Consciousness Between Fact and Value: A Triadic Neurophenomenology
OSF Preprints January 1, 2026 Kenneth Hammat
Consciousness mediates between empirical facts, conceptual meaning, and normative values. A triadic neurophenomenological framework posits three irreducible domains—object (material), idea (mental), and relation (axiological)—unified through consciousness. Testable hypotheses predict distinct neural and experiential signatures for each domain, using multimodal neuroimaging, representational similarity analysis, and micro-phenomenology. Reflexive self-consciousness may emerge from recursive interaction between mental and axiological domains, analogous to iterative dynamics in complex systems. A cross-domain classification principle—cohesion, attraction, and stability—maps structural characteristics across the three domains. Applied to artificial intelligence, the framework clarifies that current systems simulate object/idea processing but lack axiological participation.