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The what, when, whether model of intentional action
Marcel Brass1, Patrick Haggard
1Ghent University, Department of Experimental Psychology and Ghent Institute for Functional and Metabolic Imaging, Ghent, Belgium. marcel.brass@ugent.be
Summary
Intentional action control is complex. This study proposes a What, When, Whether (WWW) model to clarify the neuroanatomy of decision-making in human behavior.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Philosophy of Mind
Background:
- Intentional action control is a long-standing question across disciplines.
- Brain imaging, like fMRI, offers insights but reveals contradictory findings on intentional action's neuroanatomy.
Purpose of the Study:
- To address inconsistencies in the neuroscience literature on intentional action.
- To propose a heuristic framework for understanding intentional action.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing neuroscientific findings on intentional action.
- Proposal of the What, When, Whether (WWW) model.
Main Results:
- The proposed WWW model distinguishes three components of intentional action: 'what', 'when', and 'whether'.
- Neuroscientific evidence supports the WWW model's components.
Conclusions:
- Treating intentional action as a unitary concept hinders understanding.
- The WWW model provides a clearer framework for investigating the neuroanatomy of intentional action.
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