The Hard Problem of Consciousness and the Free Energy Principle.
Frontiers in Psychology 2018 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02714 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Freud Affect Consciousness Free energy Predictive processing |
| Key points | Proposes that the elemental form of consciousness is affect, with its physiological mechanism in the upper brainstem, formalized through free energy minimization where changes in expected uncertainty produce feelings of pleasure and unpleasure. |
Abstract
This article applies the free energy principle to the hard problem of consciousness. After clarifying some philosophical issues concerning functionalism, it identifies the elemental form of consciousness as affect and locates its physiological mechanism (an extended form of homeostasis) in the upper brainstem. This mechanism is then formalized in terms of free energy minimization (in unpredicted contexts) where decreases and increases in expected uncertainty are felt as pleasure and unpleasure, respectively. Emphasis is placed on the reasons why such existential imperatives feel like something to and for an organism.
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Citations in the library
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- Theories of consciousness. Nature Reviews Neuroscience July 1, 2022
- A landscape of consciousness: Toward a taxonomy of explanations and implications. Progress in Biophysics and Molecular Biology August 1, 2024
- Phenomenal Consciousness and Emergence: Eliminating the Explanatory Gap. Frontiers in Psychology 2020
- Unpacking the complexities of consciousness: Theories and reflections. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews March 1, 2025
- Brain Entropy During Aging Through a Free Energy Principle Approach Frontiers in Human Neuroscience March 22, 2021
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Cites 9
- The default-mode, ego-functions and free-energy: a neurobiological account of Freudian ideas Brain February 28, 2010
- A higher-order theory of emotional consciousness. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences February 15, 2017
- Reconsolidation: Turning consciousness into memory Behavioral and Brain Sciences 2015
- A neuropsychoanalytical approach to the hard problem of consciousness. Journal of Integrative Neuroscience June 1, 2014
- The “Id” Knows More than the “Ego” Admits: Neuropsychoanalytic and Primal Consciousness Perspectives on the Interface Between Affective and Cognitive Neuroscience Brain Science April 17, 2012
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