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Teleological Essentialism: Generalized.

David Rose1, Shaun Nichols2

  • 1Department of Philosophy, Florida State University.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Teleological essentialism suggests that people essentialize various categories, including natural and artifactual kinds, based on their purposes. This research supports the idea that category judgments are guided by inferred purposes.

Keywords:
ArtifactsEssentialismNatural kindsTeleology

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Philosophy of Science
  • Social Cognition

Background:

  • Essentialism posits that categories possess inherent, defining properties.
  • Traditional views exclude artifacts from essentialized categories, focusing on natural and social kinds.
  • Teleological essentialism proposes purpose (telos) as a core property for essentializing diverse categories.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether people essentialize artifactual kinds based on teleology.
  • To test the scope of teleological essentialism across natural and social kinds.
  • To explore the role of purpose inference in categorization.

Main Methods:

  • Empirical studies employing typical essentialism paradigms: superficial change, internal transformation, and offspring inferences.
  • Experimental design to assess categorization judgments based on perceived purposes.
  • Novel experimental manipulation to test unique predictions of teleological essentialism.

Main Results:

  • Evidence supports the essentialization of living natural kinds, non-living natural kinds, and artifactual kinds through teleology.
  • Participants' inferences about category purposes influenced their categorization judgments.
  • Study 4 provided unique evidence for teleological essentialism and purpose-driven categorization.

Conclusions:

  • Teleological essentialism offers a broader framework for understanding essentialist thinking across diverse categories.
  • Purpose is a fundamental property that underpins essentialist judgments for both natural and artificial objects.
  • Cognitive mechanisms for inferring purpose play a crucial role in categorization and essentialism.