The question of whether our conscious experience is rich or sparse remains an enduring controversy in philosophy. The “overflow” account argues that perceptual consciousness is far richer than cognitive access: when perceiving a complex scene, subjects see more than they can report. This paper draws on aphantasia to propose a new argument in favor of overflow. First, it shows that opponents of overflow explain subjects’ performance in a change detection paradigm by appealing to a type of “internal imagery.” Second, it (...) provides empirical evidence to demonstrate that aphantasics are incapable of generating this imagery. However, aphantasics perform equally well in this task; and so the no-overflow account fails to explain their performance. This means that proponents of this view are committed to an unsupported view of perception. (shrink)

This paper proposes a new argument in favour of the claim that phenomenal consciousness overflows – that is, has a far higher capacity than – cognitive access. It shows that opponents of overflow implicate a necessary role for visual imagery in the change detection paradigm. However, empirical evidence suggests that there is no correlation between visual imagery abilities and performance in this paradigm. Since the use of imagery is not implicated in the performance strategy of subjects, we find a new (...) argument for consciousness without access. (shrink)

Phillips argues that Block faces a “serious internal challenge” in defending the claim that unconscious perception is of the same fundamental kind as conscious perception. This challenge is said to result from Block’s commitment to phenomenal overflow. However, in this paper, I demonstrate that Phillips’ rejection of overflow likewise renders his view on unconscious perception “internally challenged” and therefore equally problematic.

The question of whether phenomenal consciousness is limited to the capacity of cognitive access remains a contentious issue in philosophy. Overflow theorists argue that the capacity of conscious experience outstrips the capacity of cognitive access. This paper demonstrates a resolution to the overflow debate is found in acknowledging a difference in phenomenological timing required by both sides. It makes clear that the “no overflow” view requires subjects to, at the bare minimum, generate an unconscious visual image of previously presented items (...) if it is to explain performance in the change detection paradigm. It then demonstrates that conscious imagery should support better task performance than unconscious imagery because of a necessary difference in representational strength. However, this contradicts empirical findings, and so a new argument for overflow is presented without requiring the premise that subjects need to obtain a specific phenomenology of presented items during change detection. (shrink)

The quality of working conditions have a direct impact on the individuals’ quality of life and level of well-being. Attention to well-being in work environments has become a matter of great interest for legislators. However, the well-being concept has not yet found a legal definition. The first commitment to achieve a global well-being strategy was made by the World Health Organisation. The European Union claims that a positive relationship between work and well-being is a necessary factor to reach greater economic (...) and social progress, since full and quality employment is one of the main elements of economic stability and social cohesion in a country. The Italian regulatory framework consists of various legislative provisions: the importance of the workers’ good health and quality of life has generated a complex regulatory system. In the digital society the potential health risks associated with the use of IT tools and the risk of an increased overlapping between work and personal life should not be overlooked. (shrink)

Obsessive–compulsive disorder is a debilitating mental health disorder that can easily become a treatment-resistant condition. Although effective therapies exist, only about half of the patients seem to benefit from them when we consider treatment refusal, dropout rates, and residual symptoms. Thus, providing effective augmentation to standard therapies could improve existing treatments. Group compassion-focused interventions have shown promise for reducing depression, anxiety, and avoidance related to various clinical problems, but this approach has never been evaluated for OCD individuals. However, cultivating compassion (...) for self and others seems crucial for OCD patients, given the accumulating research suggesting that fear of guilt, along with isolation and self-criticism, can strongly contribute to the development and maintenance of OCD. The primary aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the acceptability, tolerability, and effectiveness of an 8-week group compassion-focused intervention for reducing OCD symptoms, depression, fear of guilt and self-criticism, and increasing common humanity and compassionate self-reassuring skills in treatment-resistant OCD patients. Using a multiple baseline experimental design, the intervention was evaluated in a sample of OCD patients who had completed at least 6 months of CBT treatment for OCD, but who continued to suffer from significant symptoms. Participants were randomized to different baseline assessment lengths; they then received 8 weekly, 120-min group sessions of compassion-focused therapy for OCD, and then were tested again at post-treatment and at 1 month follow up. Despite the adverse external circumstances, by the end of treatment, all participants demonstrated reliable decreases in OCD symptoms, and these improvements were maintained at 4-week follow-up for seven of eight participants. The intervention was also associated with improvements in fear of guilt, self-criticism, and self-reassurance, but less consistent improvements in depression and common humanity. Participants reported high levels of acceptability of and satisfaction with the intervention. Results suggest that the intervention may be beneficial as either a stand-alone treatment or as an augmentation to other treatments. (shrink)

