Dr Robert Cowan

  • Senior Lecturer (Philosophy)

Research interests

Robert Cowan is a Lecturer in Moral Philosophy. He was previously Assistant Professor in Philosophy at the University of Warwick. He received his PhD in Philosophy from the University of Glasgow, where he also did his undergraduate degree in Economics and Politics. His principal research interests lie at the intersection between ethics, epistemology, and the philosophy of mind. He is also interested in political philosophy and the philosophy of economics.

Robert is currently working on a series of papers on moral epistemology: (i) considering the prospects for the view that ordinary agents can gain moral and evaluative knowledge on the basis of emotional experience, (ii) assessing different accounts of a priori ethical knowledge, and (iii) assessing the view that understanding the ultimate goal of evaluative and ethical thought. He is also currently co-editing a collection of papers on Evaluative Perception, to be published with Oxford University Press.

Personal Website

Publications

List by: Type | Date

Jump to: 2023 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014
Number of items: 19.

2023

Cowan, R. (2023) Moral responsibility while dreaming. Ergo, (Accepted for Publication)

Cowan, R. (2023) Dreams, morality and the waking world. Pacific Philosophical Quarterly, 104(1), pp. 2-29. (doi: 10.1111/papq.12397)

2021

Corns, J. and Cowan, R. (2021) Moral motivation and the affective appeal. Philosophical Studies, 178(1), pp. 71-94. (doi: 10.1007/s11098-020-01421-2)

2020

Corns, J. and Cowan, R. (2020) Lessons for ethics from the science of pain. In: Holtzman, G. S. and Hildt, E. (eds.) Does Neuroscience Have Normative Implications? Series: The international library of ethics, law and technology (22). Springer: Cham, pp. 39-57. ISBN 9783030561338 (doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-56134-5_3)

Cowan, R. (2020) The puzzle of moral memory. Journal of Moral Philosophy, 17(2), pp. 202-228. (doi: 10.1163/17455243-20192914)

Cowan, R. and Simion, M. (2020) Editorial. Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, 23(1), pp. 1-3. (doi: 10.1007/s10677-020-10072-5)

Cowan, R. and Simion, M. (Eds.) (2020) Ethics, Knowledge and Language: Selected Papers from the Annual Meeting of the British Society for Ethical Theory 2019. Ethical Theory and Moral Practice. 23(1) [Edited Journal]

2019

Bowell, T., Cowan, R. and Kemp, G. (2019) Critical Thinking: A Concise Guide. 5th Edition. Routledge: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY. ISBN 9780815371427 (doi: 10.4324/9781351243735)

2018

Bergqvist, A. and Cowan, R. eds. (2018) Evaluative Perception. Series: Mind association occasional series. Oxford University Press: Oxford. ISBN 9780198786054

Bergqvist, A. and Cowan, R. (2018) Evaluative Perception: Introduction. In: Bergqvist, A. and Cowan, R. (eds.) Evaluative Perception. Series: Mind association occasional series. Oxford University Press: Oxford, pp. 1-18. ISBN 9780198786054

Cowan, R. (2018) Epistemic Sentimentalism and Epistemic Reason-Responsiveness. In: Bergqvist, A. and Cowan, R. (eds.) Evaluative Perception. Series: Mind association occasional series. Oxford University Press: Oxford. ISBN 9780198786054 (doi: 10.1093/oso/9780198786054.003.0012)

2017

Cowan, R. (2017) Rossian conceptual intuitionism. Ethics, 127(4), pp. 821-851. (doi: 10.1086/691566)

Cowan, R. (2017) Pain and justified evaluative belief. In: Corns, J. (ed.) The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Pain. Series: Routledge handbooks in philosophy. Routledge, pp. 354-364. ISBN 9781138823181

2016

Cowan, R. (2016) Epistemic perceptualism and neo-sentimentalist objections. Canadian Journal of Philosophy, 46(1), pp. 59-81. (doi: 10.1080/00455091.2015.1123037)

2015

Cowan, R. (2015) Clarifying ethical intuitionism. European Journal of Philosophy, 23(4), pp. 1097-1116. (doi: 10.1111/ejop.12031)

Cowan, R. (2015) C.D. Broad on moral sense theories in ethics. Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society Virtual Issue 3: Methods In Ethics, pp. 171-182.

Cowan, R. (2015) Perceptual intuitionism. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 90(1), pp. 164-193. (doi: 10.1111/phpr.12023)

2014

Cowan, R. (2014) Review of: Moral Perception by Robert Audi. Mind, 123(492), pp. 1167-1171. (doi: 10.1093/mind/fzu155)[Book Review]

Cowan, R. (2014) Cognitive penetrability and ethical perception. Review of Philosophy and Psychology, 6(4), pp. 665-682. (doi: 10.1007/s13164-014-0185-4)

This list was generated on Fri Jun 2 04:18:01 2023 BST.
Jump to: Articles | Books | Book Sections | Book Reviews | Edited Journals
Number of items: 19.

