Cognitive science

Buitron, Natalia and Walker, Harry ORCID: 0000-0001-9879-4045 (2023) Cognitive science. In: Laidlaw, James, (ed.) The Cambridge Handbook for the Anthropology of Ethics. Cambridge Handbooks in Anthropology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 177 - 204. ISBN 9781108482806

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Abstract

Anthropologists and cognitive scientists interested in ethics and morality have much to gain from a two-way dialogue that does not shy away from constructive criticism. This chapter seeks to initiate such a conversation through an overview of three lines of recent research in cognitive science: the evolution of human morality from the standpoint of evolutionary psychology; theories that look to social institutions rather than only evolved psychological dispositions for insight into the variability of human moral dispositions; and studies of how responsibility and intentionality are ascribed in cases of wrongdoing. The final section offers some personal reflections on the methodological challenges of inter-disciplinary engagement, drawing on some of the authors’ recent research on morality and change in western Amazonia. It concludes that anthropologists can use experimental methods creatively, as a way of generating new ethnographic insights; although if genuine conversation on an equal footing is to take place, then ethnography must not only inform experimental design but also be employed to redefine concepts and generate theory.

Item Type:	Book Section
Official URL:	https://www.cambridge.org/gb/universitypress/subje...
Additional Information:	© 2023 Cambridge University Press & Assessment
Divisions:	Anthropology
Subjects:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GN Anthropology B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
Date Deposited:	06 Feb 2024 14:24
Last Modified:	11 Sep 2025 01:59
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/121951

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