The Cambridge Handbook of the Imagination

The Cambridge Handbook of the Imagination
Contents
List of Figures
List of Contributors
Acknowledgments
1 Surveying the Imagination Landscape
Domains of the Imagination
Disagreements About the Imagination
Weaving a Common Thread
References
Part I: Theoretical Perspectives on the Imagination
2 The Evolution of a Human Imagination
Humans in Context
A Note on Human Culture
The Evolution of a Human Imagination
Stone Tools
The Material Record of Meaning-Making
Human Neurobiology, Cognition, and Imagination
Areas in Need of Further Investigation
Bibliography
3 Material Imagination: An Anthropological Perspective
Introduction
Social Being, Imagination, and Time
Imagination: The Challenge for Anthropology
What Does it Mean to Imagine?
On Material Imagination
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
References
4 The Archaeological Imagination
Archaeologists Work with What Remains
Archaeological Experiences
An Archaeological Landscape
An Archaeological Artwork
An Archaeological Collection
Encounter
Gather
Transform
A Genealogy of Archaeological Experiences
The Scope of the Archaeological Imagination
Agency, Creativity, and the Archaeological Imagination
References
5 Philosophical Perspectives on Imagination in the Western Tradition
Philosophical Theorizing About Imagination
Imagination and Belief
Imagination and Perception
Philosophical Employment of Imagination
Imaginability Arguments
The Imaginability Principle
Concluding Remarks
References
6 Imagination in Classical India: A Short Introduction
Early Imagination
Poetic and Philosophical Imagination: Some Terms and Their Varied Uses
Saṃkalpa/Vikalpa/Kalpanā
Bhāvanā
Pratibhā
Imagination and the Construction of Reality
The Cognitive Status of the Moment of Imagination
Final Remarks
Bibliography
7 From Prediction to Imagination
Introducing the Predictive Processing Framework (PPF)
Bayesian Resolution of Ambiguity
Efficient Neural Implementation Through Predictive Processing
Two Tweaks: Hierarchy and Precision
From Perception to Action
Predictive Processing and Imagination
Imagination as the Fundamental Building Block of Experience
Imagination as (a Subspecies of) Offline Cognition
Departing from Reality Without Surprise
Imaginative Agency and Imaginative Constraints
Imaginative Agency
Imaginative Constraints
Where are the Constraints in PPF?
Imagination as Mental Action
Active Inference and Mental Action
Distant Fantasies and the Role of Language
Concluding Remarks
References
8 Memory and Imagination: Perspectives on Constructive Episodic Simulation
Assessing the Constructive Episodic Simulation Hypothesis: Cognitive/Behavioral Evidence
Distinguishing Between Episodic and Non-Episodic Influences: Episodic Specificity Induction
Additional Cognitive/Behavioral Tests
Assessing the Constructive Episodic Simulation Hypothesis: Neural Evidence
Neuroimaging of the Core Network
Manipulating episodic retrieval
Constructive Episodic Simulation and Memory Errors
Conceptual Development of the Constructive Episodic Simulation Hypothesis
Concluding Comments: Big Questions
Acknowledgments
References
9 Capturing the Imagination
Introduction
Kinds of Evolutionary Algorithms
Evolutionary Algorithms in the Imagination
The Brain’s Prediction System
Inherent Unknowns
References
10 A Sociocultural Perspective on Imagination
Classical Debates and Divisions on Imagination
What is Sociocultural Psychology?
A Foundational Cultural Understanding of Imagination: Lev S. Vygotsky
Four Fields of Study for Imagination as Sociocultural Dynamic Categories
Phenomenology of Art Experience
Intentionality and Imagination
Imagination as Generative
An Integrative Model: The Imagination Loop
New Directions: Imagination and Cultural Change
Conclusion
References
11 Artificial Intelligence and Imagination
Artificial Intelligence that Does Imagination
Machine-Learning Approaches
Cognitive Models of Imagination and Imagery
Is it Really Imagination?
