Measures of Consciousness and the Method of Qualitative Differences

Abstract

Given the problems associated with a range of subjective measures of consciousness, objective measures are considered here. Again, they are argued to be dubious measures of consciousness. Of most interest however are methodological proposals of how to identify an unproblematic measure of consciousness. These include searching for qualitative differences in task performance, and the related strategy of process dissociation, which relies on associating consciousness with control. While these methods were proposed as ways to get around the debates surrounding subjective and objective measures of consciousness, it is argued that they fail to do so. The suggestion of matching objective and subjective measures of consciousness to phenomenal and access consciousness are also rejected. This points to a significant methodological problem in identifying measures of consciousness, developed further in the next chapter.