Concepts and Fuzzy Logic

by Belohlavek, Radim; Klir, George J.

• ISBN13: 9780262016476
• ISBN10: 0262016478
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-10-07
• Publisher: Mit Pr

Summary

The classical view of concepts in psychology was challenged in the 1970s when experimental evidence showed that concept categories are graded and thus cannot be represented adequately by classical sets. The possibility of using fuzzy set theory and fuzzy logic for representing and dealing with concepts was recognized initially but then virtually abandoned in the early 1980s. In this volume, leading researchers--both psychologists working on concepts and mathematicians working on fuzzy logic--reassess the usefulness of fuzzy logic for the psychology of concepts. The book begins with two tutorials--one on concepts and the other on fuzzy logic--aimed at making relevant experimental and theoretical issues accessible to researchers in both fields. The contributors then discuss the experiments that led to the rejection of the classical view of concepts; analyze the various arguments against the use of fuzzy logic in the psychology of concepts and show that they are all fallacious; review methods based on sound measurement principles for constructing fuzzy sets; introduce formal concept analysis and its capabilities when generalized by using fuzzy logic; consider conceptual combinations; examine lexical concepts; and propose a research program based on cooperation between researchers in the psychology of concepts and fuzzy logic.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. vii
Acknowledgments	p. xi
Introduction	p. 1
Concepts: A Tutorial	p. 13
Fuzzy Logic: A Tutorial	p. 45
"Slow Lettuce": Categories, Concepts, Fuzzy Sets, and Logical Deduction	p. 89
Fallacious Perceptions of Fuzzy Logic in the Psychology of Concepts	p. 121
Representing Concepts by Fuzzy Sets	p. 149
Formal Concept Analysis: Classical and Fuzzy	p. 177
Conceptual Combinations and Fuzzy Logic	p. 209
Concepts and Natural Language	p. 233
Epilogue	p. 259
Glossary of Symbols	p. 265
Contributors	p. 267
Index	p. 269
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