Theoretical paper

This paper is an alternative option for students unable to complete the Cognitive Ethnography Project

Goal: To further the theoretical discussion about socio-cultural, situated and distributed cognitive (dcog for short) processes and systems by research and argument.

Topics

Your paper should be of one of the following types:

  1. Interpretation / Explanation: Analyze or interpret an existing dcog system or process using theoretical concepts from the course and empirical data from existing studies. (You are not to gather new empirical data for this paper.) The empirical studies you cite do not need to apply dcog theories themselves. Your job is to show how dcog ideas account for some existing phenomena.
    • A great example of this kind of work is Jean Lave’s discussion of previous studies of learning transfer in Chapter 2 of Cognition in Practice.
  2. Critical Engagements: In the course we have read defenses and applications of radical dcog approaches to social/cognitive systems and processes. Of course, these approaches have been criticized from both more orthodox and more radical points of view. Your job is to research one particular set of criticisms or to articulate criticisms of your own. You can either respond on behalf of the dcog approach, validate and extend the critique, or find some middle ground. For example:
    • Philosophers like Robert Rubert, Ken Aizawa, and Fred Adams have attack philosophical and scientific theories that extend the mind beyond the brain or individual. They argue that a more conservative account which treats the mind as “embedded” without treating the external factors as “constituent” parts of mind / cognition.
    • Psychologists like Margaret Wilson have questioned views of “embodied cognition” that involve environment and action as central to cognition along empirical and explanatory grounds.
    • Sociologists (and other social scientists) like Graham Button have questioned distributed cognition theories from the perspective of adequate theories of society.

Format

  1. Ordinary, easily readable fonts, font size, margins, etc. Be reasonable; aim at readabilitynot flashy style.
  2. First page must include your name, UTD-ID, date, the section number you are registered in, the title of your paper, and an abstract, 100-200 words.
  3. Every subsequentpage should include a page number and preferably your last name in the header or footer.
  4. Citations according to some major manual of style, preferably APA or Chicago, preferably author-date format. Take proper citation practices seriously.
  5. 2100-5000 words (including references and notes).
  6. Review these further generic tips and guidelines.

Draft Due 4/26 online via Turnitin.com. Peer review 4/27-5/2.

Final Due: 5/8

This project is optional. You can choose to do it or to complete the final stages of the Cognitive Ethnography Project.