Simo Køppe

EXPLAINING EMERGENCE: TOWARDS AN ONTOLOGY OF LEVELS

The vitalism/reductionism debate in the life sciences shows that the idea of emergence as something principally unexplainable will often be falsified by the development of science. Nevertheless, the concept of emergence keeps reappearing in various sciences, and cannot easily be dispensed with in an evolutionary world-view. We argue that what is needed is an ontological non reductionist theory of levels of reality which includes a concept of emergence, and which can support an evolutionary account of the origin of levels. Classical explication of emergence as “the creation of new properties” is discussed critically, and specific distinctions between various kinds of emergence is introduced for the purpose of developing an ontology of levels, framed in a materialistic and evolutionary perspective. A concept of the relation between levels as being inclusive is suggested, permitting the “local” existence of different ontologies. We identify, as a working hypothesis, four primary levels and explicate their nonhomomorphic interlevel relations. Explainability of emergence in relation to determinism and predictability is considered. Recent research in self-organizing non-linear dynamical systems represents a revival of the scientific study of emergence, and we argue that these recent developments can be seen as a step toward a final “devitalisation” of emergence.

A Moderate Eclecticism: Ontological and Epistemological Issues

SummaryThe principle of eclecticism is discussed with the point of departure in a definition of psychology and its subject areas. It is argued that eclecticism constitutes one of the key developmental conditions for science. The argument begins with an analysis of the distinction between real and recognized object and concludes that a scientific object always has an infinite number of aspects and that this fact is not reducible to a question of complexity. Next a differentiation between theoretical levels based on ontological arguments are introduced and it is concluded that it is necessary to accept positive eclectic processes in theories, and that development of theories is due to an eclectic relationship with other theories. A series of examples are given for different versions of the eclectic development of psychological disciplines and concepts, namely phenomenology, psychoanalysis, stress, and cognition.

Cultural differences in infant development during the first year: A study of Danish infants assessed by the Bayley-III and compared to the American norms

The aim of this study was to examine whether significant developmental differences existed between a Danish sample of infants and the American norms as measured by the Bayley Scales of Infant Development–III. Longitudinal data was collected at 4, 7, 10 and 13 months for 45 Danish infants. The results showed significant differences between scores of the Danish infants and the American norms regarding cognitive, language and motor functioning. Specifically, Danish infants were at all ages of assessment significantly delayed in their development of receptive language when compared to the American norms. One explanation for this is suggested to be the nature of Danish sound structure which makes Danish harder to learn. The results of the present study underline the need to be cautious when using developmental scales in countries where no local norms exist.

Measuring spatial proximity in mother-infant interaction: A kinematic approach for an examination of the effects of maternal postpartum depression

A kinematic approach was used to measure mother-infant spatial proximity at 4 months. Maternal postpartum depression (PPD) impacts on mother-infant spatial interaction. We compared 28 dyads with mothers meeting criteria for PPD and 46 typical dyads. The PPD dyads had less variability in spatial proximity compared to typical dyads.

The Relationship Between Body Movements and Qualities of Social Interaction Between a Boy With Severe Developmental Disabilities and His Caregiver

Research in social interaction and nonverbal communication among individuals with severe developmental disabilities also includes the study of body movements. Advances in analytical technology give new possibilities for measuring body movements more accurately and reliably. One such advance is the Qualisys Motion Capture System (QMCS), which utilizes optical markers to capture body movements. The aim of this study was to explore the practicality of measuring body movements in the nonverbal communication of a child with severe developmental disabilities. A preliminary case study has been undertaken. The social interaction between a boy with developmental disabilities and his teacher was analyzed (1) using observer ratings on psychological aspects of the social interaction and (2) measuring body positions, velocity, and angles of body movements using the QMCS. Associations between observer ratings and measured body movements were examined. This preliminary case study has indicated that emotional response and attention level during the social interaction corresponded with local, synchronized movements and face-to-face orientation. Measurement of motor behavior is suggested as being a potentially useful methodological approach to studying social interaction and communication development.

