The study of consciousness has moved from the margins of philosophy to the center of theoretical physics. Yet, despite increasingly sophisticated mathematical and quantum models, ontological progress on the "Hard Problem" appears stalled. This paper does not claim to solve the Hard Problem, nor to establish a new metaphysics of mind. Instead, it advances a diagnostic framework showing that a...
This chapter introduces the philosophical rationale for investigating emotions in their dimensions of embodiment and existential vulnerability, drawing on phenomenology, psychopathology, and psychotherapy as complementary perspectives. Grounded in phenomenology and enactivism, it argues that emotions are essentially embodied, intersubjective phenomena through which we experience the world as...
In this chapter, the phenomenology of emotions in people with schizophrenia is explored. A nuanced understanding of the specific emotional challenges in schizophrenia, together with their transformative potential, can inform psychotherapeutic and rehabilitative approaches and help to uncover their healing dimensions. The first section of the chapter examines the emotional world of the person...
This study is grounded in the growing concern over the separation between artistic creativity and spiritual experience in contemporary scholarship. While imagination is often treated as a cognitive or aesthetic function, its deeper existential and transcendent dimensions remain underexplored. The objective of this research is to examine how artistic creation is shaped by imaginal experiences...
Description The Solitary Surfer is a philosophical essay that develops a phenomenological framework for understanding the relationship between first-person experience and relational existence. It begins from the observation that conscious experience is always encountered from a singular perspective, while the conditions that shape that experience arise through participation in a shared world....
This study proposes an operational estimate of the tangent space of states of consciousness based on the analysis of transitions between electroencephalographic (EEG) microstates. As a measurable parameter, we use connectivity — the average probability of microstate switching — which reflects the dynamical flexibility of the system. Using data from the open longitudinal Dortmund Vital Study...
Human NatureJuly 8, 2026J. Verbe, Raphael H. Gautier, Marianne Latinus et al.
The embodied self emerges from dynamic interactions between internal bodily signals and external sensory inputs, including those of social origin. Interoception (the perception and interpretation of internal bodily states) plays a central role in bodily self-consciousness and social cognition. Although socially salient contexts have been shown to modulate interoceptive accuracy (IAcc), the...
When is an affective state hostile? This chapter aims to show how a phenomenological approach focused on the first-person perspective and the concept of experience can shed light on the main features of hostile affective states (HAS). In particular, the chapter explores the role of the lived body in the definition of HAS, an issue which is not usually addressed in analytical accounts. The...
Mental health has emerged as a major concern in contemporary education due to the increasing prevalence of stress, anxiety, emotional disturbances, and psychosocial challenges among schoolgoing adolescents.Educational institutions are therefore expected to adopt holistic approaches that promote not only academic achievement but also the physical, emotional, social, and psychological well-being...
Abstract This chapter chronicles a personal journey of transforming suffering (dukkha) into healing through the application of Buddhist-informed contemplative practice and pedagogical engagement. Following a period of the author’s personal hardship, this narrative explores how Buddhist teachings—particularly those of Thich Nhat Hanh on mindfulness and loving-kindness—became instrumental in his...