Quantum Mind and Social Science

Unifying Physical and Social Ontology

Inbunden, Engelska, 2015

Av Alexander Wendt, Alexander (Ohio State University) Wendt

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There is an underlying assumption in the social sciences that consciousness and social life are ultimately classical physical/material phenomena. In this ground-breaking book, Alexander Wendt challenges this assumption by proposing that consciousness is, in fact, a macroscopic quantum mechanical phenomenon. In the first half of the book, Wendt justifies the insertion of quantum theory into social scientific debates, introduces social scientists to quantum theory and the philosophical controversy about its interpretation, and then defends the quantum consciousness hypothesis against the orthodox, classical approach to the mind-body problem. In the second half, he develops the implications of this metaphysical perspective for the nature of language and the agent-structure problem in social ontology. Wendt's argument is a revolutionary development which raises fundamental questions about the nature of social life and the work of those who study it.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2015-04-23
Mått21 x 229 x 152 mm
Vikt660 g
FormatInbunden
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor368
FörlagCambridge University Press
ISBN9781107082540

Tillhör följande kategorier

1. Preface to a quantum social science; Part I. Quantum Theory and its Interpretation: 2. Three experiments; 3. Six challenges; 4. Five interpretations; Part II. Quantum Consciousness and Life: 5. Quantum brain theory; 6. Panpsychism and neutral monism; 7. A quantum vitalism; Part III. A Quantum Model of Man: 8. Quantum cognition and rational choice; 9. Agency and quantum will; 10. Non-local experience in time; Part IV. Language, Light, and Other Minds: 11. Quantum semantics and meaning holism; 12. Direct perception and other minds; Part V. The Agent-Structure Problem Redux: 13. An emergent, holistic, but flat ontology; 14. Toward a quantum vitalist sociology; Conclusion.

'Wendt's second monograph has been eagerly anticipated. Was it worth the wait? Of course. Beautifully written and painstakingly argued, Quantum Mind and Social Science explores the potential impact that advances in quantum mechanics may have on the social sciences. Notwithstanding the fact that this is probably one of the best introductions to quantum mechanics I have read, the book also raises a series of pressing questions about how a careful engagement with quantum mechanics might alter how we think about social science and social practice … This is a book of speculative grand theorising that is sadly lacking in the social sciences today.' Colin Wight, University of Sydney