One of the key claims made by Kant in his transcendental account of cognition is the fact that human beings are able to have empirical knowledge of their world. He also emphasizes that such empirical knowledge includes knowledge of the human being. For Kant, empirical study of the human being proceeds by introspection and observation of others, which both can face serious problems. First, due to the complexity of mental life, the human being typically acts differently when being observed. Second, self-observation is obstructed by the fact that, according to Kant, the most interesting and important activities in the life of a human being prevent the calm and attentive work of introspection. Finally, the human being can develop contingent characteristics,
