A New Movement in the Philosophical Tradition: Experimental Philosophy
Necmiye YükselExperimental philosophy has emerged as an interdisciplinary philosophical movement that has become very popular both in Europe and America, showing a rapid and wide spread in the contemporary philosophical literature over the past 20 years. This new philosophical movement generally combines two key elements: (1) It is based on topics associated with traditional philosophy, and (2) unlike traditional philosophy, it methodologically uses social and cognitive science methodology, not only for philosophers but also for ordinary people outside the field of philosophy by conducting systematic empirical studies on philosophical intuitions. In light of this, after briefly introducing the principal motivation of experimental philosophy, I will give an overview in this article of the methodological difference between traditional analytical philosophy and experimental philosophy, of what philosophical intuitions are, and of the role intuitions have in experimental philosophy. Then I will examine the latest developments and discuss the criticisms that have been brought to the results of these studies. Another purpose of this study is to contribute to the Turkish literature on philosophy by investigating the latest developments in this field. This field is quite new and limited to only a few studies in the Turkish literature on philosophy. As such, this study will examine the results from some experimental studies and reveal the similarities and differences this method has with traditional philosophy, thereby bringing the latest experimental studies in this new field to the Turkish literature on philosophy, which has yet to become well-known.
Felsefi Gelenekte Yeni Bir Hareket: Deneysel Felsefe
Necmiye YükselDeneysel Felsefe (Experimental Philosophy) geçtiğimiz yirmi yıl içerisinde çağdaş felsefe literatüründe hızlı ve geniş bir yayılım göstererek gerek Avrupa’da gerek Amerika’da oldukça popüler olan disiplinler arası bir felsefi akım olarak karşımıza çıkmaktadır. Bu yeni felsefi akım genel olarak iki temel unsuru bir araya getirir. (1) Geleneksel felsefeyle (traditional philosophy) ilişkilendirilen konuları temel alarak, (2) metodolojik açıdan geleneksel felsefenin aksine sosyal ve bilişsel bilimler (social and cognitive science) metodolojisini kullanarak yalnız filozofların değil felsefe alanı dışında olan sıradan insanların (ordinary people) da felsefi yargıları (philosophical intuitions) hakkında sistematik deneysel çalışmalar yürütür. Bu bilgiler ışığında bu makalede deneysel felsefenin temel motivasyonuna kısa bir giriş yaptıktan sonra, metodolojik açıdan geleneksel analitik felsefe ve deneysel felsefe arasındaki farka, felsefi yargıların ne olduğuna ve yargıların deneysel felsefedeki rolüne genel bir bakış açısı getirerek, deneysel felsefe alanında yapılmış olan bazı sistematik deneysel çalışmalara ve bu alandaki son gelişmelere göz atıp yine bu çalışma sonuçlarına getirilen eleştirilerin tartışmasını okuyucuyla buluşturacağız. Bu makalenin bir başka amacı da Türkçe felsefe literatüründe henüz çok yeni olan ve Türkçe literatürde sadece birkaç çalışma ile sınırlı kalan bu alanı yine bu alanda yapılmış bazı deneysel çalışmaların sonuçlarıyla inceleyerek yöntem bakımından geleneksel felsefeyle olan benzerlik ve farklılıklarını ortaya koyarak Türkçe felsefe literatürüne katkı sağlamak olacaktır.
As a discipline, philosophy has been concerned with existence, reason, free will, knowledge, the origins of people’s moral and religious beliefs, and many other issues. Philosophers have generally been concerned with questions about how things fit together. In this traditional understanding, separating philosophy from psychology, history, or political science was impossible. As a new movement, experimental philosophy seeks a return to this traditional vision, and, similar to philosophers of past centuries, experimental philosophers are concerned with how people think.3 No standard or agreed-upon definition exists for experimental philosophy as a term. However, experimental philosophy can be defined as a new philosophical movement dating back nearly two decades, one that uses empirical methods to answer the philosophical questions that have persisted for centuries alongside traditional philosophy. Many different definitions have been proposed regarding how experimental philosophy as a term should be used. In the generally preferred usage, the term has a comprehensive extension and unclear boundaries.4 For example, some definitions state experimental philosophy to be an empirical study that has emerged to contribute to philosophical debates. However, other definitions have also stated that empirical study may not be the only purpose, because while some philosophers conduct experimental research, others focus only on theoretical studies.5
Experimental philosophy as a term selects no single approach or topic but rather philosophical topics that include many sub-branches, ranging from ethics to epistemology and the philosophy of language. Experimental philosophers work in all these areas and more, and they also bring a variety of empirical approaches. No single approach or purpose is found that covers these studies. For example, some experimental philosophers see their work as an extension of traditional philosophy, while other experimental philosophers describe themselves as radical critics of traditional analytical philosophy.6 The common point uniting these philosophers is the belief that philosophical progress requires empirical research and the desire to take an active role in the design and conduct of this research.7 Still, a view shared with a much broader range of philosophers and critics of experimental philosophy is the claim that experimental methods, at least in principle, can reveal truths that always hold. Apart from this claim, no deep ideological consistency is found among experimental philosophers as a whole.8
Rather than basing their work on research by psychologists and cognitive scientists, experimental philosophers conduct their work alone or with other researchers in the social sciences.9 In some respects, this is not an unprecedented development. Philosophy has historically been consistently concerned with human nature, culture, and cognitive studies. The emergence of social sciences as a unique discipline has been more recent. Some philosophers continued their experimental studies after psychology and anthropology had left the humanities. However, experimental philosophers mainly illuminate the nature and origins of the judgments central to traditional analytical philosophy by using empirical methods rather than merely seeking the views of unconventional groups or cultures. For this purpose, experimental philosophers have tended to conduct experimental studies using survey methods.10 In other words, experimental philosophers examine intuitions about topics that have long been accepted as the domain of philosophy. However, instead of using the methodology of traditional philosophy, they use systematic empirical studies, statistical analyses, and cognitive hypotheses familiar to cognitive science.11 In this context, experimental philosophy can be defined as the empirical investigation of the psychological and neurological mechanisms underlying philosophical judgments and the factors affecting them.12
In light of this, the current study aims to explain the principal motivation of experimental philosophy. In so doing, I will give a brief overview of the methodological difference between traditional philosophy and experimental philosophy, mainly by explaining what philosophical intuitions are and what role intuitions have in experimental philosophy. Then I will examine the latest developments and discuss the criticisms that have been brought to the results of these studies. Another purpose of this study is to contribute to the Turkish literature on philosophy by investigating the latest developments in this field. This field is quite new and and limited to only a few studies in the Turkish literature on philosophy. As such, this study examines the results from some experimental studies and reveals the similarities and differences this method has with traditional philosophy.