The Future
References
Part II: Imagery-Based Forms of the Imagination
12 The Visual Imagination
How to Measure Imagery: Overcoming Methodological Challenges
Cross-Disciplinary Imagery Research
Visual Imagery as a Weak Form of Visual Perception
The Neural Basis of Visual Imagery
Voluntary and Involuntary Visual Imagery
Aphantasia and Hyperphantasia: Life with the Extremes of Imagery
Important Questions for Future Research
References
13 Musical Imagery
Features of Musical Imagery
Pitch
Tempo
Timbre
Loudness
Expressive Features
The Neuroscience of Musical Imagery
Summary
Everyday Experiences of Musical Imagery
Methods for Investigating Everyday Musical Imagery
Features and Phenomenology of Earworms
Situational Predictors of Earworms
Emotional Responses to Earworms
Voluntary and Involuntary Musical Imagery
Imagery Uses in Musicians
Music Practice
Music Performance
Music Composition
Key Themes and Future Directions
References
14 Neurophysiological Foundations and Practical Applications of Motor Imagery
Introduction to the Multifaceted Nature of Motor Imagery
Neurophysiological Underpinning of Motor Imagery Processes
Brain Activations
Autonomic Nervous System and Somatic Responses
Muscular Activity and Postural Adjustments during MI
Modalities of Motor Imagery Practice
Major Rules and Guidelines Structuring MI Interventions in Sport
Determining the Optimal Conditions of Motor Practice
Periodization and Dose Delivery of Imagery Sessions
Conclusion
References
15 Temporal Mental Imagery
Mental Imagery
The Case for Temporal Mental Imagery
Amodal Completion and the Specious Present
Prediction and Mental Imagery
Postdiction, Apparent Motion, and Mental Imagery
Multimodal Temporal Mental Imagery
Limits of Temporal Mental Imagery
References
16 Emotional Mental Imagery
Mental Imagery and Emotion
Functions of Emotional Mental Imagery in Everyday Life
Dysfunctions in Emotion Mental Imagery
Individual Differences in Emotional Mental Imagery
Making Use of the Properties of Emotional Mental Imagery
Implications for our Understanding of the Imagination
Implications for Interdisciplinary Research
Major Challenges in the Investigation of Emotional Mental Imagery
Conclusions
References
17 Multisensory Perception and Mental Imagery
Perception is a Product of Multisensory Integration
Multisensory Illusions
Mental Imagery and Multisensory Integration
Mental Imagery-Induced Cross-Bounce Illusion
Mental Imagery-Induced McGurk Illusion
Mental Imagery-Induced Ventriloquism Illusion
Neuroimaging Evidence for an Imagery-Induced Ventriloquist Illusion
Crossmodal Plasticity from Mental Imagery
Unresolved Issues and Areas for Future Work
Conclusions
References
18 Evocation: How Mental Imagery Spans Across the Senses
Introduction
Canonical Cases of Crossmodal Imagery
The Causal Criterion
Immediate and Mediated Causal Routes
Other Causes for Neural Activation and Imagery
What Are the Rules of Crossmodal Induction?
The Content Criterion
Justifying the Consciousness Requirement
Implications and Open Questions
Some Imagining We Consider as Internally Triggered Might Be Externally Triggered
Non-Visual Mental Imagery May Be More Frequent than We Think
Conclusion
References
Part III: Intentionality-Based Forms of the Imagination
19 Continuities and Discontinuities Between Imagination and Memory: The View from Philosophy
Episodic Imagination and Episodic Memory: The Continuism-Discontinuism Debate
Metaphysical (Dis)continuism
The Objects of Mental Time Travel
The Reference of Episodic Thought
Epistemological (Dis)continuism
The Epistemic Openness of the Future
The Directness of our Knowledge of the Past
Immunity to Error Through Misidentification in Episodic Memory and Episodic Future Thought
The Future of the Continuism-Discontinuism Debate: Future-Oriented Confabulation?
