The Introspective Method
July 7, 2023 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780198879466.003.0006 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Measures | Perceptual Awareness Scale (PAS) |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key points | Argues that distinguishing introspective access from introspective method clarifies scientific uses of introspection. Applying this framework, the author contends that early German experimental psychologists recognized the distinction and that the Perceptual Awareness Scale's main weakness is its proponents' imprecision about which notion of introspection it employs, not introspection as such. |
Abstract
Abstract This chapter puts forward a framework for assessing the use of introspection in scientific theorizing, based on the distinction between introspective access and introspective method. It demonstrates the value of the framework by applying it to elucidate and critically evaluate different scientific uses of introspection. Firstly, the chapter discusses past uses of introspection, focusing on central figures early German experimental psychology. Articulating their views in terms of the proposed framework brings to light the advanced and insightful state of debate among them and their recognition of the distinction between introspective access and method. Secondly, the chapter looks at the Perceptual Awareness Scale (PAS) in present-day science of consciousness. Applying the proposed framework, the chapter offers an historically informed critical appraisal of PAS. PAS’s main weakness involves proponents’ imprecision about the notion of introspection at work in it, rather than being subject to a generic worry about the use of introspection as such.