Call for Papers

New Perspectives on Joint Attention
Special issue of Topoi: An International Review of Philosophy
https://www.springer.com/journal/11245/updates/23781996

Guest editors:
Anna Bloom-Christen (University of California, Los Angeles, abc22@g.ucla.edu)
Michael Wilby (Anglia Ruskin University, Michael.Wilby@aru.ac.uk)

Deadline for manuscript submission: May 31, 2023

INTRODUCTION:

Joint attention has generated a lot of discussion within a range of areas, most notably developmental psychology and philosophy (Eilan et al 2005; Seemann 2011; Metcalfe and Terrace 2014; Seemann 2021). It is often thought to be deeply implicated in our understanding of other minds (Heal 2005; Schmitz 2014, Martens 2021), our understanding of communicative utterances (Campbell 2019; Seemann 2019; Harder 2022), the development of language learning (Sabbagh & Baldwin 2005), and the capacity for collaborative joint action (Fiebich & Gallagher 2013). Some have argued that, in its full-blown guise, it is part of a suite of distinctively human capacities that underpin the normativity of human interactions which allow for cumulative culture (Tomasello et al 2005; Kern and Moll 2017).

Nevertheless, the phenomenon is not well understood philosophically. There is little agreement on the nature of joint attention, nor on its epistemic and practical functions (Wilby 2022). For instance, while some people have attempted to develop representationalist understandings of joint attention (Tomasello 1995; Peacocke 2005), others have raised in-principle problems with such approaches and have urged alternatives (Campbell 2005; Wilby 2010; Leon 2021; Bloom-Christen 2022). Further, there is no agreement, and little development, of the question of if, or in what way, joint attention is informed by higher-level conceptual capacities. That is to say: is joint attention essentially a thin perceptual capacity, or does it involve background enculturation and rich conceptual capabilities?

This special issue aims to re-invigorate these debates by widening the focus: in addition to thinking about joint attention as a psychological phenomenon, we invite contributors to examine its role in social, political and anthropological contexts, as well as its role in AI, VR and online environments. By combining the traditional psychological perspective with a wider social and technological view, we hope that progress can be made on both the nature and functions of joint attention: what it is, what it does, in what ways it can manifest itself, and what happens when it breaks down.

THE ISSUE:

We welcome any submissions that discuss the nature of, or the application of, joint attention. We especially welcome submissions that discuss the role that joint attention might play in areas that are under-discussed in the literature – e.g., the role of joint attention within a religious context, political context, anthropological context, online environment, or how it manifests within, or otherwise affects aspects of mental health or well-being.

The issue will contain a selection of invited contributions with the aim of widening the focus of the philosophical discussion on joint attention. In addition, the issue is open to submissions focusing on implications, structure, and manifestations of joint attention in the mind and world perceived as social.

CONFIRMED CONTRIBUTORS:

• Sophie Grace Chappell (Open University, sophie-grace.chappell@open.ac.uk)
• Ophelia Deroy (Ludwig Maximilian University Munich, ophelia.deroy@lrz.uni-muenchen.de)
• Alessandro Duranti (University of California, Los Angeles, aduranti@anthro.ucla.edu)
• Isabel Kaeslin (University of Fribourg, isabel.kaeslin@unifr.ch)
• Henrike Moll (University of Southern California, hmoll@usc.edu)
• Sylvia Panizza (University College Dublin, silvia.capriogliopanizza@upce.cz)
• Michael Schmitz (University of Vienna, Michael.Schmitz@univie.ac.at)
• Axel Seemann (Bentley University, aseemann@bentley.edu)

SUBMISSION PROCESS:

All papers will be subject to double-blind peer-review, following international standard practices. Each submission will be reviewed by no less than two referees. Potential contributions will be screened by the guest editors based on relevance to the call prior to peer reviewing. We therefore encourage potential contributors to make preliminary queries with us before submission.

To submit, go to Topoi’s online Editorial Manager and choose the category “S.I.: Joint Attention (Bloom-Christen/Wilby)” from the menu “Article Type”. Please also check Topoi’s Submission Guidelines.

LENGTH:

Papers should be limited to 8,000 words.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Anna Bloom-Christen (abc22@g.ucla.edu)
Michael Wilby (Michael.Wilby@aru.ac.uk)