Predictive processing as an empirical theory for consciousness science.
Cognitive Neuroscience 2021 DOI: 10.1080/17588928.2020.1838467 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Predictive processing Explanatory correlate |
| Key points | Argues that progress in consciousness science requires elaborating systematic mappings between mechanisms and properties of consciousness, rather than seeking a single theory that identifies consciousness with one process. |
Abstract
The theories of consciousness discussed by Doerig and colleagues tend to monolithically identify consciousness with some other phenomenon, process, or mechanism. But by treating consciousness as singular explanatory target, such theories will struggle to account for the diverse properties that conscious experiences exhibit. We propose that progress in consciousness science will best be achieved by elaborating systematic mappings between physical and biological mechanisms, and the functional and (crucially) phenomenological properties of consciousness. This means we need theories for consciousness science, perhaps more so than theories of consciousness. From this perspective, 'predictive processing' emerges as a highly promising candidate.
Citations in the library
Cited by 25
- Hybrid predictive coding: Inferring, fast and slow PLoS Computational Biology August 2, 2023
- What it is like to be a bit: an integrated information decomposition account of emergent mental phenomena Neuroscience of Consciousness November 1, 2021
- An active inference model of conscious access: How cognitive action selection reconciles the results of report and no-report paradigms. Current Research in Neurobiology 2022
- A dynamic bifurcation mechanism explains cortex-wide neural correlates of conscious access. Cell Reports March 25, 2025
- When philosophical nuance matters: safeguarding consciousness research from restrictive assumptions. Frontiers in Psychology 2023
and 20 more in the library
Cites 5
- Neural correlates of consciousness: progress and problems Nature Reviews Neuroscience April 20, 2016
- Predictive processing as a systematic basis for identifying the neural correlates of consciousness Philosophy and the Mind Sciences December 30, 2020
- Being a Beast Machine: The Somatic Basis of Selfhood. Trends in Cognitive Sciences November 2018
- Integrated information theory: from consciousness to its physical substrate. Nature Reviews Neuroscience July 2016
- Explanatory Correlates of Consciousness: Theoretical and Computational Challenges Cognitive Computation January 25, 2009