Consciousness Is (Probably) Still Only In The Brain, Even Though Cognition Is Not

Abstract

There is increasing theoretical justification and empirical sup- port for non-brain-centric approaches to cognition. The body, non- biological tools, and environment are understood as playing causally significant roles in or are constitutive of many instances of cognition. Although not without critics, such non-brain-centric approaches are doing so well that some argue that not only is cognition situated, embodied, extended, and distributed (cognitionSEED) but so too is consciousness (consciousnessSEED). Here “cognition” refers to an organism's abilities to engage with its world, which includes perceiving and acting skillfully, as well as capacities such as decision-making, planning, and reasoning. “Consciousness” refers to states of a system with subjective phenomenal character. Some defend consciousnessSEED by appealing to affordances and complex systems theory. I argue that these do not support the claim that cognitionSEED entails consciousnessSEED. I then present phenomenological and neurophysiological considerations to think that consciousness is (probably) still only in the brain, even though cognition is not.

Publication Date

1-1-2017

Publication Title

Mind and Matter

Volume

15

Issue

1

Number of Pages

49-69

Document Type

Article

Personal Identifier

scopus

Socpus ID

85020840061 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85020840061

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