What is the extension of the extended mind?
Synthese January 1, 2017 Hajo Greif
The paper argues that the Extended Mind Hypothesis, which claims that cognitive processes can extend beyond the brain into the environment, is best understood through an aetiological (historically grounded) functionalist approach. This adds historical depth to Clark and Chalmers' active externalism and counters key criticisms. Drawing parallels with environmental constructivism, niche construction, and developmental systems theory, the author contends that environmentally extended cognitive traits are grounded in evolved biological functions. Two distinct ways environmental coupling can be constitutive of cognitive functions are identified, and it is argued that the historically prior environmental counterparts in such coupling are features of the natural environment, with language and linguistic artifacts descending from more basic environmental relations.