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The teleological stance: Past, present, and future.

Joshua Juvrud1, Gustaf Gredebäck1

  • 1Department of Psychology, Uppsala Child and Baby Lab, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.

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|April 19, 2020
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Summary

This review examines teleological stance theory in infants, finding support for its role in action understanding but questioning rational imitation. A new embodied theory of teleological processes is proposed, rooted in early motor development.

Keywords:
goal-directed actioninfancyreferential actionteleological reasoning

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Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Philosophy of Mind

Background:

  • Teleological stance theory is foundational for understanding goal-directed actions in early development.
  • Key debates center on how infants represent teleological processes and rationality.
  • Existing paradigms include visual habituation, rational imitation, and action prediction.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review existing support and criticisms of teleological stance theory in infancy.
  • To address the unspecified ontology of teleological processes.
  • To introduce a novel action-based theory: the embodied account of teleological processes.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on infant action understanding and teleological processes.
  • Analysis of paradigms: visual habituation, rational imitation, and action prediction.
  • Theoretical development of an embodied account based on reaching development.

Main Results:

  • Visual habituation studies support teleological processes in infants.
  • Rational imitation lacks theoretical and empirical support.
  • The role of teleological processes in action prediction remains unclear.
  • The ontology of teleological processes is currently unspecified.

Conclusions:

  • The embodied account of teleological processes offers a new framework, originating from fetal development and early infancy.
  • This theory grounds teleological processes in action and motor development.
  • Further research is needed to clarify the ontology and predictive functions of teleological processes.