Minds Matter
Utilitas June 11, 2026 Joseph Gottlieb, Jacob Berger, Bob Fischer
The claim that consciousness is necessary for a being to have a welfare—a view called phenomenalism—can take two forms: either consciousness is required for welfare subjecthood, or conscious beings have greater welfare capacity. The authors argue that hedonism, the most plausible source of support for either version, actually provides no support for phenomenalism. They instead discuss an alternative view, mentalism, which holds that welfare subjectivity and capacity depend on mentality more broadly, not specifically on consciousness.