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Reductionism in retreat

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 March 2019

Denny Borsboom ,
Angélique O. J. Cramer Open the ORCID record for Angélique O. J. Cramer [Opens in a new window]  and
Annemarie Kalis Open the ORCID record for Annemarie Kalis [Opens in a new window]
Denny Borsboom
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, 1018 WT Amsterdam, The Netherlands. d.borsboom@uva.nlhttps://www.dennyborsboom.com
Angélique O. J. Cramer
Affiliation:
Department of Methodology and Statistics, Tilburg University, 5000 LE Tilburg, The Netherlands. aoj.cramer@gmail.comhttps://www.aojcramer.com
Annemarie Kalis
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Utrecht University, 3512 BL Utrecht, The Netherlands. A.Kalis@uu.nlhttps://www.uu.nl/staff/AKalis
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Abstract

We address the commentaries on our target article in terms of four major themes. First, we note that virtually all commentators agree that mental disorders are not brain disorders in the common interpretation of these terms, and establish the consensus that explanatory reductionism is not a viable thesis. Second, we address criticisms to the effect that our article was misdirected or aimed at a straw man; we argue that this is unlikely, given the widespread communication of reductionist slogans in psychopathology research and society. Third, we tackle the question of whether intentionality, extended systems, and multiple realizability are as problematic as claimed in the target article, and we present a number of nuances and extensions with respect to our article. Fourth, we discuss the question of how the network approach should incorporate biological factors, given that wholesale reductionism is an unlikely option.

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Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 42 , 2019 , e32
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Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019 

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