Final answer:
Local skepticism about other minds challenges our ability to know the mental states of others, as it is based only on inferential knowledge from observable behavior.
Step-by-step explanation:
Another form of local skepticism involving other minds stems from the philosophical question of whether we can truly know the mental states of others. This form of skepticism suggests that we can never truly have direct knowledge of what goes on in the minds of others, because all we can observe is their bodily behavior and infer mental states from it. The problem of other minds is a classic challenge in philosophy, closely related to the discussion of dualism and idealism. According to dualism, the best explanation for behavior observed in others is that there are corresponding mental states guiding that behavior, reinforced by our biological similarity to other beings. However, idealism challenges this by denying physical substance, thereby removing the shared biological basis for inferring other minds, and suggesting we may instead project some sort of spiritual similarity to connect to others.