Notes References Chapter 5: Doubly Counterintuitive: Cognitive Obstacles to the Discovery and the Learning of Scientific Ideas and Why They Often Differ A common starting point: Intuitive theories Divergent paths: Discovering vs. learning scientific truths Divergent background assumptions Case study: Divergent paths to understanding evolution Implications for understanding and improving scientific knowledge Conclusion References Chapter 6: Intuitive Epistemology: Children’s Theory of Evidence Introduction A theory of evidence: Theories support abstraction Evidence of children’s theory of evidence Epistemologized psychology: Cognitive psychology as epistemology Conclusion Notes References Part Three: Special Sciences Chapter 7: Applying Experimental Philosophy to Investigate Economic Concepts: Choice, Preference, and Nudge Introduction Conceptual variance and conceptual ecology Commonsensible realism Choice concepts: Folk vs. economic Preference concepts: Behavioral, psychological, or constructive? Tracking changing methodological practice: To nudge or not to nudge? Conclusion References Chapter 8: Scientists’ Concepts of Innateness: Evolution or Attraction? The vernacular concept of innateness Two hypotheses about scientists’ concept of innateness Experimental study Scientific and folk concepts Innateness in science Conclusion Notes References Part Four: General Considerations Chapter 9: Causal Judgment: What Can Philosophy Learn from Experiment? What Can it Contribute to Experiment? Introduction Normative and descriptive theorizing Sources of normativity Relating the normative and descriptive Intuition and X-phi Intuitions, surveys, and causal inference Invariance: Normative theory and descriptive results Cheng’s causal power model Some philosophical morals Implications for X-phi Notes References List of Contributors Index