Dr Ian Ravenscroft

Ian completed his BA (first class hons) and MA (first class hons) in philosophy at the University of Melbourne before moving to the Australian National University to study for his PhD. His dissertation supervisors were Prof Frank Jackson and Prof Philip Pettit who greatly influenced his approach to philosophy in the early part of his career.

After working at the University of Auckland (1995) and Flinders University (1996-1998) Ian took up a tenured position at King's College London (1998-2000), returning to Flinders in 2000. After working extensively on simulation theory, imagination, empathy and fiction, in recent years he has added a focus on the cognitive science of terrorism. The move to terrorism was motivated by a longstanding interest in violence and a desire to address significant contemporary problems from a cognitive science perspective. He has extensively published in a range of high ranking journals and collections and has three books with Oxford University Press. His book Philosophy of Mind: A Beginner's Guide is used in philosophy departments across the world and has been translated into German, Korean, and Iranian.

His coauthors include Steve Stich, Greg Currie, and Lina Eriksson.

Ian regulary gives public talks on philosophy and has appeared in SA Life magazine on two occasions talking on the relevance of philosophy to everyday life.