Experimental Philosophy of Consciousness

Experimental philosophy of consciousness uses empirical studies to examine how people think about phenomenally conscious states. Researchers have claimed that there is no folk concept of consciousness, that entities like Microsoft are not thought to feel regret, that unfelt pains are widely accepted, and that people do not attribute phenomenal consciousness to duplicated hamsters. This chapter reviews these claims and highlights the challenges of studying people's understanding of phenomenal consciousness, which may be less daunting than studying consciousness itself.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Abstract Experimental philosophy of consciousness aims to investigate and explain our thinking about phenomenally conscious states. Based on empirical studies, researchers have argued (a) that we lack a folk concept of consciousness, (b) that we do not think entities like Microsoft feel regret, (c) that unfelt pains are widely accepted, and (d) that people do not attribute phenomenally conscious states to duplicated hamsters. In this chapter, I review these and other intriguing claims about people’s understanding of phenomenal consciousness. In doing so, I also show why experimental philosophy of consciousness is challenging, although perhaps not quite as daunting as studying phenomenal consciousness itself.