Cultural Affiliation and Language Methodological Problems in Cross-Cultural Experimental Philosophy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14394/filnau.2018.0003Keywords:
experimental philosophy, methodology of cross-cultural studies, cultural affiliation, content validity, philosophical intuitionsAbstract
The aim of this paper is to analyze methodological problems of cross-cultural research in experimental philosophy. By studying five research projects, representing two distinct approaches to the examination of cross-cultural differences in philosophical intuitions, I point out the difficulties related to the content validity that appear in the choice of some cultural affiliation indicators. I criticize various indicators of cultural affiliation that are used in experimental philosophy (selfidentification, language) and suggest which indicators, and how, should be chosen in that kind of research. I also argue that some problems related to bilingualism, translation, and the possible influence of language on the owned or reported philosophical intuitions may be impossible to transcend in cross-cultural research in experimental philosophy. It may be impossible to assess the differences between cultural philosophical intuitions.
References
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Davis R. E., Couper M. P., Janz N. K., Caldwell C. H., Resnicow K. (2010), Interviewer Effects in Public Health Surveys, "Health Education Research" 25(1), 14-26. https://doi.org/10.1093/her/cyp046
Deutsch M. (2010), Intuitions, Counter-examples, and Experimental Philosophy, "Review of Philosophy and Psychology" 1(3), 447-460. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13164-010-0033-0
Dretske F. I. (1970), Epistemic Operators, "The Journal of Philosophy" 67(24), 1007-1023. https://doi.org/10.2307/2024710
Durkheim E. (1912/1990), Elementarne formy życia religijnego. System totemiczny w Australii, tłum. A. Zadrożyńska, Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.
Everett D. (2005), Cultural Constraints on Grammar and Cognition in Piraha. Another Look at the Design Features of Human Language, "Current Anthropology" 46(4), 621-646. https://doi.org/10.1086/431525
Górski T. (2005), Tłumacz jako źródło nieprzetłumaczalności, "Rocznik Przekładoznawczy" 1, 85-94. https://doi.org/10.12775/RP.2005.007
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Hall L., Johansson P., Strandberg T. (2012), Lifting the Veil of Morality. Choice Blindness and Attitude Reversals on a Self-Transforming Survey, "PLoS ONE" 7(9), 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0045457
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https://doi.org/10.1080/13869790701305871
Kerr E. T. (2015), Epistemological Experiments and Empirical Philosophy in Cross-Cultural Contexts, "Asia Research Institute Working Paper Series" 233, 1-27.
Kim M., Yuan Y. (2015), No Cross-Cultural Differences in the Gettier Car Case Intuition. A Replication Study of Weinberg et al. 2001, "Episteme" 12(3), 355-361. https://doi.org/10.1017/epi.2015.17
Kim M., Yuan Y. (2016), Cross-Cultural Universality in Knowledge Attributions, goo.gl/6YR73E.
Kurzban, R. (2012), Why Everyone (Else) is a Hypocrite. Evolution and the Modular Mind, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Kuś K., Maćkiewicz B. (2016), Z rozmysłem, ale nie specjalnie. O językowej wrażliwości filozofii eksperymentalnej, "Filozofia Nauki" 24(3) [95], 73-101.
Lee K., Olson D. R., Torrance N. (1999), Chinese Children's Understanding of False Beliefs. The Role of Language, "Journal of Child Language" 26(1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000998003626
Liu D., Wellman H. M., Tardif T., Sabbagh M. A. (2008), Theory of Mind Development in Chinese Children. A Meta-analysis of False-Belief Understanding across Cultures and Languages, "Developmental Psychology" 44(2), 523-531. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.44.2.523
Lucy J. A. (1997), Linguistic Relativity, "Annual Review of Anthropology" 26(1), 291-312. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.anthro.26.1.291
Ludwig K. (2007), The Epistemology of Thought Experiments. First Person versus Third Person Approaches, " Midwest Studies in Philosophy" 31(1), 128-159. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4975.2007.00160.x
Machery E., Deutsch M., Mallon R., Nichols S., Sytsma J., Stich S. (2010), Semantic Intuitions. Reply to Lam, "Cognition" 117(3), 361-366. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2010.08.016
Machery E., Stich S., Rose D., Chatterjee A., Karasawa K., Struchiner N., Sirker S., Usui N., Hashimoto T. (2015), Gettier across Cultures, "Noûs" 51(3), 645-664. https://doi.org/10.1111/nous.12110
Maridaki-Kassotaki K., Lewis C., Freeman N. H. (2003), Lexical Choice Can Lead to Problems. What False-Belief Tests Tell Us about Greek Alternative Verbs of Agency, "Journal of Child Language", 30(1), 145-164. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000902005421
Michna E. (2004), Etyczny wymiar tożsamości etnicznej w sytuacji zmiany identyfikacji narodowej [w:] Etyczny wymiar tożsamości kulturowej, M. Flis (red.), Kraków: Nomos, 25-45.
