History of Consciousness Science

Abstract

For most of written history the human mind was described as entirely conscious and (ideally) under rational control. As scientific studies arose with Renaissance explorations into color perception, the eye as a lens, visual perspective, the physics of locomotion, and accurate brain anatomy, a great intellectual tension arose between 'mentalistic' (consciousness-based) and 'physicalistic' views. The field of psychology was defined as the exclusive study of consciousness as late as William James' Principles of Psychology of 1890, which summarized an extraordinary century of discoveries about hypnosis, dissociative states, sensory psychophysics, associative learning, brain anatomy, aphasias, and much more. Nevertheless, James refused to admit unconscious cognitive processes, explaining such things as over-practiced habits as a 'carving' of conscious contents into 'physiological river channels' in the brain. Thus the process of acquiring automatic habits appeared to jump across the mind-body divide. James was unhappy with this awkward dualism, but could find no stable solution. Toward the end of the nineteenth century physicalistic reductionism took over in biology and psychology, resulting in a widespread purge of some of the most valuable discoveries of the past. Behaviorism was one variety of physicalism, and some radicals, like John B. Watson, refused to admit the reality of conscious experiences at all. Scientists today have rediscovered many of the fundamental questions raised by conscious and unconscious events, largely by sidestepping mind-body debates and leaving them to philosophy. The result has been an extraordinary wave of rediscovery about consciousness and its sister problems, aided by cognitive and brain imaging techniques. Conscious experiences are generally treated as inferred constructs based on reliable reports; unconscious events are also inferred, but lack reportability. Thus the regularities of linguistic grammars are not conscious, but may be quite complex and 'intelligent.' This working definition is useful for studying conscious and unconscious aspects of perception, cognition, learning and memory, volition and motor control, emotion, self and personality, a great variety of brain disorders, language, and much more. The construct of consciousness can be treated as an experimental variable, much like any other scientific variable. Whether one takes a consciousness-based or publically based point of view seems to be of secondary importance. Metaphysical debates about mind versus body have faded into the background, while numerous empirical questions are being addressed with marked success. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.