Solving the Qualia Problem
Vadim Rozin
Medical & Clinical Case Reports Journal April 2, 2026 DOI: 10.51219/mccrj/vadim-rozin/479 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Qualia Physicalism Consciousness Realm Semiotics Phenomenology philosophy Thought experiment Space punctuation Epistemology Cognitive science Analogy Mental image Jungian analytical psychology |
| Key points | Argues that consciousness and qualia arise not from neurophysiological processes but from communication, problem-solving, and the formation of mental realities through signs and schemas. |
Abstract
This article attempts to reconsider the "hard problem of consciousness" (D.Chalmers, S. Harnad), a long-standing problem in analytical philosophy, which concerns the inability to explain the origin of subjective experience (qualia) from the physical processes of the brain.The author does not deny the reality of qualia, but rejects the very formulation of the question of the brain as the "generative mechanism" of consciousness, proposing instead a cultural-historical, semiotic and phenomenological approach.Relying on case study methodology, he examines five episodes: the development of the concept of the "painted sun" in a child, C.G. Jung's adolescent religious experience, experiments with distorted vision at A.N. Leontiev's school, the practice of distinguishing between sleep and reality and G. Nazloyan's method of sculptural portraiture (mask therapy) for the treatment of schizophrenia.In each case, it is demonstrated that consciousness and qualia arise not as a result of neurophysiological processes, but in the space of communication, problem-solving, the invention of signs and schemas and the formation of "mental realities."The brain is treated merely as a necessary substrate, not the cause of consciousness.The key conclusion: qualia is not an isolated sensory experience, but one of the planes of a holistic mental reality that can be purposefully transformed (including therapeutically) through a change in meanings, awareness of the boundaries between worlds (wakefulness, sleep, art) and a return to a healthy core personality.Thus, the article offers an alternative to the physicalist paradigm, bringing the explanation of consciousness into the realm of semiotics, cultural studies and the humanities.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on philosophy of mind, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychosis as a state of aberrant salience: a framework linking biology, phenomenology, and pharmacology in schizophrenia. | 2003 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From dopamine to salience to psychosis--linking biology, pharmacology and phenomenology of psychosis. | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How do the brain's time and space mediate consciousness and its different dimensions? Temporo-spatial theory of consciousness (TTC). | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The phenomenology of deep brain stimulation-induced changes in OCD: an enactive affordance-based model. | 2013 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Looking for the Self: Phenomenology, Neurophysiology and Philosophical Significance of Drug-induced Ego Dissolution | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |