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Clark is the foremost exponent of the extended mind hypothesis, which is the claim that what constitutes human thought and reason are not factors entirely `in the head', but can include technologies, social networks, and institutional structures. This research has generated impact across a diverse range of non-academic beneficiaries. First, there has been technological impact: this research has led to the production of novel technologies, such as new gaming applications, and has contributed to scientific thinking within the IT industry and within the field of technical communications. Second, there has been an impact on public discourse, including educational impact: Clark's presentation of these ideas has led to an enhanced public understanding of the important social and cultural implications of our contemporary dependence on technology and social networks. Third, this research has led to the development of an online think tank that brings together the technological, psychological, and conceptual ramifications of the extended mind hypothesis. This is impact that is in the first instance cultural, but which also has obvious implications for economic development and policy making.
We have established a primate research centre (The Macaque Study Centre) in a zoo environment (Marwell Zoo) for research into primate social cognition. Visitors can watch the science taking place, which 1) significantly increases their perception of the zoo as a place of learning, 2) increases their knowledge about the specific research being conducted, and 3) improves children's attitudes to science as an exciting subject. Marwell Zoo integrate the research into their educational workshops, and similar facilities are now being established in other zoos in light of the demonstrable scientific, public engagement/involvement and animal welfare benefits.
LJMU's Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Palaeoecology actively engages with broadcasters and the creative sector, providing a significant evidence base and impacting the commissioning and content of television programming about human evolution. LJMU research is at the forefront of this activity, underpinning programmes that are an excellent vehicle to promote the public understanding of human evolution, which in turn promotes public engagement with science more generally. Television production companies and broadcasters approach LJMU to provide high-quality scientific input which drives decisions about and ultimately produces up-to-date factual programming that attracts, engages and educates large and diverse viewing audiences in the UK and worldwide.
New avenues for diagnosis and treatment in a variety of psychotherapeutic settings were influenced by Hutto and Gallagher's innovative approach to social cognition, improving the quality of life of individuals. Their research has contributed to the development of diagnostic tools for the early detection and treatment of schizophrenia and new methodological guidelines for the clinical evaluation of Autism Spectrum Disorders. They developed the Embodied and Narrative Practices framework for understanding social cognition in terms of non-representational embodied interactions, enhanced and supported by highly contextualised socio-cultural, narrative practices. Pivotally, this approach offers an alternative to individualist and intellectualist mainstream cognitivist — e.g. `theory of mind' — approaches, reconceiving the status and importance of these practices in our capacity to relate to and understand others.
Rai Gaita's work brings a distinctive conception of good and evil to bear on a range of central and abiding moral questions. His work has shaped and changed the understanding of core moral and political issues by the general public in Australia and in other countries, and it has influenced the attitudes of policy makers and lawyers. Some of his books are on the reading list for the Higher School Certificate in Australia and have therefore had an immediate impact on the moral sensitivities of young Australians.
Not many contemporary moral philosophers have had such impact beyond the academic sphere. Why and how has Gaita achieved this impact? While academic philosophers tend to present their ideas in more technical form, Gaita's work crosses the boundaries between philosophical inquiry and literature. He brings philosophical issues to life by using the narrative form. For instance, his book Romulus, My Father, which uses biography to meditate on the human condition, has reached and influenced vast numbers of people. It was adapted into a film of the same title internationally released in 2007 and 2008. The inextricable connection between form and content in Gaita's work enables non-philosophical audiences to engage with, and respond to, his moral philosophy. In addition, his work has made a substantial contribution to the publishing and creative industries through the outstanding success of his books and related outputs.