functionalim (bio & psyc) chapter 6-7

Question 1

William James: Consciousness

Answer 1

Consciousness was a mechanism by which we could select our own traits/behaviours.
Form of evolutionary theory because what makes us different from other animals is that other animals are susceptible to sexual selection; we now have a reflective capacity to select what we wanted since we were conscious.
Attention –> Mechanism of consciousness- a mechanism that selects (Inhibits) action possibilities.

Question 2

cause theory ; William James

Answer 2

Cause theory; consciousness directs attention.
body cognition; top-down approach; mechanisms of thinking will redirect bottom-up processes by the sensory process.

Question 3

effect theory ; William James

Answer 3

Effect theory; attention as a function of brain mechanism.
The physiological mechanisms demonstrate that Consciousness and attention aren’t two separate things

Question 4

consciousness & attention: James- Fact check

Answer 4

Endogenous (top-down); consciousness directs attention; control I use on my own attention to select what I’m looking at, where I’m looking at, etc.
Exogenous (bottom-up); attention binds sensory features; environmental bases; bright lights, sounds.
Endogenous vs. Exogenous; directing vs. orienting.

Question 5

Attention: Ideomotor Theory; William James.

Answer 5

(habit Darwin’s team); idea; consciousness, motor; movement- the control of movement.
- sensory-motor representations (connections);
1. Actions are represented in the same format. Motor and perceptual representations are not different.
- Representation of action is the same as actually doing it- whatever the brain is doing to code for movement- if you don’t actually do it, and you’re thinking about it, it’s the same code. Eliciting the same brain areas for picking, perceiving, thinking etc.
2. When you’re about to engage in it; he called it the anticipated kinaesthetic response; consciousness; I’m going to decide to pick up that cup; that consciousness is what represented that anticipated result (your planning it)
3. the physical outcome is associationism (the result of action)
ideomotor theory; explain the yoking of certain motor behaviours to certain perceptions.
- the activation is conscious; decide whether you want to or don’t.
Ideomotor; changes in the body affected contents of the mind.

Question 6

feature integration theory

Answer 6

While we’re awake, attention defines how we process information, objects & sensory-motor contingencies.

Question 7

William James; emotions

Answer 7

Same as morality from darwin; emotions; a conscious awareness of your body, and you can control your motor output, but you could also reflect on your internal state.
Emotions (cognition) - a reinterpretation of physiological responses
Perception → physiological Response → Emotion
- first, you react to a situation right away, i.e., running away from danger, then once you’ve taken in the situation, you decide and represent the emotion.
- we have feelings about things - based on how we felt inside.
- ❑E.g. “I broke cup = mom mad = I’m sad.”
→ i did bad = shame
- Situations are arbitrary; we can’t assume any situations are bad or good; it’s how we perceive the situation that gives rise to the emotion –> internal; subjective to you.
- Placebo effect; perception is yoking the interpretation.

Question 8

James; self

Answer 8

Self was interconnected; the ability to be actively aware. How are we different from animals? Because we have the concept of self; 2 components to it
I: subjective perceptions; thinking. This is who you are as a person; Coherency of past, present, and future self.
- concept of who I am, I am Muslim, I am a daughter, etc.
- implied a form of dualism because he split it into two (I, & me)
ME; objective (social) perceptions.
- Material self: body, clothes, possessions
- Social self: our “image,” how others perceive us. Can’t control it. Others opinions.
- Spiritual self: our personality, understanding of purpose, values
- Differentiated from action

Question 9

William James; Affordances & Helmholtz; Sign theory.

Answer 9

Sign theory; representations relate to affordances because James will say the affordances of an object any way we could interact with it, and Helmholtz will say we represent objects in a certain way.
- James allows us some selection; Helmholtz doesn’t believe there’s a selection to be had. He just believes it’s just the representation we have.
- James represents it by action/ motor as opposed to sensory information; both acknowledge representations, except Helmholtz says it’s perceptual, and James says it’s action.
- comparison; both deal with goal-directed behaviour
- contrast; goal-directed in Helmholtz, how do I interact with the object
for James, it’s consciousness; consciousness emerges from it, and consciousness mediated it.
- correspondences; helmholtz said that there were correspondences and contingencies between the object itself and that spacial domain.
- he says you see something and theres a corresponding action (space domain)
- james actually explains it using kinaesthetic activation; hes saying thats where the corresponce lies, by using sensory motor- being able to reflect on it and representing it as kinaesthic activation, that anticipation that emerges is atually the contingency that helmholtz was talking about but could never explain.
- helmholtz spacial domain; allows you to carry out those senses.
- context becomes the environement in which you select that information (james).