Non-objective Intentionality: Tendency and Affect
Final Report Abstract
In everyday life, the term “intention” refers to something one plans to carry out; it denotes the purpose, goal, or aim of an action. However, the philosophical term “intentionality” is broader, encompassing the characteristic of mental or conscious acts directed toward something. In this context, consciousness is understood as “consciousness of something,” typically articulated as “consciousness of objects.” For instance, Anne remembers her friend Pierre, Paula feels joy upon seeing her sister Katrin during a surprise visit, and Peter notices a cup on his table. These examples illustrate common experiences where we focus on specific objects or circumstances. But can we assume that our conscious activity always has a direction toward something specific? This project investigated this question by examining different forms of intentionality that are open to something yet do not concentrate on a specific object or state of affairs. Consider the following scenarios: Anne’s friend Pierre talks to her about the Café de Flore in Paris, a place she has never visited. As he speaks, she associates vague images with his words. Paula notices a blurry figure in the distance that instinctively draws her to investigate. Katrin is studying for an exam but feels an urge to leave and be elsewhere, without knowing exactly where. Peter is working on a project as a curious researcher, pursuing various scattered ideas without having defined his line of inquiry. All these instances represent intentional activities, even if it is not immediately clear what they are directed toward. These cases involve moments of exploration and are characterized by open and indeterminate forms of intentionality. This project analyzed various forms of open intentionality that do not have a specific object orientation. The results demonstrated that these forms exhibit a tendency structure and are closely linked to our affective experiences, such as curiosity, joy, and disappointment. It also investigated how the shaping of intentional directedness relies on personal motives and social relationships. The inquiry into the relationship between tendency and affect revealed that the focus on specific objects emerges dynamically from modifications of more basic open intentionality. The research findings indicate that the intentional reference to something indeterminate is not a deficit or lack of determination but rather a positive aspect in the development of cognition, the formation of interests and emotions, and intentions to act in social contexts. This project drew inspiration from phenomenology, a philosophical field that developed in the 20th century alongside psychology. Within this framework, a productive dialogue was established with other philosophical approaches and disciplines such as psychology and psychoanalysis. The results of this project contribute to a better understanding of the diversity, dynamics, and complexity of human experience.
Publications
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Affective Instability and Emotion Dysregulation as a Social Impairment. Frontiers in Psychology, 13.
Schmidt, Philipp
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Husserl’s Taxonomy of Action. Husserl Studies, 38(3), 251-271.
Spano, Nicola
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The Foundation of Evaluation and Volition on Cognition: a New Contribution to the Debate over Husserl’s Account of Objectifying and Non-Objectifying Acts. Phenomenology and Mind(23), 36-52.
Spano, Nicola
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Aesthetic normativity and deviation. The New Yearbook for Phenomenology and Phenomenological Philosophy, 16-33. Routledge.
Summa, Michela
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Desiring to Know: Curiosity as a Tendency toward Discovery. Human Studies, 47(1), 37-57.
Summa, Michela
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Intentionality as Tendency and Intentionality as Consciousness-of. Human Studies, 47(1), 93-117.
Spano, Nicola
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Value in Existence: Lotze, Lipps, and Voigtländer on Feelings of Self-Worth. Women in the History of Philosophy and Sciences, 25-46. Springer International Publishing.
Schmidt, Philipp
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An Affect “That Shudders Me”: An Approach to Husserl’s Phenomenology of Joy. Husserl Studies, 40(3), 263-285.
Summa, Michela
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Special issue of Human Studies on Affect, Tendency, Drive: Perspectives on the Basic Structures of Intentionality
Schmidt, P., Spano, N. & Summa, M.
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‘Teleological Mechanics of the Mind’: Herbart and Lipps on Tendency. Human Studies, 47(1), 59-92.
Schmidt, Philipp