Articles

Cowan, R. (2023) Moral responsibility while dreaming. Ergo, (Accepted for Publication)

Cowan, R. (2023) Dreams, morality and the waking world. Pacific Philosophical Quarterly, 104(1), pp. 2-29. (doi: 10.1111/papq.12397)

Corns, J. and Cowan, R. (2021) Moral motivation and the affective appeal. Philosophical Studies, 178(1), pp. 71-94. (doi: 10.1007/s11098-020-01421-2)

Cowan, R. (2020) The puzzle of moral memory. Journal of Moral Philosophy, 17(2), pp. 202-228. (doi: 10.1163/17455243-20192914)

Cowan, R. and Simion, M. (2020) Editorial. Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, 23(1), pp. 1-3. (doi: 10.1007/s10677-020-10072-5)

Cowan, R. (2017) Rossian conceptual intuitionism. Ethics, 127(4), pp. 821-851. (doi: 10.1086/691566)

Cowan, R. (2016) Epistemic perceptualism and neo-sentimentalist objections. Canadian Journal of Philosophy, 46(1), pp. 59-81. (doi: 10.1080/00455091.2015.1123037)

Cowan, R. (2015) Clarifying ethical intuitionism. European Journal of Philosophy, 23(4), pp. 1097-1116. (doi: 10.1111/ejop.12031)

Cowan, R. (2015) C.D. Broad on moral sense theories in ethics. Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society Virtual Issue 3: Methods In Ethics, pp. 171-182.

Cowan, R. (2015) Perceptual intuitionism. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 90(1), pp. 164-193. (doi: 10.1111/phpr.12023)

Cowan, R. (2014) Cognitive penetrability and ethical perception. Review of Philosophy and Psychology, 6(4), pp. 665-682. (doi: 10.1007/s13164-014-0185-4)

Books

Bowell, T., Cowan, R. and Kemp, G. (2019) Critical Thinking: A Concise Guide. 5th Edition. Routledge: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY. ISBN 9780815371427 (doi: 10.4324/9781351243735)

Bergqvist, A. and Cowan, R. eds. (2018) Evaluative Perception. Series: Mind association occasional series. Oxford University Press: Oxford. ISBN 9780198786054

Book Sections

Corns, J. and Cowan, R. (2020) Lessons for ethics from the science of pain. In: Holtzman, G. S. and Hildt, E. (eds.) Does Neuroscience Have Normative Implications? Series: The international library of ethics, law and technology (22). Springer: Cham, pp. 39-57. ISBN 9783030561338 (doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-56134-5_3)

Bergqvist, A. and Cowan, R. (2018) Evaluative Perception: Introduction. In: Bergqvist, A. and Cowan, R. (eds.) Evaluative Perception. Series: Mind association occasional series. Oxford University Press: Oxford, pp. 1-18. ISBN 9780198786054

Cowan, R. (2018) Epistemic Sentimentalism and Epistemic Reason-Responsiveness. In: Bergqvist, A. and Cowan, R. (eds.) Evaluative Perception. Series: Mind association occasional series. Oxford University Press: Oxford. ISBN 9780198786054 (doi: 10.1093/oso/9780198786054.003.0012)

Cowan, R. (2017) Pain and justified evaluative belief. In: Corns, J. (ed.) The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Pain. Series: Routledge handbooks in philosophy. Routledge, pp. 354-364. ISBN 9781138823181

Book Reviews

Cowan, R. (2014) Review of: Moral Perception by Robert Audi. Mind, 123(492), pp. 1167-1171. (doi: 10.1093/mind/fzu155)[Book Review]

Edited Journals

Cowan, R. and Simion, M. (Eds.) (2020) Ethics, Knowledge and Language: Selected Papers from the Annual Meeting of the British Society for Ethical Theory 2019. Ethical Theory and Moral Practice. 23(1) [Edited Journal]

This list was generated on Fri Jun 2 04:18:01 2023 BST.

Supervision

Robert is keen to supervise PhD and other research students on the following topics:

  • Metaethics
  • Moral and Value Epistemology
  • Normative Ethics (especially Kantian ethics)
  • Philosophy of Emotion
  • Philosophy of Economics
  • Political Philosophy
  • Rationality of Experiences

Robert is currently supervising PhD students on the following topics:

  • Liberal Conservatism
  • The Ethics of Suicide
  • Reid, Findlay
    Are Agents Morally Assessible for Dreams or Dream-Acts?

Teaching

Current courses taught: 1K Critical Thinking (Convenor), 2M Hobbes and Locke on Political Obligation, Junior Honours History of Moral Philosophy, and Masters Critical Thinking.

Additional information

Robert is on the Executive Committee of the Centre for the Study of Perceptual Experience. 

Robert is Careers Officer for Philosophy and the School Quality Officer for Humanities.