A CYBERNETIC MODEL OF STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS
W. Stallings
Kybernetes April 1, 1975 DOI: 10.1108/eb005398 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that in addition to wakefulness, sleep, and dreaming, a fourth distinct state of consciousness is achieved through Eastern meditation techniques, and proposes that a cybernetic, hierarchically organized feedback-control model of human behavior and experience, along with a revised version of Powers's information-flow model of the mind, can account for all four states. |
Abstract
In recent years, evidence has accumulated that there are four distinct states of consciousness under normal conditions; in addition to the three commonly experienced states of wakefulness, sleep, and dreaming, there is a fourth state achieved by various Eastern meditation techniques. A model of man is discussed that could account for these states. This model, inspired by the concepts of cybernetics, holds that man's behavior and experience can be accounted for by feedback‐control processes and that these processes are hierarchically organized. This paper first attempts to demonstrate that the existence of four distinct states of consciousness is consistent with a general cybernetic view of man. Then, a specific information‐flow model of the mind, developed by Powers, is introduced and it is shown that with some revision this model well accounts for the four states.