Philosophy A-Level
Realism about mental states
What Realism about mental states means in Philosophy A-Level, as defined for AQA.
Definition of Realism about mental states
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Reference: AQA
Treating the posits of folk-psychology as real rather than as useful fictions, because it predicts and explains behaviour well.
Topics that use Realism about mental states
- Physicalist theories (AQA A-Level)
Related terms
- Eliminative materialism
- First-person certainty of mental states
- Folk psychology
- Hempel's logical analysis of psychology
- Implications for physicalist theories
- Inference to the best explanation
- Knowledge by direct access versus inference
- Knowledge of other minds
Using Realism about mental states in the exam
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