Précis of The Brain Abstracted
Philosophy and the Mind Sciences March 19, 2026 DOI: 10.33735/phimisci.2026.12701 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that neurophilosophy's premise—that neuroscientific findings directly inform philosophical topics like perception and agency—is undermined by brain complexity, since all neuroscientific models and theories are highly simplified through abstractions, idealisations, and experimental controls, making it reasonable to doubt that such results reveal the inherent natures of the neural processes relevant to neurophilosophers. |
Abstract
The Brain Abstracted tackles the question of how we should interpret neuroscience for the purposes of doing philosophy of mind. Neurophilosophy rests on the premise that the findings presented in the theories and models of neuroscience are directly relevant to longstanding philosophical topics such as the nature of perception and agency. Insufficient attention has been paid to the challenge of brain complexity and how it fundamentally shapes neuroscientific practice. Given that all models and theories in neuroscience are highly simplified, relying on numerous abstractions and idealisations, as well as experimental controls which reduce the complexity of datasets elicited, it is reasonable to worry that such results may not be informative about the inherent natures of the neural processes associated with the cognitive kinds of interest to neurophilosophers.