Myers-Scotton C. (1993), Social Motivations for Codeswitching. Evidence from Africa, Oxford: Clarendon.
Nagel J., San Juan V., Mar R. A. (2013), Lay Denial of Knowledge for Justified True Beliefs, "Cognition" 129(3), 652-661. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2013.02.008
Nisbett R. E., Wilson T. D. (1977), Telling More than We Can Know. Verbal Reports on Mental Processes, "Psychological Review" 84(3), 231-259. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.3.231
Nisbett R. E., Peng K., Choi I., Norenzayan A. (2001), Culture and Systems of Thought. Holistic versus Analytic Cognition, "Psychological Review", 108(2), 291-310. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.108.2.291
Pinker S. (1995), The Language Instinct. How the Mind Creates Language, New York: Harper Perennial.
Roberson D., Davies I., Davidoff J. (2000), Color Categories Are not Universal. Replications and New Evidence from a Stone-Age Culture, "Journal of Experimental Psychology: General" 129(3), 369-398. https://doi.org/10.1037/0096-3445.129.3.369
Romaniszyn K. (2004), Konsumuję więc jestem? [w:] Etyczny wymiar tożsamości kulturowej, M. Flis (red.), Kraków: Nomos, 37-48.
Schwarz N. (1999), Self Reports. How the Questions Shape the Answers, "American Psychologist" 54(2), 93-105. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.54.2.93
Seyedsayamdost H. (2015), On Normativity and Epistemic Intuitions. Failure of Replication, "Episteme" 12(1), 95-116. https://doi.org/10.1017/epi.2014.27
Shatz M., Diesendruck G., Martinez-Beck I., Akar D. (2003), The Influence of Language and Socioeconomic Status on Children's Understanding of False Belief, "Developmental Psychology" 39(4) 717-729. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.39.4.717
Starmans C., Friedman O. (2012), The Folk Conception of Knowledge, "Cognition" 124(3), 272-283. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2012.05.017
Strack F., Martin L., Schwarz N. (1988), Priming and Communication. Social Determinants of Information Use in Judgments of Life Satisfaction, "European Journal of Social Psychology" 18(5), 429-442. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.2420180505
Sztompka P. (2002), Socjologia. Analiza społeczeństwa, Kraków: Znak.
Tambor J. (2010), Kulturowe wyznaczniki tożsamości. Tożsamość mieszkańców województwa śląskiego, https://goo.gl/RrGtDL.
Tardif T., Wellman H. M., Cheung K. M. (2004), False Belief Understanding in Cantonese-Speaking Children, "Journal of Child Language" 31(4), 779-800. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000904006580
Turri J. (2013), A Conspicuous Art. Putting Gettier to the Test, "Philosophers' Imprint" 13(10), 1-16.
Turri J., Buckwalter W., Blouw P. (2015), Knowledge and Luck, "Psychonomic Bulletin & Review" 22(2), 378-390. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-014-0683-5
Von Hippel W., Trivers R. (2011), The Evolution and Psychology of Self-Deception, "Behavioral and Brain Sciences" 34(01), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X10003018 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X10001354
Williamson T. (2016), Philosophical Criticisms of Experimental Philosophy [w:] A Companion to Experimental Philosophy, J. Sytsma, W. Buckwalter (eds.), Chichester: Wiley, 22-26.
Weinberg J. M., Nichols S., Stich S. (2001), Normativity and Epistemic Intuitions, "Philosophical Topics" 29(1/2), 429-460. https://doi.org/10.5840/philtopics2001291/217
Woolard K. (2004), Codeswitching [w:] A Companion to Linguistic Anthropology, A. Duranti (ed.), Malden, MA: Blackwell, 73-94.
Abarbanell L., Hauser M. (2010), Mayan Morality. An Exploration of Permissible Harms, "Cognition" 115(2), 207-224.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2009.12.007
Andow J. (2016), Thin, Fine and with Sensitivity. A Metamethodology of Intuitions, "Review of Philosophy and Psychology" 7(1), 105-125. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13164-015-0247-2
Auer P. (1998), Code-Switching in Conversation, London: Routledge.
