Sensing Qualia.
Frontiers in systems neuroscience January 1, 2022 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2022.795405
Summary
Grounded Functionalism offers a promising new perspective on understanding qualia, the subjective experiences that shape consciousness. By analyzing 200 theories of mind, including Behaviorism and Integrated Information Theory, significant gaps in explaining conscious experiences were identified. Grounded Functionalism interprets sensory systems as physical detectors, allowing for a scientifically grounded approach while preserving the flexibility of multiple realizability. This innovative framework aims to bridge the gap between abstract theories of mind and the tangible realities of human sensation and experience, advancing our grasp of consciousness.
Abstract
Accounting for qualia in the natural world is a difficult business, and it is worth understanding why. A close examination of several theories of mind-Behaviorism, Identity Theory, Functionalism, and Integrated Information Theory-will be discussed, revealing shortcomings for these theories in explaining the contents of conscious experience: qualia. It will be argued that in order to overcome the main difficulty of these theories the senses should be interpreted as physical detectors. A new theory, Grounded Functionalism, will be proposed, which retains multiple realizability while allowing for a scientifically based approach toward accounting for qualia in the natural world.