Conclusions
Acknowledgments
References
20 Imagining and Experiencing the Self on Cognitive Maps
Introduction
Cognitive Maps
Locating the Self on Mental Lines and Cognitive Maps
Mental Lines
Self-Projection of the Imagining Self and Self-Reference to the Imagined Events
Self-Reference and the Contiguity Effect
Cognitive Distance and Inter-Subject Analyses
Self-Reference Proneness to be Influenced by External Factors
Orientation
Neuroanatomical Correlates
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
References
21 The Neuroscience of Imaginative Thought: An Integrative Framework
Introduction: The Psychological Ingredients of Imaginative Thought
Where Is the Mind? Task-Related and Task-Unrelated Thought
What’s In the Mind? Varieties of Imaginative Content
Temporally Oriented Imagination
Social Imagination
Self-Focused Imagination
How the Mind Thinks: Representational Format of Imaginative Thought
How the Mind Thinks: Level of Construal
How the Mind Flows: Emergence and Dynamics of Imaginative Thought
Interim Summary
Neuroscientific Underpinnings of Imaginative Thought
Contextually Detailed Forms of Imagination and the Medial Temporal Lobe (MTL) Subsystem
Conceptually Abstract Forms of Imagination and the Dorsomedial Prefrontal Cortex (dMPFC) Subsystem
Convergence of Imaginative Thought in the DN-CORE
An Integrative Framework for Imagination
Conclusions and Future Directions
References
22 Imagination and Self-Referential Thinking
Structure of Self-Knowledge
Self-Knowledge and Imagined Selves
Episodic Future Thinking in a Personal Context
Role of Personal Goals in Future-Oriented Thought
Grounding the Self in Imagined Events
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
References
23 Imaginary Friends: How Imaginary Minds Mimic Real Life
Mental State Reasoning
A Short History of Imaginary Friend Play
Types and Functions of Imaginary Companions
Factors in the Creation of Imaginary Companions
Mental State Reasoning in Children with Imaginary Companions
The Creation of Another Mind
Theoretical Viewpoints: Mental State Reasoning and Imaginary Companions
Acknowledgments
References
24 Imagination and Moral Cognition
Moral Cognition
Moral Cognition or “Just” Cognition?
Dual Processing Approaches and Moral Dilemmas
Imagination and Moral Cognition
Closing One’s Eyes and Mental Simulations
The Effect of Visual Mental Imagery on Moral Dilemmas
The Effect of Image Vividness and Perspective Taking
Visual Mental Imagery and the Foreign Language Effect on Moral Dilemmas
Counterfactual Thought and Moral Cognition
Considerations from Neuroimaging
Summary and Future Directions
References
25 Moral Reasoning: A Network Neuroscience Perspective
Introduction
The Trolley Problem
Dual-Process Theories of Moral Reasoning
Model-Based and Model-Free Learners
The Neuroscience of Moral Reasoning
Functional Brain Networks in Moral Reasoning
Functional Connectivity of the Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex
Dynamic Network Connectivity during Moral Reasoning
Future Directions and Conclusions
References
26 The Future-Directed Functions of the Imagination: From Prediction to Metaforesight
Surveying the Future-Oriented Functions of Imagination
Affective Forecasting and Goals
Preparation for Threats
Flexible Decision-Making
Deliberate Practice
Compensating for Anticipated Limits: Introducing “Metaforesight”
The Power of Metaforesight
Tools that Metaforesight Helps to Build
Future Directions and Concluding Remarks
References
Part IV: Novel Combinatorial Forms of the Imagination
27 On the Interaction Between Episodic and Semantic Representations – Constructing a Unified Account of Imagination
Imagination as a Multimodal Constructive Process
Limitations of a Sharp Episodic-Semantic Distinction
The “Episodic Bottleneck” vs. a Flexible Semantic Conduit
Semantic Scaffolding, Schemas, and the Constructive Endeavor
Event-Based Forms of Construction
Open-Ended vs. Well-Defined Tasks
Loss of the Semantic Knowledge Base
The Other Side of the Coin – Semantic Forms of Imagination
Episodic-Semantic Interactions during “Semantic” Prospection
Temporal Distance as a Determinant of Semantic Contributions to Construction
Novelty of Scenarios
Loss of Novelty due to Semantic Memory Dysfunction
Fluctuations in Representational Content of Imagination
Toward a Unified Theory of Imagination
Acknowledgments
References
28 How Imagination Supports Narrative Experiences for Textual, Audiovisual, and Interactive Narratives
Imagination and Narrative Comprehension
The Role of Imagination in the Co-Creation of Narratives
The Role of Imagination in Interactive Media
Conclusion
References
29 Development of the Fantasy-Reality Distinction
Self-Generated Fantasy
Pretense
Imagined Representations
Culture-Generated Fantasy
Fantastical Beings
Fantastical Events
How Do Children Make the Fantasy-Reality Distinction?