The fourteen papers in this collection offer a variety of original contributions to the epistemology of modality. In seeking to explain how we might account for our knowledge of possibility and necessity, they raise some novel questions, develop some unfamiliar theoretical perspectives, and make some intriguing proposals. Collectively, they advance our understanding of the field. In Part I of this Introduction, I give some general background about the contemporary literature in the area, by sketching a timeline of the main tendencies (...) of the past twenty-five years or so, up to the present debates. Next, I focus on four features that largely characterize the latest literature, and the papers in the present collection in particular: (i) an endorsement of the importance of essentialism; (ii) a shift to a “metaphysics-first” approach to modal epistemology; (iii) a focus on metaphysical modality as opposed to other kinds of modality; and (iv) a preference for non-uniform modal epistemology. In Part II, I present the individual papers in the volume. These are organized around the following four chapters, based on their topic: (A) Skepticism & Deflationism; (B) Essentialism; (C) Non-Essentialist Accounts; (D) Applications. -/- LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS: Francesco Berto; Stephen Biggs & Jessica Wilson; Justin Clark-Doane; Philip Goff; Bob Hale; Frank Jackson; Mark Jago; Boris Kment; Antonella Mallozzi; Graham Priest; Gabriel Rabin; Amie Thomasson; Anand Vaidya & Michael Wallner; Jennifer Wang. -/- The volume is dedicated to the memory of Bob Hale. -/- . (shrink)

Los gorrones o parásitos son tipos representados muy a menudo en la literatura de adab. El tema del gorroneo está estrechamente relacionado con otros temas típicos de la cultura arabo-islámica clásica, tales como la generosidad y la tacañería, la hospitalidad, la inteligencia, el exceso. La imagen del ṭufaylī presenta distintos aspectos relevantes para estos temas, algunos de los cuales son identificados y estudiados en este artículo sobre la base de unidades literarias tomadas de textos de adab.

A quel droit peut-on parler d’une philosophie de la religion aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles? Si nous partageons la définition de l’objet donnée par Jean Greisch, («la philosophie de la religion consiste à interroger l’essence de la religion avec les yeux de la raison philosophique […] en tenant compte de sa composante historique et de ses diverses manifestations»), sa présence chez ceux qui sont consacrées comme grands philosophes se réduirait à peu de chose. Descartes et les post-cartésiens se...

Entre la fin du Moyen Âge et la première modernité, les représentations de la femme et des jeux sont traversées par le motif de la tricherie. Les jeux de cartes sont un cas particulièrement significatif : passe-temps « honnêtes » lorsqu’ils sont pratiqués dans la sphère noble, ils sont marqués négativement si pratiqués dans la rue et/ou la sphère populaire. La tricherie en image devient une sorte d’emblème du statut de la femme prémoderne en même temps qu’elle exprime métaphoriquement le (...) rôle de la dissimulation dans la culture courtisane de l’époque étudiées. Cet article aborde la question des modalités de figuration et de réception de ces représentations. en dialogue avec la diffusion de la littérature sur la probabilité qui ne cesse de se développer au xviie siècle, ainsi qu’avec les traités et brochures qui dévoilent les techniques de manipulation des cartes et de tricherie, associant prestidigitation, illusionnisme et pratiques ludiques. (shrink)

The fourteen papers in this collection offer a variety of original contributions to the epistemology of modality. In seeking to explain our knowledge of possibility and necessity, they raise some novel questions, develop some unfamiliar theoretical perspectives, and make some intriguing proposals. In the Introduction (penultimate draft available for download), I give some general background about the contemporary literature in the area, by sketching a timeline of the main tendencies of the past twenty-five years or so, up to the present (...) debates. Next, I focus on four features that largely characterize the latest literature, and the papers in the present collection in particular: (i) an endorsement of the importance of essentialism; (ii) a shift to a “metaphysics-first” approach to modal epistemology; (iii) a focus on metaphysical modality as opposed to other kinds of modality; and (iv) a preference for non-uniform modal epistemology. Then I turn to present the individual papers in the volume, which are organized based on their topic around the following four chapters: (A) Skepticism & Deflationism; (B) Essentialism; (C) Non-Essentialist Accounts; (D) Applications. LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS: Francesco Berto; Stephen Biggs & Jessica Wilson; Justin Clark-Doane; Philip Goff; Bob Hale; Frank Jackson; Mark Jago; Boris Kment; Antonella Mallozzi; Graham Priest; Gabriel Rabin; Amie Thomasson; Anand Vaidya & Michael Wallner; Jennifer Wang. The volume is dedicated to the memory of Bob Hale. (shrink)

