Is joint attention an essentially communicative relation?

Journal article

In this paper I provide an elaboration and defence of the claim that joint attention is an essentially communicative relation (‘The Communication Claim’). The Communication Claim is typically advanced with the aim of providing an informative characterisation of what makes joint attention ‘truly joint’ in a way that is not committed to an overly-intellectualistic characterisation of joint attention in early infancy. I argue that existing interpretations of the communication claim fail to live up to this ambition insofar as they succumb either to the charge of over-intellectualism or the charge of under-informativeness. I then argue that this dilemma can be avoided if the communicative relation at play in joint attention is understood minimally, as a form of perceptual interaction that is grounded in our power to capture and direct the attention of others.

Authors: Laing, J

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Springer
• Journal: Synthese
• Volume: 207
• Issue: 3
• Article number: 96
• Publication date: 2026-02-17
• Acceptance date: 2026-01-21
• DOI: 10.1007/s11229-026-05468-2
• EISSN: 1573-0964
• ISSN: 0039-7857
• Language: English
• Keywords: Interpersonal self-consciousness; Communication; Joint attention; Eye contact; Interaction