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From Intersubjectivity to Group Cognition

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Abstract

The question of how it is possible for people to understand each other has been a controversial theme throughout the recent history of philosophy. It is a foundational issue for the social sciences, in which researchers try to understand the behaviors and statements of other people. It is of particular relevance to CSCW and CSCL, where participants have to understand, work with and learn with each other. Philosophers have posed the issue of how an individual can understand another and how a small group or community can have a joint understanding, shared intentionality or we-awareness. Studies of CSCW not only adopt insights from the philosophy of intersubjectivity to ground their methodology, they also contribute to the analysis of how intersubjectivity is established in concrete settings, including in virtual environments. Similarly, CSCL research can investigate how groups of people learn to construct intersubjective understandings in both traditional and technologically enhanced interactions. While classical phenomenology of intersubjectivity started from the cognitions of a solitary mind, the notion of intersubjectivity has subsequently shifted to a more social view. Recent studies of intersubjectivity suggest a structure of group cognition, which can provide a foundation for collaboration in work and learning that incorporates but transcends individual cognition.

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Notes

  1. The masculine pronoun is used throughout this paper to refer to people of all genders, in keeping with traditional English grammar and philosophic usage.

  2. The notion of intentionality was first developed by Husserl’s teacher, Brentano (1874). As the lead article explains, it means that consciousness is always consciousness of something, always directed at something.

  3. Evolutionary development of mirror neurons and increased brain structure on the biological level may have accompanied and facilitated this increased sense of mutuality on the cultural level as a competitive advantage (Gallese and Lakoff 2005), but see also (Hickok 2014).

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  1. Drexel University, 194 Lynnebrook Ln, Philadelphia, PA, 19118, USA

    Gerry Stahl

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Stahl, G. From Intersubjectivity to Group Cognition. Comput Supported Coop Work 25, 355–384 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10606-016-9243-z

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