Multiplying Entities Beyond Necessity: Why We Don't Need Extended Minds.

The paper argues against the extended mind thesis, which claims that cognitive processes can extend beyond the brain into external tools and environments. The author contends that such a view multiplies entities beyond necessity, violating the principle of parsimony (Occam's razor). By analyzing key thought experiments and arguments from proponents of the extended mind, the paper concludes that internalist accounts of cognition are sufficient to explain all relevant phenomena without positing extended cognitive systems. The argument maintains that while external resources play a causal role in cognition, they are not constitutive parts of the mind itself.

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Abstract

Multiplying Entities Beyond Necessity: Why We Don't Need Extended Minds.