X's B in Order to Y


Questions Psychological Meaning Metaphorical Meaning
1. What is explained? The B behavior of individual X's. The establishment of B as a phenotypic trait of X's.
2. What caused what? A representation in X's of Y causes X's to exhibit the behavior B. X's doing B in the EEA caused increased fitness which caused selection to favor B.
Must a representation by X's of Y be involved? Yes. No.
Must evolutionary mechanisms be involved? No (not any interesting ones). Yes (we use metaphors to describe evolutionary scenarios).
Are there any interesting implications about malleability of B's in individual X's? Almost none. None outside of the EEA.



(Notes from Richard Boyd's "Philosophy and Human Nature")