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Evolutionary Epistemology: Two Research Avenues, Three Schools, and A Single and Shared Agenda

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Abstract

This special issue for the Journal for General Philosophy of Science is devoted to exploring the impact and many ramifications of current research in evolutionary epistemology. Evolutionary epistemology (EE) is an inter- and multidisciplinary area of research that can be divided into two ever-inclusive research avenues. One research avenue expands on the EEM program and investigates the epistemology of evolution. The other research avenue builds on the EET program and researches the evolution of epistemology. Since its conception, EE has developed three schools of thought: adaptationist, non-adaptationist, and applied EE. Although diverse in outlook and theoretical background, these research avenues and schools share the same agenda of understanding how knowledge evolves, and how it relates to the world. In this paper, we first explain wherefrom evolutionary epistemological schools of thought developed, and then we highlight current debates in EE by briefly reviewing the papers that form part of this special issue.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the Editors-in-Chief of The Journal for General Philosophy of Science, Claus Beisbart, Thomas Reydon, Helmut Pulte, and Guido Bacciagaluppi for providing us with a good home for our papers, and we in particular want to thank our handling editor, Thomas Reydon, for his assistance, support, and advice given during the making of this special issue. We are also grateful to the authors for contributing their papers on evolutionary epistemology.

Funding

Gontier acknowledges the financial support of the Faculty of Science of the University of Lisbon and the FCT, the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, Grant ID DL57/2016/CP1479/CT0066 and Project IDs: UID/FIL/00678/2019 & UIDB/00678/2020.

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Gontier, N., Bradie, M. Evolutionary Epistemology: Two Research Avenues, Three Schools, and A Single and Shared Agenda. J Gen Philos Sci 52, 197–209 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10838-021-09563-5

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