The Self, Society, Culture, and Philosophy of Mind Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key definitions and theories regarding the self, society, culture, physicalism, and philosophy of mind from Churchland and Ryle.

Socialization

The process through which people acquire and live up to the standards, beliefs, and actions that are acceptable in their community (Lareau, 2011).

Paul Churchland

Canadian philosopher (born October 21, 1942) known for his study in neurophilosophy and philosophy of mind who asserted that the self is the brain.

Physicalism

The philosophical view that all aspects of the universe are composed of matter and energy and can be fully explained by physical law.

Philosophy of Mind

The field of study focused on the nature of the mind.

Folk Psychology

A human capacity to explain and predict the behavior and mental state of other people.

Eliminative Materialism (Eliminativism)

The radical claim that our ordinary, common-sense understanding of mind is deeply wrong and that some or all of the mental states posited by common sense do not actually exist.

Gilbert Ryle

British philosopher (1900-1976) known for his critique of Cartesian dualism ("ghost in the machine") and author of The Concept of Mind (1949).

Logical Behaviorism

A philosophical view focused on creating conceptual clarity, not on developing techniques to condition and manipulate human behavior.

Ghost in the Machine

The view of the self as a spiritual, immaterial ghost rattling around inside the physical body, which Gilbert Ryle criticized as a conceptually flawed and confused notion.

Mind (Ryle's Concept)

A concept that expresses the entire system of thoughts, emotions, actions, and so on that make up the human self.