Abstract
While gaining an understanding of cause-effect relations is the key goal of causal cognition, its components are less clearly delineated. Standard approaches in the field focus on how individuals detect, learn, and reason from statistical regularities, thereby prioritizing cognitive processes over content and context. This article calls for a broadened perspective. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of what is going on when humans engage in causal cognition—including its application to machine cognition—it is argued, we also need to take into account the content that informs the processing, the means and mechanisms of knowledge accumulation and transmission, and the cultural context in which both accumulation and transmission take place.
Highlights
Causality is the relation between two events, one of which is the consequence of the other
Taking this rather narrow focus as the starting point, I will advocate a broader perspective on causal cognition, which factors in its distinctly human characteristics, the crucial roles of content, knowledge transmission, and culture
To achieve a more comprehensive understanding of what is going on when humans engage in causal cognition, we need to take into account the content that informs the cognitive processing, the means and mechanisms of knowledge accumulation and transmission, and the cultural context in which both accumulation and transmission take place
Summary
Causality is the relation between two events, one of which is the consequence (or effect) of the other (cause). The preamble for this research topic outlines causal cognition as the ability “to perceive and reason about [...] cause-effect relations.” This outline largely reflects what may be seen as the “standard view” in cognitive and social psychology. In the following, this view will be fleshed out, before addressing the dimensions along which it needs to be extended. Some even argue for the existence of domain-specific modules devoted to reasoning distinctly about physical, biological, and social/psychological events (Leslie, 1994; Spelke and Kinzler, 2007) Domains in this sense are defined by the distinct properties of their key entities and the causal principles accounting for their behavior. One of the five above-mentioned publications, a multidisciplinary compilation of 20 contributions on causal cognition (Sperber et al, 1995), outlines a broader range of perspectives, regarding both the processes and factors involved and the domains considered
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
