Where Biology Meets Psychology: Philosophical Essays [Hardcover]

Valerie Gray Hardcastle (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0262082764 | ISBN-13: 978-0262082761 | Publication Date: August 27, 1999

A great deal of interest and excitement surround the interface between the philosophy of biology and the philosophy of psychology, yet the area is neither well defined nor well represented in mainstream philosophical publications. This book is perhaps the first to open a dialogue between the two disciplines. Its aim is to broaden the traditional subject matter of the philosophy of biology while informing the philosophy of psychology of relevant biological constraints and insights.The book is organized around six themes: functions and teleology, evolutionary psychology, innateness, philosophy of mind, philosophy of science, and parallels between philosophy of biology and philosophy of mind. Throughout, one finds overlapping areas of study, larger philosophical implications, and even larger conceptual ties. Woven through these connections are shared concerns about the status of semantics, scientific law, evolution and adaptation, and cognition in general.Contributors : André Ariew, Mark A. Bedau, David J. Buller, Paul Sheldon Davies, Stephen M. Downes, Charbel Niño El-Hani, Owen Flanagan, Peter Godfrey-Smith, Todd Grantham, Valerie Gray Hardcastle, Gary Hatfield, Daniel W. McShea, Karen Neander, Shaun Nichols, Antonio Marcos Pereira, Tom Polger, Lawrence A. Shapiro, Kim Sterelny, Robert A. Wilson, William C. Wimsatt.

Editorial Reviews

Review

" Where Biology Meets Psychology is a welcome addition to the growingliterature linking biology especially neuroscience and evolution topsychology and the philosophy of mind. This volume has the furtheradvantage of not being another gathering of the usual suspects." Robert Cummins , Professor of Philosophy, University of California, Davis

About the Author

Valerie Gray Hardcastle is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Virginia Polytechnic Institute.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 403 pages
• Publisher: A Bradford Book (August 27, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0262082764
• ISBN-13: 978-0262082761
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,432,577 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Problematic Biologization of Psychology, November 17, 2007

By 

Colin M. Burchfield, Ph.D. "Colin M. Burchfie... (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Where Biology Meets Psychology: Philosophical Essays (Paperback)

As Brent Slife and I noted regarding this book in our review in _Contemporary Psychology_, with psychologists finding themselves weighing the merits of prescription privileges-a traditionally biological intervention-and viewing what were once distinctly psychological diagnoses (e.g., depression) as fundamentally biological in nature, books such as this are increasingly more warranted. Relatively new specialties, such as evolutionary psychology and cognitive science, have sprouted and apparently flourished through essentially biological explanations of traditionally psychological phenomena. However, this book is recommended to only a very limited audience in psychology. First, the book is incredibly dense, seemingly written with philosophers in mind. So, if you regularly read the work of professional philosophers, particularly when they write to other philosophers as their primary audience, then by all means dive into this work. Furthermore, I am disappointed to say that those in psychology with the most to gain from this book--neuroscientists, evolutionary psychologists, cognitive scientists, psychopharmacologists--will likely have the most difficult time discerning its messages. Indeed, without professional help (i.e., another philosopher), I fear that critical issues in the biologization of psychology will be misinterpreted or missed entirely. Finally, it is apparent that the perspective of the authors of the various chapters in this book is quite singular: offering only biological explanations of psychological phenomena (biologization of psychology). I certainly hope another biology/psychology edited book will explore more holistic understandings of psychological phenomena.