Bar-On D. (1994), Conceptual Relativism and Translation [w:] Language, Mind and Epistemology, J. Hintikka (ed.), Dordrecht: Springer, 145-170.
Cappelen H. (2012), Philosophy without Intuitions, Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199644865.001.0001
Cappelen H. (2014), X-Phi without Intuitions [w:] Intuitions, A. Booth, D. Rowbottom (eds.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, 269-286.
Davis R. E., Couper M. P., Janz N. K., Caldwell C. H., Resnicow K. (2010), Interviewer Effects in Public Health Surveys, "Health Education Research" 25(1), 14-26. https://doi.org/10.1093/her/cyp046
Deutsch M. (2010), Intuitions, Counter-examples, and Experimental Philosophy, "Review of Philosophy and Psychology" 1(3), 447-460. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13164-010-0033-0
Dretske F. I. (1970), Epistemic Operators, "The Journal of Philosophy" 67(24), 1007-1023. https://doi.org/10.2307/2024710
Durkheim E. (1912/1990), Elementarne formy życia religijnego. System totemiczny w Australii, tłum. A. Zadrożyńska, Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.
Everett D. (2005), Cultural Constraints on Grammar and Cognition in Piraha. Another Look at the Design Features of Human Language, "Current Anthropology" 46(4), 621-646. https://doi.org/10.1086/431525
Górski T. (2005), Tłumacz jako źródło nieprzetłumaczalności, "Rocznik Przekładoznawczy" 1, 85-94. https://doi.org/10.12775/RP.2005.007
Habermas J. (1981/2002), Teoria działania komunikacyjnego, t. II, Przyczynek do krytyki rozumu funkcjonalnego, tłum. A. M. Kaniowski, Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.
Hall L., Johansson P., Strandberg T. (2012), Lifting the Veil of Morality. Choice Blindness and Attitude Reversals on a Self-Transforming Survey, "PLoS ONE" 7(9), 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0045457
Holbraad M. (2009), Ontography and Alterity. Defining Anthropological Truth, "Social Analysis" 53(2), 80-93. https://doi.org/10.3167/sa.2009.530205
Kauppinen A. (2007), The Rise and Fall of Experimental Philosophy, "Philosophical Explorations" 10(2), 95-118.
https://doi.org/10.1080/13869790701305871
Kerr E. T. (2015), Epistemological Experiments and Empirical Philosophy in Cross-Cultural Contexts, "Asia Research Institute Working Paper Series" 233, 1-27.
Kim M., Yuan Y. (2015), No Cross-Cultural Differences in the Gettier Car Case Intuition. A Replication Study of Weinberg et al. 2001, "Episteme" 12(3), 355-361. https://doi.org/10.1017/epi.2015.17
Kim M., Yuan Y. (2016), Cross-Cultural Universality in Knowledge Attributions, goo.gl/6YR73E.
Kurzban, R. (2012), Why Everyone (Else) is a Hypocrite. Evolution and the Modular Mind, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Kuś K., Maćkiewicz B. (2016), Z rozmysłem, ale nie specjalnie. O językowej wrażliwości filozofii eksperymentalnej, "Filozofia Nauki" 24(3) [95], 73-101.
Lee K., Olson D. R., Torrance N. (1999), Chinese Children's Understanding of False Beliefs. The Role of Language, "Journal of Child Language" 26(1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000998003626
Liu D., Wellman H. M., Tardif T., Sabbagh M. A. (2008), Theory of Mind Development in Chinese Children. A Meta-analysis of False-Belief Understanding across Cultures and Languages, "Developmental Psychology" 44(2), 523-531. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.44.2.523
Lucy J. A. (1997), Linguistic Relativity, "Annual Review of Anthropology" 26(1), 291-312. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.anthro.26.1.291
Ludwig K. (2007), The Epistemology of Thought Experiments. First Person versus Third Person Approaches, " Midwest Studies in Philosophy" 31(1), 128-159. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4975.2007.00160.x
Machery E., Deutsch M., Mallon R., Nichols S., Sytsma J., Stich S. (2010), Semantic Intuitions. Reply to Lam, "Cognition" 117(3), 361-366. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2010.08.016
Machery E., Stich S., Rose D., Chatterjee A., Karasawa K., Struchiner N., Sirker S., Usui N., Hashimoto T. (2015), Gettier across Cultures, "Noûs" 51(3), 645-664. https://doi.org/10.1111/nous.12110
Maridaki-Kassotaki K., Lewis C., Freeman N. H. (2003), Lexical Choice Can Lead to Problems. What False-Belief Tests Tell Us about Greek Alternative Verbs of Agency, "Journal of Child Language", 30(1), 145-164. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000902005421
Michna E. (2004), Etyczny wymiar tożsamości etnicznej w sytuacji zmiany identyfikacji narodowej [w:] Etyczny wymiar tożsamości kulturowej, M. Flis (red.), Kraków: Nomos, 25-45.
