Between Ecological Psychology and Enactivism: Is There Resonance?

Ecological psychology and enactivism both hold that much of cognition can be explained without invoking internal representations, focusing instead on the dynamic coupling between an agent and the world. Yet the brain clearly plays a role. This paper explores the concept of resonance as a non-representational alternative to the brain's traditional role as a representational organ. It reviews two historical approaches to resonance—representational and non-representational, dynamic—and applies them to a case study of standard tonal jazz performance. The authors propose that a non-representational resonance account, consistent with both ecological psychology and enactivism, offers a viable explanation for jazz performance and suggest future research on the brain as a resonant organ.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Ecological psychologists and enactivists agree that the best explanation for a large share of cognition is non-representational in kind. In both ecological psychology and enactivist philosophy, then, the task is to offer an explanans that does not rely on representations. Different theorists within these camps have contrasting notions of what the best kind of non-representational explanation will look like, yet they agree on one central point: instead of focusing solely on factors interior to an agent, an important aspect of cognition is found in the link or coupling between an agent and the external world. This link is fluid, dynamic, and active in a variety of ways, and we do not need to add any internal extra something in the perception-action-cognition process. At the same time, even devout defenders of ecological psychology and enactivism recognize that plenty happens inside an agent during cognition. In particular, no one denies that the brain plays an important role. What, then, is the role of the brain if it's not in the game of representing the environment? One possible option is to describe the brain as a resonant organ instead of a representational organ. In this paper we consider the history of resonance in more detail. Particular focus will be placed on two different sets of approaches that have developed the concept of resonance: a representational reading of resonance and a non-representational, dynamic account of resonance. We then apply these accounts to a case study on music performance, specifically in the context of standard tonal jazz. From this application, we propose that a non-representational resonance account consistent with both enactivism and ecological psychology is a viable way of explaining jazz performance. We conclude with future considerations on research regarding the brain as a resonant organ.