Folk Psychological Narratives: The Sociocultural Basis of Understanding Reasons(Folk Psychological Narratives)

Established wisdom in cognitive science holds that the everyday folk psychological abilities of humans -- our capacity to understand intentional actions performed for reasons -- are inherited from our evolutionary forebears. In Folk Psychological Narratives, Daniel Hutto challenges this view (held in somewhat different forms by the two dominant approaches, "theory theory" and simulation theory) and argues for the sociocultural basis of this familiar ability. He makes a detailed case for the idea that the way we make sense of intentional actions essentially involves the construction of narratives about particular persons. Moreover he argues that children acquire this practical skill only by being exposed to and engaging in a distinctive kind of narrative practice. Hutto calls this developmental proposal the narrative practice hypothesis (NPH). Its core claim is that direct encounters with stories about persons who act for reasons (that is, folk psychological narratives) supply children with both the basic structure of folk psychology and the norm-governed possibilities for wielding it in practice. In making a strong case for the as yet underexamined idea that our understanding of reasons may be socioculturally grounded, Hutto not only advances and explicates the claims of the NPH, but he also challenges certain widely held assumptions. In this way, Folk Psychological Narratives both clears conceptual space around the dominant approaches for an alternative and offers a groundbreaking proposal.

About the Author :
Daniel D. Hutto is Professor of Philosophical Psychology at the University of Hertfordshire.

Review :
A refreshing expansion of the logical space surrounding debates about the nature of human social cognition... Hutto usefully brings long ignored assumptions to the surface, and persuasively undermines them... a stimulating and engaging read... the debate about human social cognition should forever be transformed in its wake. A substantial and compelling theory... provides thorough and convincing criticisms of nativist theories of mind and opens up new lines of empirical research... should be read by all psychologists and philosophers interested in a theory of mind. Cogently argued, thoroughly documented and stylishly written... suggests... the potential for research on stories to bring together scholars from across the arts and sciences. Daniel Hutto completely changes the terms of this debate... [He is] to be commended for his radical and challenging thesis. highly original and admirably wide ranging... Hutto tackles head on the really hard questions about the role in mental life of symbolization, representation and rationality. Hutto succeeds in telling a compelling developmental and evolutionary story that integrates the available empirical evidence from vastly different areas of research such as developmental psychology, comparative cognition, neuroscience, cognitive archaeology, and evolutionary psychology into a coherent and sound narrative about the origins and application of folk psychology... he adds substantially to the efforts to bring meaning back into the study of mind. succeeds at striking a balance between the constructive and the critical.... [Hutto's] challenge to the theory of mind tradition is formidable... [and] offers the field a promising basis from which to reorient itself. This book is enjoyable to read. They style is, well, narrative, witty, and anything else but boring.... It makes some important contributions to the debate and provides a variety of new insights. Most of all, it forces the opposition (on various fronts) back to the drawing board. This is an important book... an instant classic in this important and relatively young field of study.