My name is Federica Isabella Malfatti and I am a Senior Scientist at and Deputy Head of the Department of the Department of Philosophy, Theological Faculty, at the University of Innsbruck.
I studied Philosophy at the University of Pavia, Italy. I spent research periods at the universities of Jerusalem, Mainz, and Heidelberg. I was a Visiting Fellow at the University of Cologne in 2017, I worked with Catherine Z. Elgin at Harvard in 2019 and with Kareem Khalifa at UCLA in 2024. I work on understanding, trust, and autonomy. Understanding was also the topic of my PhD thesis entitled Verstehen verstehen, which has been published with open access by the Schwabe Verlag thanks to a generous funding of the FWF. Until 2025, I was the leader and primary investigator of the TWF funded project TrAU! You can find out more about the project here. |
NEWS
[May 2026] A panel on my new book "The Social Fabric of Understanding" will take place within the SURe2026 (Scientific Understanding and Representation) Workshop at the University of Warsaw. Check out the details here. [May 2026] I will give a talk at the IUSS Pavia. I will talk about it is possible to attribute genuine understanding to AI systems. [March 2026] I will give a talk at the University of Berne within a workshop on the social epistemology of AI. I will talk of the role of ChatGPT in the process of transmission of epistemic goods. [January 2026] I will talk about the epistemological problems related to ChatGPT within a workshop on the philosophy of AI at the University of Sassari/Alghero. [July 2025] My new book "The Social Fabric of Understanding" is finally out with Synthese Library. Check it out here. [March 2025] Great news! My paper "Disagreements in Understanding" has been accepted for publication in Philosophical Studies! Check it out here. [March 2025] My paper "Towards a Conceptual Framework to Better Understand the Advantaged and Limitations of Model Organisms" has been accepted for publication in the European Journal for Neuroscience! It is a joint work with Markus Kunze, a biologist working at the Medical University of Vienna. Check it out here. [January 2025] My paper "ChatGPT, Education, and Understanding" has been accepted for publication in Social Epistemology! Thanks to Rico Hauswald and Pedro Schmechtig for the invitation to contribute to the special issue "New Waves in the Philosophy of Epistemic Authority and Expert Testimony". Check it out here. |
