Theories of consciousness from the perspective of an embedded processes view.
Nelson Cowan, Nick I Ahmed, Chenye Bao, Mackenzie N Cissne, Ronald D Flores, Roman M Gutierrez, Braden Hayse, Madison L Musich, Hamid Nourbakhshi, Nanan Nuraini, Emily E Schroeder, Neyla Sfeir, Emilie Sparrow, Luísa Superbia-guimarães
Psychological review January 1, 2025 DOI: 10.1037/rev0000510
Summary
A new perspective on consciousness suggests that our attention is guided by a neural hub located in the parietal lobes, integrating information from various brain areas. This model contrasts with existing theories by proposing a funneling process that narrows diverse sensory inputs into a focused conscious experience. The review synthesizes findings from behavioral and neuroscientific literature, highlighting the complexities of identifying conscious states. Notably, it emphasizes the interplay between attention and consciousness, aiming to bridge gaps in understanding within cognitive psychology.
Abstract
Considerable recent research in neurosciences has dealt with the topic of consciousness, even though there is still disagreement about how to identify and classify conscious states. Recent behavioral work on the topic also exists. We survey recent behavioral and neuroscientific literature with the aims of commenting on strengths and weaknesses of the literature and mapping new directions and recommendations for experimental psychologists. We reconcile this literature with a view of human information processing (Cowan, 1988; Cowan et al., 2024) in which a capacity-limited focus of attention is embedded within the activated portion of long-term memory, with dual bottom-up and top-down control of the focus of attention. None of the many extant theories fully captures what we propose as the organization of conscious thought at cognitive and neural levels. It seems clear that information from various cognitive functions, based on signals from various brain areas, is integrated into a conscious whole. In our new proposal, the integration involves funneling information to a hub or focus of attention neurally centered in the parietal lobes and functionally connected to areas representing the currently attended information. This funneling process (bringing information from diverse sensory and frontal sources to contact a small parietal area where attended information is coordinated and combined) may be the converse of global broadcasting, from other proposals (Baars et al., 2021; Baars & Franklin, 2003; Dehaene & Changeux, 2011). The proposed system incorporates many principles from previous research and theorization and strives toward a resolution of the relation between consciousness and attention. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).