Shared representations and the experience of the self as an agent

Abstract

The following thoughts draw on some implications for the sciences of education resulting from neuroscience paradigm when supported by an embodied approach to knowledge—that is also consistent with the approach of a wider constructivist framework. The core idea is that of reasoning about the complex relationship between the intersubjective base level (shared representations or embodied simulation; ES) and the sense of agency. The aim is that of inquiring whether developed research and reflections
on these concepts—such as the concept of affordances—could provide a basis that is consistent with Sen’s construct of capability. The question which leads the argument is the following: since it assumes the intersubjective nature of the capability, can the capability approach provide a useful framework for the development of a new model for science training and education? In other words: could the logic of “capability” reinstate training’s most authentic meaning?