Les cours sur la Logique transcendantale sont l'un des lieux de la production fichtéenne dans lequel le philosophe de Rammenau réfléchit sur le langage et en particulier sur la capacité performative de la parole. A travers la déconstruction du discours de la logique commune, déjà durement frappée dans les leçons de Zurich de 1794, articulée en trois moments principaux (identifiés comme processus ironique, inventio et ruse du langage), la Doctrine de la Science révèle le lien entre le mot, le concept (...) et l'intuition intellectuelle et exprime le besoin de subsumer le premier au concept correctement compris, de sorte qu'il puisse révéler la présence d'une pensée synthétique, dont le mot lui-même est l'image. (shrink)

Le conflit social autour de la réforme du régime d'assurance chômage des intermittents du spectacle a été marqué par son intensité et par sa durée. La thèse défendue ici est que la maîtrise du temps constitue l’un des enjeux majeurs de ce conflit. L'affrontement sur le terrain économique de la régulation de l'emploi et de l'industrie culturelle s'est doublé de l'affrontement sur le temps. La question du temps ne se limite pas à la régulation du temps de travail, elle concerne (...) la maîtrise du temps et les « formes de vie » auxquelles les individus aspirent. Les deux plans de l'emploi et du temps ne sont pas exclusifs l’un de l’autre, ils coexistent, mais le conflit autour de la maîtrise du temps est relativement imperceptible. L'objectif de cet article est de lui donner de la visibilité et d'en questionner le sens. (shrink)

Résumé Dans l’entretien qui fait suite à son article, Christian Marazzi aborde la question d’un biorevenu ex-nihilo, c’est-à-dire financé par une création monétaire. Le revenu garanti, en tant qu’argent, argent exnihilo, peut-il ne pas être nécessairement du capital? Peut-il rester argent comme argent, forme monétaire de la fuite?

Résumé Dans une perspective critique du discours sur le revenu garanti, je dessine ici les traces d’un parcours me conduisant à en percevoir quelques limites. Le revenu garanti comme problème. Comme objet à questionner. En même temps, en traversant les frontières des disciplines, et notamment dans un au-delà de l’économie politique et de sa critique, je retrouve au sein de la théorie féministe les traces d’un autre parcours qui me conduit à affirmer la thèse suivant laquelle le revenu garanti est (...) une condition nécessaire, bien que, certes, non suffisante. Le revenu garanti comme arme mentale de déplacement des catégories binaires qui nous gouvernent : emploi-chômage, actifs-inactifs, employables-inemployables. Mais aussi, le revenu garanti comme condition nécessaire (mais pas suffisante) pour que d’autres récits du monde, d’autres formes de vie puissent exister. (shrink)

S'inscrivant dans le sillage des travaux les plus récents sur l'histoire du cartésianisme, ce livre en retient d'abord l'idée que ce phénomène varie selon les contextes nationaux, mais qu'il est parfois possible de repérer des ressemblances qui outrepassent les frontières. Se confrontant à une pensée vivante qui se réfracte sous des aspects inattendus, les articles recueillis explorent des sujets qui se situent à l'intersection de plusieurs champs disciplinaires (théologie, physique, médecine, éthique, anthropologie, etc.). Les acquis principaux du cartésianisme dans le (...) domaine scientifique constituent toutefois la toile de fond historique et épistémologique sur laquelle s'élaborent les analyses des contributions de ce volume."--Page 4 of cover. (shrink)

This paper reports the framework, method and main findings of an analysis of cultural milieus in 4 European countries. The analysis is based on a questionnaire applied to a sample built through a two-step procedure of post-hoc random selection from a broader dataset based on an online survey. Responses to the questionnaire were subjected to multidimensional analysis-a combination of Multiple Correspondence Analysis and Cluster Analysis. We identified 5 symbolic universes, that correspond to basic, embodied, affect-laden, generalized worldviews. People in this (...) study see the world as either a) an ordered universe;b) a matter of interpersonal bond;c) a caring society;d) consisting of a niche of belongingness;e) a hostile place. These symbolic universes were also interpreted as semiotic capital: they reflect the capacity of a place to foster social and civic development. Moreover, the distribution of the symbolic universes, and therefore social and civic engagement, is demonstrated to be variable across the 4 countries in the analysis. Finally, we develop a retrospective reconstruction of the distribution of symbolic universes as well as the interplay between their current state and past, present and future socio-institutional scenarios. (shrink)

