Ecological-Enactive Cognition as engaging with a field of relevant affordances

Abstract

The topic of this Oxford handbook is “4E cognition”: cognition as embodied, embedded, enactive, and extended. However, one important “E” is missing: an E for ecological. We sketch an ecological-enactive approach to cognition that presents a framework for bringing together the embodied/enactive program with the ecological program originally developed by James Gibson, in which affordances are central. We call this framework the skilled intentionality framework. The skilled intentionality framework is a philosophical approach to understanding the situated and affective embodied mind. It is a new conceptual framework for the field of 4E cognitive science that focuses on skilled action and builds upon an enriched notion of affordances. We define skilled intentionality as the selective engagement with multiple affordances simultaneously in a concrete situation. The skilled intentionality framework clarifies how complementary insights on affordance responsiveness from philosophy/phenomenology, ecological psychology, emotion psychology, and neurodynamics hang together in an intertwined way.

Foregrounding Sociomaterial Practice in Our Understanding of Affordances: The Skilled Intentionality Framework

“…The Skilled Intentionality Framework (Rietveld, 2012; Bruineberg and Rietveld, 2014, Figure 1; Rietveld and Kiverstein, 2014; Kiverstein and Rietveld, 2015; Rietveld et al, 2016) aligns with Wittgenstein and identifies the constellation of sociomaterial practices we encountered above as our human form of life . The form of life consists, in other words, of our actively maintained standing practices – our regular ways of doing things:…”

“…Furthermore, from a lived perspective, one never encounters an affordance in isolation. Studies on affordances should thus take note of the sociomaterial context by studying affordance perception in the context of a field of relevant affordances embedded in a behavior setting (Heft, 2007, 2012) and/or a sociomaterial practice (Rietveld and Brouwers, 2016; Rietveld et al, 2016). By taking a more situated approach, both fields can thus contribute to the same overall goal of extending the reach of ecological psychology toward dealing with case of so-called “higher” cognition.…”

“…As mentioned above, Skilled Intentionality is defined as coordinating with multiple affordances simultaneously in a concrete situation (Rietveld et al, 2016). Individuals are enmeshed in a constellation of practices; in a form of life.…”

The field and landscape of affordances: Koffka’s two environments revisited

“…In our earlier work on skilled intentionality, we have made a distinction between the field of relevant affordances, and the landscape of affordances in which the field is situated (Bruineberg and Rietveld 2014;Rietveld et al 2018). 7 The landscape of affordances is our term for an animal's ecological niche understood as a set of affordances (Gibson 1979: p. 128).…”

“…In our earlier work we have provided an account of why in a particular situation an animal selectively responds to some affordances but not others, based in part on the animal's needs and interests (see e.g. Bruineberg and Rietveld 2014;Rietveld et al 2018;Rietveld 2008). This led us to distinguish the field of relevant affordances, from what we have called the landscape of affordances.…”