Restructuring Attentionality and Intentionality
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Restructuring Attentionality and Intentionality P. Sven Arvidson
Published online: 13 September 2012 Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012
Abstract Phenomenology and experimental psychology have been largely interested in the same thing when it comes to attention. By building on the work of Aron Gurwitsch, especially his ideas of attention and restructuration, this paper attempts to articulate common ground in psychology and phenomenology of attention through discussion of a new way to think about multistability in some phenomena. What psychology views as an attentionality-intentionality phenomenon, phenomenology views as an intentionality-attentionality phenomenon. The proposal is that an awareness of this restructuring of attentionality and intentionality can benefit both approaches to attention. After reviewing Husserl’s position on attentionality and intentionality, this paper examines multistable phenomena, redefines the attentional transformation called restructuring, discusses disciplinary perspectives on attention and gives an example using common ground. Keywords Attention Intentionality Gurwitsch Husserl Gestalt Index Multistable phenomena
Introduction An assumption and motivation for this paper is that phenomenology and experimental psychology have been largely interested in the same thing when it comes to attention. The problem is to identify common ground for translation or redefinition of experimental psychological insights so they might enhance, extend or complement phenomenological articulations. Experimental psychology of attention and phenomenology of attention agree, implicitly or explicitly, that the focus of attention is presented in a relevant context, surrounded by a less relevant marginal P. S. Arvidson (&) Department of Philosophy, Seattle University, 901 12th Ave., Seattle, WA 98122, USA e-mail: [email protected]
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background. This focus, context, margin triad is the ‘‘same thing’’ which concerns both sets of researchers. Psychologists tend to emphasize the focus in the triad, while phenomenologists tend to emphasize the focus and its connection to context. By building on the work of Aron Gurwitsch, especially his ideas of attention and restructuration, this paper attempts to articulate common ground in psychology and phenomenology of attention through discussion of a new way to think about multistability in some phenomena. Since what psychology views as an attentionality-intentionality phenomenon, phenomenology views as an intentionality-attentionality phenomenon, the proposal is that an awareness of a restructuring of attentionality and intentionality can benefit both approaches to the focus, context, margin in attending. Why bother bringing experimental psychology and phenomenology together with respect to attention? Experimental psychologists have built a massive and dynamic library about attention in journals such as Perception & Psychophysics, Psychological Science and the various iterations of the Journal of Experimental Psychology. A
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