A mental files approach to delusional misidentification

Sam Wilkinson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

I suggest that we can think of delusional misidentification in terms of systematic errors in the management of mental files. I begin by sketching the orthodox “bottom-up” aetiology of delusional misidentification. I suggest that the orthodox aetiology can be given a descriptivist or a singularist interpretation. I present three cases that a descriptivist interpretation needs to account for. I then introduce a singularist approach, one that is based on mental files, and show how it opens the way for different and potentially more plausible accounts of these three cases. I reflect on how this mental files approach can be viewed either as a supplement to the orthodox aetiology, or as suggesting an altogether different aetiology. I end by addressing a concern surrounding the explanatory power of mental files.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)389-404
JournalReview of Philosophy and Psychology
Volume7
Issue number2
Early online date23 Apr 2016
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jun 2016

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