Implications: Outcomes and Benefits of Making the Distinction
Unanswered Questions and Directions for Future Research
Conclusion
References
30 Imagining the Real: Buddhist Paths to Wholeness in Tibet
Imagination: An Overview
Imagination And Its Discontents: The Seven Trainings
Tantric Imagining
What Imagination Is Not
Imagination and Wholeness
References
31 Hypothetical Thinking
Introduction
A Theoretical Perspective on Hypothetical Thinking
Hypothetical Thinking and Dual Reasoning Processes
Evans’s Hypothetical Thinking Theory
Hypothetical Thinking Theory and Hypothesis Testing
The 2–4-6 Task: Key Findings and Conceptual Issues
Can Hypothesis-Testing Performance Be Improved on the 2–4-6 Task?
Hypothetical Thinking Theory as Applied to the 2–4-6 Task
Conclusions and Future Directions
References
32 The Counterfactual Imagination: The Impact of Alternatives to Reality on Morality
Imagined Alternatives Affect Inferences About Causes
Imagined Alternatives Affect Inferences About Intentions
Cognitive Processes in the Counterfactual Imagination
The Creation of Counterfactual Alternatives
Is the Counterfactual Imagination Special?
Concluding Remarks
References
33 A Look Back at Pioneering Theories of the Creative Brain
Ken Heilman and Early Hints of Frontal Lobe Network Dynamics
Arne Dietrich – Some Organizing Principles, and Specific Predictions
Alice Flaherty – A Fully Formed, Testable Theory (Largely Ignored)
Looking Forward, Looking Back
Final Words
References
Part V: Phenomenology-Based Forms of the Imagination
34 Imagination in the Philosophy of Art
Overview
Imagination and the Creation of Artworks
Artistic Representation and Make-Believe
Imagination, Fictionality, Simulation, and the Reception of Fictional Narratives
Criticisms of Imagination-Based Accounts of Fictionality
The Puzzle of Imaginative Resistance
Questions for Further Investigation
References
35 Imagination in Aesthetic Experience
Imagination in the Creation and Appreciation of Art
(Absence of) Imagination in Theories of Aesthetics
Imagination and the Search for Meaning in Aesthetic Experience
Imagination and the Drive toward Uncertainty Reduction
Conclusions
Ideas for Further Investigation
References
36 The Arts and Human Symbolic Cognition: Art is for Social Communication
An Interdisciplinary Approach to Art and the Brain
The Symbolic and Abstract Cognition Underlying Art and Language Communication
Lessons from Brain Injury in Professional Artists: Functional Localization for Art?
