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Evolutionary Epistemology, Language and Culture pp 33–46Cite as

Evolutionary epistemology: The non-adaptationist approach

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Part of the book series: Theory and Decision Library A: ((TDLA,volume 39))

Abstract

Earlier versions of evolutionary epistemology were based on—or at least strongly informed by—the adaptationist paradigm. It is for this reason that advocates of evolutionary epistemology have been frequently criticized by those who have adopted an organismic perspective in evolutionary thinking. Evolutionists defending the view that any living system—including all its characters at the anatomical as well as the behavioral level—can be sufficiently explained in terms of adaptation, have neglected the (somehow trivial) fact that organisms are active systems that do not entirely depend on their respective environment(s). Meanwhile, however, a systems-theoretical approach to understanding living beings and their evolution has made clear that (1) organisms and their environment(s) have a common history and have not evolved independent of each other, (2) any living system and its environment(s) are linked together by a feedback principle, and (3) adaptability is not defined by the environment but the organism itself. This has serious consequences for evolutionary epistemology. In this paper, I outline a non-adaptationist version of this epistemology. I also briefly discuss its philosophical implications. The main focus is the problem of realism.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Philosophy of Science, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Franz M. Wuketits

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  1. Franz M. Wuketits
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium

    Nathalie Gontier (Research Assistant of the Research Foundation Flanders), Jean Paul Van Bendegem  & Diederik Aerts (Research Assistant of the Research Foundation Flanders),  & 

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Wuketits, F.M. (2006). Evolutionary epistemology: The non-adaptationist approach. In: Gontier, N., Van Bendegem, J.P., Aerts, D. (eds) Evolutionary Epistemology, Language and Culture. Theory and Decision Library A:, vol 39. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-3395-8_2

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