Enactivism and Post-phenomenology

Anco Peeters (University of Wollongong)

Though many of our social and scientific practices are shaped by technological artefacts, we lack a framework that adequately accounts for the cognitive role such artefacts play. Current approaches to mind and technology interaction often depart from the (in)famous extended mind thesis. While proposals for mind extension have generated daring new research programs, those flying under the banner of postphenomenology have critiqued the extended mind approach to technology as Cartesian and instrumentalist. Inspired by this critique, I advocate an enactive understanding of mind–technology interaction that, I propose, does justice to the shaping roles artefacts play in cognitive processes and aligns with the postphenomenological approach. To show this, I will look at neuro-imaging techniques and virtual reality research.

Anco Peeters is a PhD candidate at the University of Wollongong, who specialises in embodied cognition and artificial intelligence. He has published widely in journals like Philosophical Psychology, Philosophical Explorations, Adaptive Behavior and Philosophy and Technology.

https://www.ancopeeters.com