A Paradigm for the Study of Altered States of Consciousness
Julian Silverman, Wolfgang Köhler
The British Journal of Psychiatry October 1, 1968 DOI: 10.1192/bjp.114.515.1201 (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Altered states of consciousness Philosophy of mind |
| Citations | 57 |
| Key points | Argues that calling mental events 'right' due to their survival value fosters the mistaken notion that some mental combinations are intrinsically better than others, and proposes using a neutral symbol instead. |
Abstract
“When man experiences that certain sequences of mental events lead to behavior which has, as a matter of fact, survival value, he calls such mental facts ‘right’. It would be better, however, if instead of this word some neutral symbol were being used for those particular events; because the word ‘right’ leads to the unfortunate notion that some combinations of mental facts are intrinsically better than others. …”