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Single Idea 18691

[filed under theme 18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / d. Concepts as prototypes ]

Full Idea

Nothing in the prototype model says the shape of an animal is more important than its location in identifying its kind. The theory does not provide a way the features can be constructed, rather than just observed.

Gist of Idea

The prototype theory uses observed features, but can't include their construction

Source

Gregory L. Murphy (The Big Book of Concepts [2004], Ch. 6)

Book Ref

Murphy,Gregory L.: 'The Big Book of Concepts' [MIT 2004], p.183

A Reaction

This makes some kind of mental modelling central to thought, and not just a bonus once you have empirically acquired the concepts. We bring our full range of experience to bear on even the most instantaneous observations.

The 22 ideas with the same theme [concepts as built around typical examples of things]:

12622 Many concepts lack prototypes, and complex prototypes aren't built from simple ones [Fodor]
12659 Maybe stereotypes are a stage in concept acquisition (rather than a by-product) [Fodor]
12660 One stereotype might be a paradigm for two difference concepts [Fodor]
15688 Categories are characterized by distance from a prototype [Gelman]
17975 There is no 'ideal' bird or dog, and prototypes give no information about variability [Murphy]
17976 Prototypes are unified representations of the entire category (rather than of members) [Murphy]
18691 The prototype theory uses observed features, but can't include their construction [Murphy]
17983 The prototype theory handles hierarchical categories and combinations of concepts well [Murphy]
17985 Prototypes theory of concepts is best, as a full description with weighted typical features [Murphy]
17986 Learning concepts is forming prototypes with a knowledge structure [Murphy]
11134 People don't just categorise by apparent similarities [Margolis/Laurence]
11136 Many complex concepts obviously have no prototype [Margolis/Laurence]
11133 Prototype theory categorises by computing the number of shared constituents [Margolis/Laurence]
11135 Complex concepts have emergent properties not in the ingredient prototypes [Margolis/Laurence]
11132 The prototype theory is probabilistic, picking something out if it has sufficient of the properties [Margolis/Laurence]
18594 Knowing typical properties of things is especially useful in induction [Machery]
18593 The term 'prototype' is used for both typical category members, and the representation [Machery]
18595 Prototype theories are based on computation of similarities with the prototype [Machery]
18596 Prototype theorists don't tell us how we select the appropriate prototype [Machery]
18603 Maybe concepts are not the typical properties, but the ideal properties [Machery]
18605 It is more efficient to remember the prototype, than repeatedly create it from exemplars [Machery]
18606 The prototype view predicts that typical members are easier to categorise [Machery]