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Elske Straver

Propedeuse in History (Utrecht University, the Netherlands) 2001
B.A. in Philosophy (Utrecht University, the Netherlands) 2005
M.A. in Philosophy (University of Calgary, Alberta) 2008

Research Interests

  • Philosophy of mind
  • Epistemology
  • Cognitive science

My interests lie primarily in the intersection of philosophy of mind, psychology, anthropology and neuroscience. In particular, I am interested in how humans interact, and the mental mechanisms that are responsible for that. Since people form communities, and interact as communities as well, culture, as that which belongs to a community, plays a big part in human interaction. Underneath the cultural differences, however, we are all human. What it is that makes us human and thus part of a gregarious species is the question that interests me most.

Selected Publications

Empathy and propositional knowledge. Journal of Consciousness Studies. 2007.