My main research interests are human action and agency, moral psychology, and ethics. Among historical figures I've dedicated some time to Aristotle, Spinoza, and Wittgenstein.
To understand action and agency I worked on theories of what actions are (movements, tryings, willings, complex psychological and bodily processes), what characteristics they have (are they like events, like processes or more like causal relations), and how related issues, like reasoning, motivation, and decision works. I worked out my own original pluralist position about actions.
In moral psychology my interests are centered on topics related to decision making and human nature: are humans tending more towards altruism or egoism? How much influence do factors like group pressure, conformity and other non-rational motivations have on our reasoning, and how do they work? How does weakness of will work, how does it affect reasoning?
My interest in ethics overlaps with my related interests in world affairs, mainly in the development of new technologies (AI, warfare), in international relations (how can middle powers cooperate and enforce their interests), and politics (how could we achieve more moral, more equal societies in terms of ownership, income, and opportunities). I study normative theories with a view to addressing and understanding better these larger, impactful issues that determine how much of our current political life and through that our daily life is changing.
My current focus is on understanding Group Agency and Responsibility. I aim to provide a theory of what group agents (like states, militaries and companies) are, and how and why we should attribute responsibility to the individuals working in key positions in these organisations, and also to the organisations themselves.
I'm also actively working on the ethics and nature of war, moral psychology, and teaching methods.
I'm also passionately interested in literature and have been reading since I can remember. The fruit of that love is a recent little volume published together with Japanese poet Yasuhiro Yotsumoto, in honour of Mary Midgley.
Publications
Selection of research talks
To understand action and agency I worked on theories of what actions are (movements, tryings, willings, complex psychological and bodily processes), what characteristics they have (are they like events, like processes or more like causal relations), and how related issues, like reasoning, motivation, and decision works. I worked out my own original pluralist position about actions.
In moral psychology my interests are centered on topics related to decision making and human nature: are humans tending more towards altruism or egoism? How much influence do factors like group pressure, conformity and other non-rational motivations have on our reasoning, and how do they work? How does weakness of will work, how does it affect reasoning?
My interest in ethics overlaps with my related interests in world affairs, mainly in the development of new technologies (AI, warfare), in international relations (how can middle powers cooperate and enforce their interests), and politics (how could we achieve more moral, more equal societies in terms of ownership, income, and opportunities). I study normative theories with a view to addressing and understanding better these larger, impactful issues that determine how much of our current political life and through that our daily life is changing.
My current focus is on understanding Group Agency and Responsibility. I aim to provide a theory of what group agents (like states, militaries and companies) are, and how and why we should attribute responsibility to the individuals working in key positions in these organisations, and also to the organisations themselves.
I'm also actively working on the ethics and nature of war, moral psychology, and teaching methods.
I'm also passionately interested in literature and have been reading since I can remember. The fruit of that love is a recent little volume published together with Japanese poet Yasuhiro Yotsumoto, in honour of Mary Midgley.
Publications
- "Why Autonomous Agents Should not be Built for War." 2023. In: Special issue on AIs and Robots of Journal of Philosophy of Life Vol. 13.
- "Making Sense of the Knobe-effect: Praise demands both Intention and Voluntariness." 2022. In: Journal of Applied Ethics and Philosophy Vol. 13. pp. 11-20.
- Mary Midgley's Biscuit Tin in Tokyo: A correspondence between poet Yasuhiro Yotsumoto and Istvan Zardai, and poems by Yasuhiro Yotsumoto. 2021. Co-authored with Yasuhiro Yotsumoto. Bibliothek Shinoine. 180 pages.
- "Mary Midgley, Covid-19, and That Beastly Illusion" 2020. In: Berlin Review of Books Jul, 2020.
- “Mary Midgley: Philosopher of Human Nature and Imagination.” 2020. In: PhilCul 5 (1): 388-407.
- “Agents in Movement.” 2019. In Mita Philosophical Association Journal, Vol. 143: 61-84.
- “Review of Kieran Setiya’s Practical Knowledge.” 2018. In: Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 21 (4): 1019-1020. DOI: 10.1007/s10677-018-9928-0
- “Two Ways to Describe Actions.” In Elpis, 2012/2: 97-106.
- “The Role of Intentions in Davidson’s Philosophy of Action.” 2011. In Elpis, April: 70-87.
- “Practical Rationality and Reflexivity.” 2009. In Proceedings of the 7th Grastyán Conference. Ed.: Rab, Virág et al.: 423-429.
- “The Use of the Concept of Plan-like Intentions in Autism Research.” 2009. In Proceedings of the 6th Grastyán Conference. Editors: Rab, Virág et al.: 315-321.
Selection of research talks
- “Which capacities, what kind of agency?” Homo Ludens. Mind, Agency and Video Games. Hybrid event, Department of Philosophy, University of Concepcion, Chile and the Neuropsychology and Cognitive Neurosciences Research Center, Catholic University of Maule, Chile. 26-28/10/2022.
- “The Investigation of Group Responsibility based on an Account of Action and Agency.” 20th Anniversary of the Philosophy PhD School at the University of Pecs, Hungary. 07/05/2022.
- “AI as Group Agent.” Global Research Center for Logic and Sensibility, Keio University, Annual Meeting 2022. Online event by Keio University, Tokyo. 03/03/2022.
- “Group Agency and Responsibility.” Prof. Wolfgang Ertl’s Ethico-Metaphysical Graduate Seminar. Keio University, Tokyo, Japan. 03/12/2021.
