Revisiting causal pluralism: Intention, process, and dependency in cases of double prevention

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Science
• Psychology
• Philosophy of Mind

Background:

• Causal pluralism posits dual reasoning modes: dependency and process relations.
• Previous studies linked intentionality to differential weighting of these relations in double prevention scenarios.
• Research suggested intentional actions influence causal attributions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To challenge the causal pluralism account of intentionality's role in causal reasoning.
• To investigate if intentionality exclusively impacts dependency relation weighting.
• To explore if process relations explain double preventer attributions and the impact of action order.

Main Methods:

• Experiments 1-2: Examined intentionality's effect on dependency and process relation interpretations.
• Experiments 3-4: Manipulated action order to assess unintentional double preventer causality compared to intentional affectors.
• Utilized double prevention scenarios with varying intentionality and action sequences.

Main Results:

• Intentionality may not solely enhance dependency relation weighting.
• Evidence suggests reasoners interpret unintentional actions via process relations.
• Altering action order significantly impacted causal ratings, favoring unintentional double preventers over intentional affectors in specific contexts.

Conclusions:

• The causal pluralism account requires re-evaluation regarding intentionality's influence.
• Reasoners' interpretation of causal scenarios, especially with intentional actions, is more complex than previously assumed.
• Future research should explore the dynamic interplay of intentionality, action order, and reasoning modes in causal judgment.