Building blocks for theories of consciousness

Consciousness science has many competing theories that often conflict, making progress toward a mature theory difficult. A building-block approach offers a way forward by focusing on simpler elements that make up theories, such as key notions or assumptions, rather than committing to entire theoretical proposals. This approach can help assess, integrate, and unify diverse theories. Two potential building blocks discussed are attention and information generation, given their roles in leading theories. The paper argues that shifting focus to these foundational constructs facilitates addressing urgent questions about consciousness in both natural and artificial systems.

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Abstract

• Building-block approaches facilitate the assessment, integration, and unification of theories of consciousness. • Descriptive building-block approaches examine key constructs of existing theories. • Normative building-block approaches emphasise foundational constructs of a mature theory of consciousness. • Two foundational building blocks, given their roles in leading theories, are attention and information generation . Consciousness science is brimming with theories attempting to explain what consciousness is and how it can be identified in natural and artificial systems. These theories often make different and conflicting claims, evincing that the road to a mature theory of consciousness is still long and convoluted. In this paper, we propose that a promising way forward that at the same time facilitates addressing urgent questions about consciousness is what we call a building block approach . Building blocks are the simpler elements making up a theory, such as key notions or assumptions that contribute to explain important aspects of the phenomenon of interest. A building block approach recommends shifting the focus to these simpler elements of theories of consciousness while minimizing commitment to specific theoretical proposals. Here, we demonstrate how building block approaches can contribute to the assessment, integration and unification of diverse theories in consciousness science, by discussing what roles two potential building blocks, namely, attention and information generation , (should) play in theories of consciousness..