The consciousness state space (CSS)-a unifying model for consciousness and self.
Aviva Berkovich-Ohana, Joseph Glicksohn
Frontiers in Psychology 2014 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00341 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Default mode network Meditation |
| Keywords | Awareness Consciousness Emotion Flow experience Self Time |
| Citations | 72 |
| Key points | Proposes that all phenomenological states fall into core and extended consciousness, mapped onto dimensions of time, awareness, and emotion, with antagonistic dynamics that shift in altered states like flow and meditation. |
Abstract
Every experience, those we are aware of and those we are not, is embedded in a subjective timeline, is tinged with emotion, and inevitably evokes a certain sense of self. Here, we present a phenomenological model for consciousness and selfhood which relates time, awareness, and emotion within one framework. The consciousness state space (CSS) model is a theoretical one. It relies on a broad range of literature, hence has high explanatory and integrative strength, and helps in visualizing the relationship between different aspects of experience. Briefly, it is suggested that all phenomenological states fall into two categories of consciousness, core and extended (CC and EC, respectively). CC supports minimal selfhood that is short of temporal extension, its scope being the here and now. EC supports narrative selfhood, which involves personal identity and continuity across time, as well as memory, imagination and conceptual thought. The CSS is a phenomenological space, created by three dimensions: time, awareness and emotion. Each of the three dimensions is shown to have a dual phenomenological composition, falling within CC and EC. The neural spaces supporting each of these dimensions, as well as CC and EC, are laid out based on the neuroscientific literature. The CSS dynamics include two simultaneous trajectories, one in CC and one in EC, typically antagonistic in normal experiences. However, this characteristic behavior is altered in states in which a person experiences an altered sense of self. Two examples are laid out, flow and meditation. The CSS model creates a broad theoretical framework with explanatory and unificatory power. It constructs a detailed map of the consciousness and selfhood phenomenology, which offers constraints for the science of consciousness. We conclude by outlining several testable predictions raised by the CSS model.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on default mode network, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The entropic brain: a theory of conscious states informed by neuroimaging research with psychedelic drugs | 2014 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The default mode network in cognition: a topographical perspective | 2021 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The default mode network: where the idiosyncratic self meets the shared social world | 2021 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The default-mode, ego-functions and free-energy: a neurobiological account of Freudian ideas | 2010 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Cooperation between the default mode network and the frontal–parietal network in the production of an internal train of thought | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 30
- Awareness of the passage of time and self-consciousness: What do meditators report? PsyCh Journal March 1, 2019
- Effects of Mindfulness Meditation on Self-Transcendent States: Perceived Body Boundaries and Spatial Frames of Reference. Mindfulness May 1, 2020
- Reflections on Inner and Outer Silence and Consciousness Without Contents According to the Sphere Model of Consciousness Frontiers in Psychology August 12, 2020
- Consciousness Without Content: A Look at Evidence and Prospects. Frontiers in Psychology August 7, 2020
- The Sphere Model of Consciousness: From Geometrical to Neuro-Psycho-Educational Perspectives Logica Universalis July 20, 2019
and 25 more in the library
Cites 60
- A default mode of brain function Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences January 16, 2001
- On a confusion about a function of consciousness Behavioral and Brain Sciences June 1, 1995
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
- Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Psychosomatic Medicine July 1, 2003
- Experience sampling during fMRI reveals default network and executive system contributions to mind wandering. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences May 26, 2009
and 55 more in the library