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General and specific consciousness: a first-order representationalist approach.
1Whitney Humanities Center, Yale University New Haven, CT, USA.
Frontiers in Psychology
|July 25, 2013
Summary
First-order representationalism posits consciousness arises from sensory representations. Neuroscientific evidence supports this theory, detailing neural correlates for general and specific consciousness.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Philosophy of Mind
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- A complete theory of consciousness must explain both general consciousness (awareness) and specific consciousness (phenomenal quality).
- First-order representationalism proposes consciousness is based on sensory representations accessible for cognitive functions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To defend first-order representationalism as a theory of consciousness.
- To provide a neuroscientific framework and supporting evidence for first-order representationalism.
- To compare first-order representationalism with alternative theories of consciousness.
Main Methods:
- Philosophical defense of first-order representationalism.
- Integration of neuroscientific data to identify neural correlates.
- Comparative analysis of empirical evidence against competing theories.
Main Results:
- Neural correlates for general consciousness identified in prefrontal cortex, posterior parietal cortex, and non-specific thalamic nuclei.
- Neural correlates for specific consciousness identified in sensory cortex and specific thalamic nuclei.
- Empirical data were found to support first-order representationalism over other major theories.
Conclusions:
- First-order representationalism offers a viable framework for understanding consciousness.
- Neuroscientific evidence aligns with the tenets of first-order representationalism.
- This theory provides a robust explanation for both the existence and quality of conscious states.
Keywords:
consciousnesscontent of consciousnessfirst-order representationalismlevel of consciousnessneural correlaterepresentationalismMore Related Videos
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