GRK 2386: Extrospection. External Acces to Higher Cognitive Processes.

更高的认知过程，如情绪，感知，信念形成或读心术，在哲学，心理学，神经科学和精神病学中至关重要。然而，在何种程度上，这些过程，特别是它们的主观的、现象的特征，可以通过内省的方式，也就是通过外部进入高级认知过程的方式，被充分地捕捉，这是相当有争议的。原因在于，外部方法仅限于间接的外部证据。相比之下，内省长期以来一直被视为特权，因为它可以直接以第一人称进入这些过程。尽管内省的认知凭证受到了攻击，但对内省的怀疑仍然存在，例如，行为主义者。在他们看来，内省甚至违反了科学方法论的最基本标准。虽然内省和纯粹的行为方法一直是方法论反思的重要问题，但内省却被广泛忽视。这就是为什么本项目旨在对内省进行全面的认识论、历史和经验评估。鉴于外倾性与哲学、心理学、神经科学和精神病学等学科研究的相关性，跨学科的方法是无可替代的。作为一个工作假设，我们假设不仅在外倾性和内省性之间，而且在外倾性和自然科学中标准的第三人称方法之间原则上存在认识对称性。虽然我们不否认目前的外向方法的明显的不合理性，我们假设，他们可以克服未来的科学，方法和技术的发展，至少在原则上。RTG将提供一个跨学科的博士课程，包括一个快速通道选项。一个高度重视性别平等的复杂录取程序将选择两批博士研究人员和一批快速通道学生。博士生将申请一个致力于外向问题的跨学科项目。每名学生在入学时将被分配两名来自不同学科的专家，他们将担任他们的初级和二级顾问。RTG课程的核心将包括专门用于内省的特定研究研讨会以及一系列研讨会和学术务虚会。此外，我们还将根据每个学生的具体需求提供基础和高级课程。

Higher cognitive processes like emotions, perception, belief formation or mind-reading are of essential importance in philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, and psychiatry. It is quite controversial, though, to what extent these processes and particularly their subjective, phenomenal character can be captured adequately by means of extrospection, that is, by way of external access to higher cognitive processes. The reason is that extrospective methods are restricted to indirect external evidence. Introspection, by contrast, has long been treated as privileged, given its direct first-person access to these processes. Skepticism against extrospection persists although the epistemic credentials of introspection have been attacked, e.g., by behaviorists. In their view, introspection violates even the most basic standards of scientific methodology.While introspection and purely behavioral approaches have always been important issues of methodological reflection, extrospection has been widely ignored. That is why the present project aims at a comprehensive epistemological, historical and empirical assessment of extrospection. Given the relevance of extrospection for research in disciplines like philosophy, psychology, neuroscience and psychiatry, an interdisciplinary approach is without alternative.As a working hypothesis, we assume that there is an epistemic symmetry in principle not only between extrospection and introspection, but also between extrospection and standard third-person methods in the natural sciences. While we do not deny the obvious insufficiencies of current extrospective methods, we hypothesize that they can be overcome by future scientific, methodological, and technological developments, at least in principle.The RTG will offer an interdisciplinary doctoral program including a fast track option. A sophisticated admission process with a strong focus on gender equality will select two cohorts of doctoral researchers and one cohort of fast track students. Doctoral candidates will apply with an interdisciplinary project devoted to the problem of extrospection. Upon admission, each student will be assigned two experts from different disciplines who will act as their primary and secondary advisors.The core of the RTG’s curriculum will consist of specific research seminars devoted to extrospection and a series of workshops and academic retreats. Moreover, we will offer basic and advanced courses tailored to each individual student’s specific needs.