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Making Enactivism Even More Embodied

Shaun Gallagher

Oxford Scholarship Online August 24, 2017 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780198794325.003.0008 (opens in new tab)

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed
Citations 12
Key points Argues that a full enactivist account of cognition must incorporate affectivity and intersubjectivity, as empirical studies show these factors influence perception, attention, and judgment.

Abstract

An enactivist approach to understanding the mind, in its fullest sense, is not just a matter of action-oriented processes; enactivism is about more than action and sensory–motor contingencies. To understand cognition as richly embodied this chapter considers factors involving affectivity and intersubjectivity. Empirical studies show that affectivity, in a wide sense that includes hunger, fatigue, pain, respiration, as well as emotion, has an effect on perception, attention, and judgment. Likewise, intersubjective factors, including the role of bodily postures, movements, gestures, gaze and facial expressions, and dynamical aspects of interaction, have similar effects. This richer conception of embodied cognition also holds implications for understanding how the brain works.