intentionality
in-ten-shuh-NAL-uh-tee
/ɪnˌtɛn.ʃəˈnæl.ə.ti/
The power of minds to be about, to represent, or to stand for, things, properties, and states of affairs.
Technical philosophical term meaning 'aboutness' of thought, not merely acting with intent.
The story behind the word. From Latin 'intendere' (to stretch towards). Medieval Scholastic philosophers used it to mean the mind stretching towards an external object.
Word relationships
- aboutness: Aboutness is the plain English description of intentionality.
Commonly confused with
- intention: An intention is an aim or plan; intentionality is the capacity of thoughts to refer to objects.
Word family
- intentional (adjective): Possessing aboutness.
Collocations
- original intentionality
- derived intentionality
- mental intentionality
Example sentences
- "Franz Brentano re-introduced intentionality as the defining characteristic of all mental phenomena." Philosophy of mind
Memory hook
INTENTIONALITY = Mind INTENDING towards an object (thinking ABOUT something). The 'aboutness' of thoughts.
When not to use
Do not confuse with plain 'intention' (having a goal or plan).
Fun facts
- John Searle used the famous Chinese Room argument to challenge whether AI has genuine intentionality.
Related words
Explore more words
intellectual, concentration, introspection, cognitive, Cognition, affordance
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