Neurophenomenology aims to combine neuroscience with the study of conscious experience, but integrating first-person reports with brain data remains challenging. Neurofeedback, where people learn to regulate their own brain activity in real time, offers a practical way to braid together subjective experience and neural measurements. In this iterative closed-loop setup, conscious activities can directly influence neuronal patterns, illustrating downward causation. The paper discusses mechanisms that might mediate such effects and outlines future research directions.
A dynamic approach to epileptic seizure anticipation, combining neuro-dynamic analysis of brain activity with pheno-dynamic analysis of subjective experience, can guide and determine each other. This method consolidates the foundations for a cognitive, non-pharmacological therapy for epilepsy. The neuro-phenomenological co-determination demonstrated through this example offers new insight into the gap between subjective experience and neurophysiological activity.