- “Introduction: An overview of the field of Philosophy of Action” and “What Happens When We Move.” ‘After Davidson’ Panel of the Annual Meeting of the Philosophy of Science Society of Japan. Keio University, Tokyo. 10/11/2019.
- “Does the Chairman Deserve the Blame?” Setouchi Philosophy Forum: Action and (the Phenomenology) of Agency Workshop. Okayama University, Okayama. 17/09/2019.
- “AI, Decisions, and Responsibility.” Annual Meeting of the Global Research Center for Logic and Sensitivity. Keio University, Tokyo, Japan. 28/02/2019.
- “Is there an Essential Difference between Actions and Events.” Tokyo Workshop on Action and Agency. Tokyo University, Tokyo, Japan. 20/02/2019.
- “Agents in Movement.” Agency and Autonomy Workshop by the Setouchi Philosophy Forum. Hiroshima Institute of Technology, Hiroshima, Japan. 31/01/2019.
- “On the Responsible Design and Deployment of Autonomous Agents.” Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan. 30/01/2019.
- “Monism and Pluralism about Action.” Tottori University, Tottori, Japan. 29/01/2019.
- “Is there an Essential Difference between Actions and Events.” CAPE lecture series. Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan. 22/01/2019.
- “Intentional, Unintentional, Voluntary, Involuntary.” Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, Japan. 21/01/2019.
- “Actions, Rational, Irrational, Arational.” Rationality, Representation, and Reality. Tokyo University, Tokyo, Japan. 8-9/12/2018.
- “On the Responsible Design and Deployment of Autonomous Agents.” Cybersecurity France-Japan: New issues on technology and algorithmic ethics/privacy/fairness, related to Digital/AI/Machine-Learning. Keio University, Tokyo, Japan. 31/10/2018.
- “Doings and Things Done.” Tokyo Forum for Analytic Philosophy. University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 30/05/2018.
- “Doings and Things Done.” Prof. Wolfgang Ertl’s Ethico-Metaphysical Graduate Seminar. Keio University, Tokyo, Japan. 27/04/2018.
- “Actions and their Causes.” Setouchi Philosophy Forum. Okayama University, Okayama, Japan. 02/02/2018.
- “Monism and Pluralism about Action.” Keio Faculty Lectures. Keio University, Tokyo, Japan. 15/12/2017.
- “Reasoning and Moral Conformism.” Peregrinus Lectures. Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary. 10/11/2015.
- “Actions and Practical Knowledge.” 2015 Joint Session. University of Warwick, Coventry, United Kingdom. 12/07/2015.
- “Final Reflections.” Freedom, Determinism, and Responsibility. The Queen’s College, Oxford University, Oxford, United Kingdom. 8/03/2014.
- “How to Handle Actions.” Tokyo Forum for Analytic Philosophy, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 16/01/2014.
- “Why it is a Bad Idea to Construct Military Robots that can be held Responsible.” Kerényi Károly Special College for Advanced Studies, University of Pécs. 10/09/2013
- “Knowledge of Action.” 13th BPPA, University of Glasgow, Scotland. 25/06/2013.
- “Folk Concepts of Action.” Research Student Spring Symposium. Oxford Brookes University, Oxford. 11/05/2013.
- “How to Handle Actions.” Philosophy of Action Research Group. The Queen’s College, Oxford University, Oxford, United Kingdom. 26/02/2013.
- “Two Ways to Describe Actions.” Fourth International Graduate Conference at CEU: Aspects of Self and Agency. Budapest, Hungary. 30-31/03/2012.
- “What is THE motivating state?” Third Annual Dutch Conference on Practical Philosophy. Amsterdam, Netherlands. 14-5/10/2011.
- “Knowing How and Our Introspective Knowledge of What We Intend.” Joint Action Meeting IV. Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria. 07/07/2011
- “Motivating Mental States.” Analytic Pragmatism – In Focus: Huw Price’s Work. University of Pécs, Hungary. 09/05/2011.
- “How Privileged Access Works.” The Cognitive Seminar. Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Budapest, Hungary. 18/04/2011.
- “How do We Get to Know Our Own Intentions?” 19th Meeting of the Hungarian Society for Cognitive Science. University of Kaposvar, Hungary. 27/01/2011.
- “Reasons and Motivations by Alvarez.” Conference of the Philosophy PhD School of the Department of Philosophy of the University of Pécs, Hungary. 1/10/2010.
- “What Must Reasons be in Order to Explain Actions?” Public talk delivered at the first occasion of the Open Research Presentations series of Kerényi Károly College at the University of Pécs, Hungary. 03/02/2010.
- “Indispensable Realism?” Mental Fictionalism – Discussing Tamas Demeter’s ‘Mental Fictionalism.’ University of Pécs, Hungary. 12/12/2008.
- “Die Dennett-McDowell Debatte.” Proseminar, Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, Graz, Austria. 3/12/2008.
- “The Dennett-McDowell Debate”. Language, Cognition, Mind. Conference organized by the Philosophy Department of Eotvos University, Budapest and the Philosophy of Language Research Group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and Eotvos University, Budapest, Hungary. 2-3/10/2008.
- “The Application of the Concept of Plan-like Intentions in Autism Research”. 6th Interdisciplinary Grastyán Graduate Conference. The Seat of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in Pécs, Hungary. 26-27/03/2008.
- “Intentional Action without Belief in Success in Davidson’s and Bratman’s Work”. Conference of Kerényi Károly College of University of Pécs. University of Pécs, Hungary. 26-27/04/2007.