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Full-body illusions and minimal phenomenal selfhood
Olaf Blanke1, Thomas Metzinger
1Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland. olaf.blanke@epfl.ch
Trends in Cognitive Sciences
|December 9, 2008
Summary
This study explores global bodily self-consciousness, focusing on the fundamental experience of being someone. It examines the minimal conditions for a phenomenal self, integrating neurological and cognitive science findings.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Philosophy of Mind
- Phenomenology
Background:
- Current research on body perception and self-consciousness primarily focuses on specific body parts and actions.
- Global aspects of bodily self-consciousness, such as the unified sense of self, remain underexplored.
- The 'I' of experience and behavior, a core component of self-consciousness, has been largely neglected in empirical studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the minimally sufficient conditions for the emergence of a phenomenal self.
- To identify necessary conditions for self-consciousness across different systems.
- To bridge the gap between research on body perception and fundamental aspects of self-consciousness.
Main Methods:
- Conceptual analysis of self-consciousness and the phenomenal self.
- Review and synthesis of recent empirical evidence from neurology and cognitive science.
- Theoretical framework development for studying global self-consciousness.
Main Results:
- Identified key conceptual distinctions in understanding bodily self-consciousness.
- Highlighted the limitations of current research in addressing global self-consciousness.
- Proposed a novel framework for investigating the fundamental conscious experience of being someone.
Conclusions:
- A systematic study of global self-consciousness requires a shift in focus beyond body parts.
- Understanding the conditions for a phenomenal self offers new insights into consciousness.
- Integrating neurological and cognitive data can advance the study of fundamental self-consciousness.
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