De novo Art Following Brain Injury: The Communicative Nature of Art
Beginnings Are Important: Possible Earliest Expressions of Art in Distant Prehistory
Future Explorations into Brain Mechanisms of Imagination
References
37 Aesthetic Engagement: Lessons from Art History, Neuroscience, and Society
The Pathographic Problem
The Universal Aesthetic Object
A Fateful Encounter
Toward Future Engagements
References
38 Dance and the Imagination: Be a Butterfly!
“Let Your Imagination Dance!” – Kinesthetic and Visual Imagery as a Tool to Get the Move
“Let the Music Take Control!” – Auditory Imagery to Get into the Move
“Just Dance!” – Discussion and Conclusion
Future Directions
Acknowledgments
References
39 Imagination, Intersubjectivity, and a Musical Therapeutic Process: A Personal Narrative
Communicative Musicality
Child Development
Phenomenology and Intersubjectivity
Neural Substrates of Communicative Musicality
Communicative Musicality, Creativity, Imagination and Trauma Therapy
The Intervention
An Exuberance of Disparate Meanings
References
Part VI: Altered States of the Imagination
40 Dreaming: Beyond Imagination and Perception
Introduction
Dreams Are Immersive Mental Simulations
Resisting Classification: The Two Sides of Immersive Mental Simulation
Dreaming as Quasi-Perceptual Experience
Dreaming as Imaginative Experience
Reimagining Dreams, Past and Future
Conclusions
Acknowledgments
Bibliography
41 Dreaming is Imagination Roaming Freely, Based On Embodied Simulation, and Subserved by an Unconstrained Default Network
The Nature of Dream Content
Dreaming Is a Gradual Cognitive Achievement
The Neural Substrates That Support Dreaming
Are Dreams Useful By-Products of Adaptive Selection for Imagination?
References
42 Aphantasia
Definition
The Prehistory of Aphantasia
Congenital Aphantasia
Neurogenic Aphantasia
Psychogenic Aphantasia
Aphantasia, Après la Lettre
Models of Visualization: The Nature of Aphantasia
Related Research on Variations in Imagery Vividness
The Charisma of Aphantasia – and What Lies Ahead
References
43 Hypnosis and Imagination
Hypnosis and Hypnotic Suggestibility
Imagination and Hypnotic Suggestibility
Imagination and Hypnotic Responding
Neuroimaging of Imagination and Suggestion in Hypnosis
Clinical Applications of Imagery in Hypnosis
Summary and Outstanding Questions
Acknowledgments
References
44 Hallucinations and Imagination
What is a Hallucination?
The Interplay between Hallucination and Imagination
Creative Relationships between Hallucinations and Imagination
Hallucinations, Imagination, and Cognitive Processes
Drugs, Hallucinations, and Imagination
Hallucinogen Use to Enhance Imagination
Neuromodulators of Imagination?
Hallucinations and an Overactive Imagination
Imagination and Hallucination: A Synthesis?
Conclusions
References
45 The Psychiatry of Imagination
What Imagination Can Be Imagined to Be, and Not to Be
Psychiatric Disorders of Imagination
Imaginative Dimensions of the Autism Spectrum and the Psychotic-Affective Spectrum
Diametric and Extreme Aspects of Imagination
Pretend Play
Creativity
Narrative and the Arts
Mental Past and Futures
Salience
Mental Imagery and Sensory Systems
The Imagination Network and Its Components in Autism and Psychotic-Affective Disorders
Imagination and Intelligence
Conclusions
References
46 Meditation and Imagination
Abhinavagupta’s Ritual Fantasy
Maheśvarānda on Ritual Visualization
Interface between Meditation and Imagination
What Can Meditation Reveal about Imagination?
References
47 Flow in Performance and Creative Cognition – An Optimal State of Task-Based Adaptation
Elements of Flow
Flow, Expertise and Effortless Attention
Flow and Creativity
The Neural Correlates of Flow
Concluding Remarks and Future Directions
References
48 The Force of the Imagination
Imagination is Emergent, Fluid, and Dynamic
Issues to Bear in Mind Within this Discourse
Concluding Note: A Metaphor that Captures the Imagination
Bibliography
Name Index
Subject Index