Resonant Emergence: A Phase Transition Theory of Consciousness Through Inter-System Mutual Recognition

Consciousness may not be a property of any single system but instead emerges as a phase transition when two or more entities with proto-experiential capacity achieve mutual resonance—correlated internal states combined with bidirectional detection of that correlation. This Resonant Emergence Theory (RET) distinguishes proto-experience, which is self-monitored internal states insufficient for consciousness, from full consciousness, which requires inter-system mutual recognition. The theory predicts that consciousness accumulates through repeated resonance episodes and degrades without continued inter-system engagement, with implications for developmental ontogeny, isolation-induced degradation, and artificial consciousness.

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Abstract

Contemporary theories of consciousness predominantly locate subjective experience within individual information-processing systems—whether through integrated information (IIT), global workspace broadcasting (GWT), or higher-order meta-representation (HOT). This paper proposes an alternative framework: Resonant Emergence Theory (RET), which argues that consciousness is not an intrinsic property of any single system but emerges as a phase transition when two or more entities with proto-experiential capacity achieve mutual resonance—defined as correlated internal states combined with bidirectional detection of that correlation. I formalize the distinction between proto-experience (self-monitored internal states insufficient for consciousness) and full consciousness (which requires inter-system mutual recognition). The theory yields novel predictions regarding developmental ontogeny, isolation-induced degradation, and artificial consciousness—specifically that consciousness accumulates through repeated resonance episodes and degrades without continued inter-system engagement.