Explanation in Action Theory and Historiography - Causal and Teleological Approaches

Is the appropriate form of human action explanation causal or rather teleological? This volume brings together causalists and anti-causalists to address enduring philosophical questions at the heart of this debate, as well as their implications for the practice of historiography.

List of contents

1. Introduction
Gunnar Schumann
Part I: Causal vs. Teleological Explanation of Action
2. Causalism: On Action Explanation and Causal Deviance
Alfred Mele
3. Why and How? Teleological and Causal Concepts in Action Explanation
George F. Schueler
4. Rationalizing Principles and Causal Explanation
Guido Löhrer and Scott R. Sehon
5. On an Imaginary Dialogue Between a Causalist and an Anti-causalist
Giuseppina D'Oro
6. Reasons, Causes, Desires, and Dispositions
Severin Schroeder
7. Objectivism and Causalism about Reasons for Action
Hans-Johann Glock and Eva Schmidt
8. Are Reasons Like Shampoo?
Constanine Sandis
Part II: Causal vs. Teleological Explanation in Historiography
9. Counterfactual Causality and Historical Explanations
Doris Gerber
10. Beyond Causalism and Acausalism
Harold Kincaid
11. Two Methods in History
Thomas Keutner
12. An Anti-causal Theory of Action as Basis for Historical Explanations. A Sketch
Gunnar Schumann
13. Meanings and Mechanisms: An Actor-centered Approach to Historical Explanation
Daniel Little
14. The Origins of Historiographic Causation
Aviezer Tucker

About the author

Gunnar Schumann is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at FernUniversität in Hagen, Germany

Summary

Is the appropriate form of human action explanation causal or rather teleological? This volume brings together causalists and anti-causalists to address enduring philosophical questions at the heart of this debate, as well as their implications for the practice of historiography.

Product details

• Authors: Gunnar Schumann, Gunnar (Fernuniversitat in Hagen Schumann
• Assisted by: Gunnar Schumann (Editor), Gunnar (Fernuniversitat in Hagen Schumann (Editor)
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd.
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 30.06.2019
• EAN: 9781138584402
• ISBN: 978-1-138-58440-2
• No. of pages: 270
• Series: Routledge Studies in Contemporary Philosophy
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Linguistics and literary studies > General and comparative linguistics; Non-fiction book > Philosophy, religion > Philosophy: general, reference works; PHILOSOPHY / General, History: theory & methods, PHILOSOPHY / Free Will & Determinism, Philosophy of Mind, PHILOSOPHY / Movements / Humanism, History: theory and methods