Ethnoontology: Ways of world‐building across cultures

Abstract

This article outlines a program of ethnoontology that brings together empirical research in the ethnosciences with ontological debates in philosophy. First, we survey empirical evidence from heterogeneous cultural contexts and disciplines.Second, we propose a model of cross-cultural relations between ontologies beyond a simple divide between universalist and relativist models. Third, we argue for an integrative model of ontology building that synthesizes insights from different fields such as biological taxonomy, cognitive science, cultural anthropology, and political ecology. We conclude by arguing that a program of ethnoontology provides philosophers both with insights about traditional issues such as debates about natural kinds and with novel strategies for connecting philosophy with pressing global issues such as the conservation of local environments and the self-determination of Indigenous communities.

Perspectival Realism

“…More recently, human epistemic practices behind each natural kind have been put centre-stage by Kendig (2016a) in what she calls 'kinding' processes, and by Reydon (2016), who refers to the 'co-creation' of categories by merging empirical properties with human cognition. Ludwig's practice-dependent kinds have further strengthened this approach by looking at examples in ethnobotany and ethnozoology (see Ludwig 2017, and Ludwig and Weiskopf 2019. And Bursten's work on kinds in nanotechnology (2016, 2018, 2020a) has offered further material for reflecting on what natural kinds really are.…”

“…think of Chang 2012a on the Chemical Revolution; or work in ethnobiology, e.g. Kendig 2015;Ludwig 2018b;Ludwig and Weiskopf 2019). But debates on realism in science have failed to catch up with these trends.…”

Mental health, normativity, and local knowledge in global perspective

“…I then proceed to argue that if supplied with a distinct model of ontology-building, ethnopsychiatric research can contribute to the global view sketched out above, particularly in disclosing the role of local context and values, thus informing understandings of mental health and illness beyond the perspective of the Western subject. In articulating this ontological background I use the partially overlapping ontologies model (Ludwig and Weiskopf, 2019) with additional emphasis on the causal efficacy of local approaches in treating mental disorder to be discussed in relation to a case study in section 4.…”

“…Thus, an answer to the dilemma cannot be found within the theoretical assumptions underlying ethnopsychiatry. To overcome this worry, I will argue for a perspective where broad features applying to Western psychiatry intertwine with local aspects, by extending the framework of partially overlapping ontologies by Ludwig and Weiskopf (2019) to ethnopsychiatry.…”

“…Coming back to the four factors discussed by Ludwig and Weiskopf (2019), in the context of the study above, they would work as follows:…”