Single Idea 17969

[catalogued under 18. Thought / D. Concepts / 4. Structure of Concepts / c. Classical concepts]

Full Idea

The early psychological approaches to concepts took a definitional approach. ...but this view does not have any way of distinguishing typical and atypical category members (...as when a trout is a typical fish and an eel an atypical one).

Gist of Idea

The classical definitional approach cannot distinguish typical and atypical category members

Source

Gregory L. Murphy (The Big Book of Concepts [2004], Ch. 2)

Book Reference

Murphy,Gregory L.: 'The Big Book of Concepts' [MIT 2004], p.12


A Reaction

[pp. 12 and 22] Eleanor Rosch in the 1970s is said to have largely killed off the classical view.