Driving behaviours and fitness to drive have been assessed using different tools over time: standardized neuropsychological, on-road and driving simulation testing. Nowadays, the great variability of topics related to driving simulation has elicited a high number of reviews. The present work aims to perform a scientometric analysis on driving simulation reviews and to propose a selective review of reviews focusing on critical issues related to validity and fidelity. A scientometric analysis of driving simulation reviews published from 1988 to 2019 was (...) conducted. Bibliographic data from 298 reviews were extracted from Scopus and WoS. Performance analysis was conducted to investigate most prolific Countries, Journals, Institutes and Authors. A cluster analysis on authors’ keywords was performed to identify relevant associations between different research topics. Based on reviews extracted from cluster analysis, a selective review of reviews was conducted to answer questions regarding validity, fidelity and critical issues. USA and Germany are the first two Countries for number of driving simulation reviews. USA is the leading Country with 5 Institutes in the top-ten. Top Authors wrote from 3 to 7 reviews each and belong to Institutes located in North America and Europe. Cluster analysis identified three clusters and eight keywords. The selective review of reviews showed a substantial agreement for supporting validity of driving simulation with respect to neuropsychological and on-road testing, while for fidelity with respect to real-world driving experience a blurred representation emerged. The most relevant critical issues were the a) lack of a common set of standards, b) phenomenon of simulation sickness, c) need for psychometric properties, lack of studies investigating d) predictive validity with respect to collision rates and e) ecological validity. Driving simulation represent a cross-cutting topic in scientific literature on driving, and there are several evidences for considering it as a valid alternative to neuropsychological and on-road testing. Further research efforts could be aimed at establishing a consensus statement for protocols assessing fitness to drive, in order to a) use standardized systems, b) compare systematically driving simulators with regard to their validity and fidelity, and c) employ shared criteria for conducting studies in a given sub-topic. (shrink)

En 1994, ouvre, à Melfi, petite ville de 6 000 habitants de la Basilicate, dans le sud de l’Italie, un établissement SATA, filiale du groupe automobile Fiat. C’est aux ouvrières de cette usine que Fulvia D’Aloisio consacre ce livre, fruit d’une enquête ethnographique. Son propos est de croiser les transformations de l’organisation productive dans une usine « à la japonaise », et celles qui affectent ces femmes, tant dans leur travail que dans leur vie quotidienne. L’implantation de ce vaste é...

The chapter discusses the issue of how we may achieve knowledge of essence. It offers a critical survey of the main theories of knowledge of essence that have been proposed within contemporary debates, particularly by Lowe, Hale, Oderberg, Elder, and Kment.

I propose that we approach the epistemology of modality by putting modal metaphysics first and, specifically, by investigating the metaphysics of essence. Following a prominent Neo-Aristotelian view, I hold that metaphysical necessity depends on the nature of things, namely their essences. I further clarify that essences are core properties having distinctive superexplanatory powers. In the case of natural kinds, which is my focus in the paper, superexplanatoriness is due to the fact that the essence of a kind is what causes (...) all the many properties and behaviors that are typically shared by all the instances of the kind. Accordingly, we know what is necessarily true of kinds by knowing what is essential to them in the sense of actually playing such causal-explanatory roles. Modal reasoning aimed at discovering metaphysical necessity thus proceeds via essentialist deduction: we move from essentialist truths to reach necessary truths. (shrink)

I discuss several problems for Williamson’s counterfactual-theory of modal knowledge and argue that they have a common source, in that the theory neglects to elucidate the proper constraints on modal reasoning. Williamson puts forward an empirical hypothesis that rests on the role of counterfactual reasoning for modal knowledge. But he overlooks central questions of normative modal epistemology. In order for counterfactual reasoning to yield correct beliefs about modality, it needs to be suitably constrained. I argue that what is needed is, (...) specifically, information concerning the nature or essence of things. By integrating this information, essentialist deduction arguably provides a better account of our knowledge of modality. Furthermore, I argue that essences have distinctive causal and explanatory powers—indeed, essences are superexplanatory for how things are. Compared to Williamson’s counterfactual-theory, superexplanatory essentialism clarifies what the proper constraints on modal reasoning are, and why they have such a special status. (shrink)

Is imagination a source of knowledge? Timothy Williamson has recently argued that our imaginative capacities can yield knowledge of a variety of matters, spanning from everyday practical matters to logic and set theory. Furthermore, imagination for Williamson plays a similar epistemic role in cognitive processes that we would traditionally classify as either a priori or a posteriori, which he takes to indicate that the distinction itself is shallow and epistemologically fruitless. In this chapter, I aim to defend the a priori-a (...) posteriori distinction from Williamson’s challenge by questioning his account of imagination. I distinguish two notions of imagination at play in Williamson’s account – sensory vs. belief-like imagination – and show that both face empirical and normative issues. Sensory imagination seems neither necessary nor sufficient for knowledge. Whereas, belief-like imagination isn’t adequately disentangled from inference. Additionally, Williamson’s examples are ad hoc and don’t generalize. I conclude that Williamson’s case against the a priori-a posteriori distinction is unconvincing, and so is the thesis that imagination is an epistemic source. (shrink)