Attention: Philosophical and Psychological EssaysChristopher Mole, Declan Smithies, Wayne Wu Attention has been studied in cognitive psychology for more than half a century, but until recently it was largely neglected in philosophy. Now, however, attention has been recognized by philosophers of mind as having an important role to play in our theories of consciousness and of cognition. At the same time, several recent developments in psychology have led psychologists to foundational questions about the nature of attention and its implementation in the brain. As a result there has been a convergence of interest in fundamental questions about attention.This volume presents the latest thinking from the philosophers and psychologists who are working at the interface between these two disciplines. Its fourteen chapters contain detailed philosophical and scientific arguments about the nature and mechanisms of attention; the relationship between attention and consciousness; the role of attention in explaining reference, rational thought, and the control of action; the fundamental metaphysical status of attention, and the details of its implementation in the brain. These contributions combine ideas from phenomenology, neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and philosophy of mind to further our understanding of this centrally important mental phenomenon, and to bring to light the foundational questions that any satisfactory theory of attention will need to address. |
Contents
1 A SystemsNeuroscience View of Attention | 1 |
2 Attention and Integration | 24 |
3 The Metaphysics of Attention | 60 |
4 Covert Spatial Attention and Saccade Planning | 78 |
5 Attention as Selection for Action | 97 |
A Serial Attentional Process? | 117 |
7 Attention as Structuring of the Stream of Consciousness | 145 |
8 Is Attention Necessary and Sufficient for Consciousness? | 174 |
9 Attention and Iconic Memory | 204 |
A Brief Review | 228 |
11 Attention Is RationalAccess Consciousness | 247 |
12 Perceptual Attention and the Space of Reasons | 274 |
13 Visual Attention Fixes Demonstrative Reference by Eliminating Referential Luck | 292 |
14 Visual Attention and the Epistemic Role of Consciousness | 323 |
343 | |
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Attention: Philosophical and Psychological Essays Christopher Mole,Declan Smithies,Wayne Wu Limited preview - 2011 |
Attention:Philosophical and Psychological Essays: Philosophical and ... Christopher Mole,Declan Smithies,Wayne Wu No preview available - 2011 |
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