Myers-Scotton C. (1993), Social Motivations for Codeswitching. Evidence from Africa, Oxford: Clarendon.
Nagel J., San Juan V., Mar R. A. (2013), Lay Denial of Knowledge for Justified True Beliefs, "Cognition" 129(3), 652-661. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2013.02.008
Nisbett R. E., Wilson T. D. (1977), Telling More than We Can Know. Verbal Reports on Mental Processes, "Psychological Review" 84(3), 231-259. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.3.231
Nisbett R. E., Peng K., Choi I., Norenzayan A. (2001), Culture and Systems of Thought. Holistic versus Analytic Cognition, "Psychological Review", 108(2), 291-310. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.108.2.291
Pinker S. (1995), The Language Instinct. How the Mind Creates Language, New York: Harper Perennial.
Roberson D., Davies I., Davidoff J. (2000), Color Categories Are not Universal. Replications and New Evidence from a Stone-Age Culture, "Journal of Experimental Psychology: General" 129(3), 369-398. https://doi.org/10.1037/0096-3445.129.3.369
Romaniszyn K. (2004), Konsumuję więc jestem? [w:] Etyczny wymiar tożsamości kulturowej, M. Flis (red.), Kraków: Nomos, 37-48.
Schwarz N. (1999), Self Reports. How the Questions Shape the Answers, "American Psychologist" 54(2), 93-105. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.54.2.93
Seyedsayamdost H. (2015), On Normativity and Epistemic Intuitions. Failure of Replication, "Episteme" 12(1), 95-116. https://doi.org/10.1017/epi.2014.27
Shatz M., Diesendruck G., Martinez-Beck I., Akar D. (2003), The Influence of Language and Socioeconomic Status on Children's Understanding of False Belief, "Developmental Psychology" 39(4) 717-729. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.39.4.717
Starmans C., Friedman O. (2012), The Folk Conception of Knowledge, "Cognition" 124(3), 272-283. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2012.05.017
Strack F., Martin L., Schwarz N. (1988), Priming and Communication. Social Determinants of Information Use in Judgments of Life Satisfaction, "European Journal of Social Psychology" 18(5), 429-442. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.2420180505
Sztompka P. (2002), Socjologia. Analiza społeczeństwa, Kraków: Znak.
Tambor J. (2010), Kulturowe wyznaczniki tożsamości. Tożsamość mieszkańców województwa śląskiego, https://goo.gl/RrGtDL.
Tardif T., Wellman H. M., Cheung K. M. (2004), False Belief Understanding in Cantonese-Speaking Children, "Journal of Child Language" 31(4), 779-800. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000904006580
Turri J. (2013), A Conspicuous Art. Putting Gettier to the Test, "Philosophers' Imprint" 13(10), 1-16.
Turri J., Buckwalter W., Blouw P. (2015), Knowledge and Luck, "Psychonomic Bulletin & Review" 22(2), 378-390. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-014-0683-5
Von Hippel W., Trivers R. (2011), The Evolution and Psychology of Self-Deception, "Behavioral and Brain Sciences" 34(01), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X10003018 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X10001354
Williamson T. (2016), Philosophical Criticisms of Experimental Philosophy [w:] A Companion to Experimental Philosophy, J. Sytsma, W. Buckwalter (eds.), Chichester: Wiley, 22-26.
Weinberg J. M., Nichols S., Stich S. (2001), Normativity and Epistemic Intuitions, "Philosophical Topics" 29(1/2), 429-460. https://doi.org/10.5840/philtopics2001291/217
Woolard K. (2004), Codeswitching [w:] A Companion to Linguistic Anthropology, A. Duranti (ed.), Malden, MA: Blackwell, 73-94.
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2018-03-25
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Sękowski, K. (2018). Cultural Affiliation and Language Methodological Problems in Cross-Cultural Experimental Philosophy. The Philosophy of Science, 26(1), 44–66. https://doi.org/10.14394/filnau.2018.0003
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Filozofia Nauki/The Philosophy of Science | ISSN 1230-6894 | e-ISSN 2657-5868