Meaning, representations, and the preunconscious

forms that are crossmodal traits. They are absolutely fundamental semantic elements (properties of the senses). According to empirical developmental psychology, there are few amodal qualities: duration, rhythm, intensity, spatial extent, and shape (Lewkowicz, 2012). As amodal qualities, they can be found in relation to all modalities. There is a third system of rather structural and functional basic semantic elements, namely the image scheme from cognitive semantics (Lakoff & Johnson, 1999). In an interesting article, Bent Rosenbaum (2003) analyzes the model from Chapter 7 in The Interpretation of Dreams and proposes that what I call the preunconscious should contain the cognitive semantics image scheme. Image schemes are a set of very abstract semantic forms that are related to the architecture of our body (e.g., container, path-goal). The preunconscious includes pictograms, vitality forms, image schemes, and amodalities. From birth on pictograms probably are established very fast, while vitality forms, image schemes, and amodalities are developed within the first year. The preunconscious is a receiving zone for sense elements from both the outside world via sense organs as well as from the body itself. Most of these elements are not able to reach consciousness in and of themselves. Thus, they have to be combined and structured in simple ways. In the preceding, I have discussed the contributions of Botella and Botella and Green, because they are relevant in relation to coining the concept of preunconscious. So how do they contribute? Botella and Botella contribute with their concept ‘figurability’ and their attempt to grasp something unrepresentational. I think their struggle to grasp this zone is very illustrative partly because of the recognition that there is something dynamic in the psyche that seemingly escapes the conventional models, partly because metapsychologically they are unable to free themselves completely from associationism. When the point of departure is unrepresentation, there is no other concept left than quantity; hence, figurability is defined as an energetic core of the unconscious. There is a parallel to this in Green’s analysis of the relation between body and psyche. Green is in different ways interested in relations between affect and representation, and he apparently has some difficulty in coming to terms with the notion that affects are quantities even if he by and large concludes his analyses with that. I think that Green is one of the best examples of not seeing how dominant associationism is.

A normative theory of humanistic knowledge

ZusammenfassungAusgehend von der Gegenüberstellung der Wissenschaftlichkeit der Naturwissenschaften und der Geisteswissenschaften wird argumentiert, daß Wissenschaftlichkeit nur auf der Basis einer Zusammenstellung wissenschaftstheoretischer, wissenschaftsgeschichtlicher und wissenschaftssoziologischer Kriterien definiert werden kann. Eine solche dreiteilige Definition wird skizziert, und es wird behauptet, daß dies gültig sowohl für die Naturwissenschaften als auch für die Geisteswissenschaften ist. Es folgt daraus, daß es im Prinzip keine Verschiedenheit zwischen der Wissenschaftlichkeit der einen Basiswissenschaft und der anderen gibt. Die Formulierung dreier normativer Kriterien für Wissenschaft als solche schließt den Artikel ab.

The Emergence of the Psyche

An attempt to outline an understanding of the emergence of the psyche and its early development based upon a series of very different theories which would be able to function as a new framework. The theories can be advantageously linked together to form a complete picture that proceeds from definite basic assumptions which these different theories must accept. The theories are primarily psychoanalytic, phenomenologic, semantic and evolutionary/biologic.

Shaping of Reach-to-Grasp Kinematics by Intentions: A Meta-Analysis

ABSTRACT When we reach to grasp something, we need to take into account both the properties of the object we are grasping and the intention we have in mind. Previous research has found these constraints to be visible in the reach-to-grasp kinematics, but there is no consensus on which kinematic parameters are the most sensitive. To examine this, a systematic literature search and meta-analyses were performed. The search identified studies assessing how changes in either an object property or a prior intention affect reach-to-grasp kinematics in healthy participants. Hereafter, meta-analyses were conducted using a restricted maximum likelihood random effect model. The meta-analyses showed that changes in both object properties and prior intentions affected reach-to-grasp kinematics. Based on these results, the authors argue for a tripartition of the reach-to-grasp movement in which the accelerating part of the reach is primarily associated with transporting the hand to the object (i.e., extrinsic object properties), the decelerating part of the reach is used as a preparation for object manipulation (i.e., prepare the grasp or the subsequent action), and the grasp is associated with manipulating the objects intrinsic properties, especially object size.

Maternal touch in caregiving behavior of mothers with and without postpartum depression

The way a mother touches her infant plays a central role in maternal caregiving behavior. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to examine associations between touch and positive and negative caregiving behavior and whether this association differed in mothers with and without postpartum depression, an episode of depressive disorder following childbirth. Positive caregiving behavior was operationalized as sensitive behavior, i.e. the mothers ability to notice the childs signals, interpret these signals correctly and respond to them promptly and appropriately. Negative caregiving behavior was operationalized as overriding behavior, i.e. behavior which disturbs the childs behavior or redirects the childs attention to follow the parents agenda. Seventy mother-infant dyads (44 in the nonclinical group and 26 in the clinical group) participated in a 10minutes long mother-infant interaction at four months postpartum. The sample is part of an archival dataset of a longitudinal study investigating the parent-child relationship and child development. Three minutes of the interaction were coded a) microanalytically for touch, using a modified version of the Maternal Touch Scale (Beebe et al., 2010), and b) macroanalytically for sensitive and overriding behavior, using the Coding Interactive Behavior measure (Feldman, 1998). Hierarchical regression analyses with bootstrapping showed that caregiving touch, but not affectionate and static touch, was associated with sensitive behavior across the whole sample. Moreover, playful, but not rough-intrusive touch, was associated with overriding behavior across the whole sample. Associations did not differ between mothers with and without postpartum depression.