Beyond Neural Correlates of Consciousness

Identifying neural correlates of consciousness (NCC)—brain activity patterns that accompany conscious experience—raises deeper theoretical questions about what consciousness is. This volume examines the implications of NCC findings for major theories of consciousness, including global workspace theory, higher-order thought theory, local recurrency theory, and REFCON models. It also considers how different conscious phenomena, such as dreaming and altered states, shape the search for NCC. The work argues that mapping correlations between brain and consciousness does not end inquiry but instead prompts further philosophical and theoretical reflection on the nature of consciousness itself.

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Abstract

Drawing on neuroscientific research and metacognitive theory, this groundbreaking volume examines the theoretical implications that are elicited when neural correlates of consciousness (NCC) are identified.The relationship between consciousness and the brain has concerned philosophers for centuries, yet a tacit assumption in much empirically minded consciousness research seems to be that if we can only develop a map of correlations, no further questions remain to be asked. Beyond Neural Correlates of Consciousness starts where others stop, by asking what these correlations may tell us about the nature of consciousness. The book contains chapters considering the upshots of finding the neural correlates of consciousness in light of the most prominent contemporary theories in the field. This illuminates the theoretical consequences of succeeding in the quest for the neural correlates of consciousness from the perspective of global workspace theory, higher-order thought theory, local recurrency theory, and REFCON models, in addition to considering how this quest is shaped by different conscious phenomena, such as dreaming, altered states of consciousness, and different levels of consciousness.This insightful text features sophisticated theories that goes beyond correlational inferences and neural mapping, and will be of interest to students and researchers of consciousness, particularly those interested in interpreting neural correlates.