'Affordances' are possibilities for action offered by the environment. This concept was introduced by
James J. Gibson in the 1960s to play a pivotal role in his ecological approach to vision science. Since
then, it has become widespread across various fields of cognitive science. In this seminar we will critically
evaluate this trend and see whether and to what extent the concept of affordances is up to the many
tasks it has been given. Questions to be addressed include, but are not limited to: How did Gibson
originally conceptualize affordances and how was it revised by e.g. Harry Heft and Edward Reed?; what
role do affordances play in our understanding of e.g. memory and language?; to what extent can
affordances help us understand typically human behavior, e.g. intentional behavior and socially mediated
behavior?; do affordances have a place, as some have argued, in fields such as psychiatry, ethics and
religious studies?
Literature
The relevant literature will consist of book chapters from Manuel Heras-Escribano's The
Philosophy of Affordances (2019, Palgrave) and recent peer reviewed articles. All literature will
be made available through Moodle prior to the first session.
- Kursleiter/in: Roy Dings