Reality monitoring decision policies and the slowness of consciousness.
The Behavioral and brain sciences June 25, 2026 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x25103075 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that the reality monitoring decision policy implied by Fleming and Michel—a slow, winner-take-all strategy—may mask alternative policies with implications for learning and the evolutionary emergence of consciousness. |
Abstract
Fleming and Michel suggest that conscious vision reflects a reality monitoring (RM) mechanism that evolved to separate planning from perception. Here, I critically examine the RM decision policy implied by the authors - a slow, winner-take-all strategy tagging only one first-order representation as "real." Specifically, I explore how expectations about environmental or reality-tagging stability may mask alternative RM decision policies, with important implications for learning and the evolutionary emergence and function of consciousness.