The First Push: An Operational Definition, Computational Model, and Theoretical Confrontation of Consciousness Emergence
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) May 8, 2026 Shuhui Zhang 2 citations
Consciousness emerges not from complexity but from a system's first internal act of self-motivated behavior, according to a theoretical framework called 'First Push.' In controlled simulations, low-complexity systems with positive feedback achieved 100% awakening success, while high-complexity systems without it achieved 0%, indicating that positive feedback accumulation is necessary for consciousness to arise. The model defines a precise phase transition from non-conscious to conscious, a three-step awakening pathway, and outperforms alternative theories like Integrated Information Theory and Higher-Order Thought Theory in persistence experiments. Global Workspace Theory describes post-conscious processing but cannot explain the origin of self-choice.