Reflections of a Natural Scientist on Panpsychism

Integrated information theory (IIT) shares with panpsychism the view that consciousness is an intrinsic, fundamental property of reality that is graded and present in small amounts in simple physical systems. However, IIT improves on panpsychism by clearly specifying which systems are conscious and which are not, thereby resolving panpsychism's combination problem, and by explaining why consciousness can be adaptive. The fundamental weakness of panpsychism and other -isms is that they fail to provide a sustained conceptual or empirical research program that generates novel insights or proposes new experiments. Without such a program, progress on the mind–body problem will not occur.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Panpsychism shares many intuitions with integrated information theory (IIT), in particular that consciousness is an intrinsic fundamental property of reality, is graded, and can be found in small amounts in simple physical systems. Unlike panpsychism, however, IIT clearly articulates which systems are conscious and which ones are not (resolving panpsychism's combination problem) and why consciousness can be adaptive. The systemic weakness of panpsychism, or any other -ism, is that they fail to offer a protracted conceptual, let alone empirical, research programme that yields novel insights or proposes new experiments. Without those, progress on the mindâ–“body problem will not occur.