The enactive approach. Theoretical sketches from cell to society

Abstract

There is a small but growing community of researchers spanning a spectrum of disciplines united in their rejection of the still dominant computationalist paradigm in favor of the enactive approach . The theoretical framework of this approach focuses on a set of ideas, such as autonomy, meaning-making, emergence, embodiment, and experience. These concepts are finding new applications in a range of diverse areas. A hot topic has been the establishment of an enactive approach to social interaction. The primary purpose of this article is to serve as an advanced entry point to these recent developments. The article accomplishes this task in a twofold way: (I) it provides a succinct synthesis of the most important central ideas and arguments in the theoretical framework of the enactive approach and (II) it uses this synthesis to refine the enactive approach to social interaction. A new operational definition of social interaction is proposed, which not only emphasizes the cognitive agency of individuals and the irreducibility of the interaction process itself, but also the need for jointly regulated action. It is suggested that this revised conception of 'sociocognitive interaction' may provide the necessary middle ground from which to understand the confluence of biological and cultural values ​​in personal action.