Lecture 6 (The mind-body problem today) Flashcards
what is descartes’ substance dualism
the mind and body are made of separate things
what do epiphenomenalists state about the mind-body problem
bodily states can cause mental states but not not vice versa
what is leibniz’ parallelism solution to the mind-body problem
mental and physical states cause each other but are separate processes
mind and brain do not interact directly, they live parallel lives
this is caused by god
what are the 3 main arguments for the mind-body problem
idealists - only mental stuff exists
materialists - only physical stuff exists
neutral monists - single substance exists that has properties of mental and physical
what is methodological behaviourism
scientific psychology should focus on observable behaviour
what is philosophical behaviourism
mental states are statements about the behaviour of the mind
treating them as separate is a category mistake
why is philosophical behaviourism an incomplete view
we do not act upon every impulse, therefore there’s some missing explanation
what are some philosophical behaviourism critiques
we’re required to deny our own mental states and experience
what is epiphenomenalism
a view stating that humans and animals reflexively respond to stimuli
what does epiphenomenalism state about emotion
caused by neurochemicals in the brain
what are arguments for and against epiphenomenalism
for - reactions don’t require conscious thought
against - if the mind serves no purpose, why did it evolve
what is panpsychism
everything has mental properties and the mind is a non-physical property of matter
what does panpsychism say about emotion
consciousness is a fundamental property of the universe
emotions are a fundamental property of consciousness
what are arguments for and against panpsychism
for - nagel argued that the mind is real, everything is matter, mind cannit be reduced to physical states, therefore mind does not emerge from physical states
-against - no evidence for it as it isn’t even a proper theory yet
what is the emergent / non-reductive materialism view
all mental states are caused by physical states and the mind is dependent on, but not reductible to, the body
what does the emergent view say about emotions
they’re caused by physiological and neurochemical reactions within the brain
emotion is a property of complex brain interactions
what are arguments for and against the emergent view
for - physical properties can be described on multiple levels
against - if mental states cause physical states, they are inherently physical too
what is the type-identity theory
the mind and brain are the same, therefore mental and physical states are the same
to say “i am in pain” would be to say “the unmyelinated c-fibers in the brain are being stimulated”
what does type-identity theory say about emotion
there is a direct one-to-one between emotion and brain states
what are arguments for and against type-identity theory
for - developments in neuroscience show physical and mental states are the same
against - saying brain and mind are the same implies that different brains should not produce different states
what is functionalism
mental states do not have to be brain states
we can do psychology without fully understanding the function of the brain
what does functionalism say about emotion
emotions are:
functional states that serve a specific purpose
there are multiple paths to achieve the same emotion
emotions have a positive adaptive purpose
what are arguments for and against functionalism
for - accepts that mental states exist, have causal roles and arise in different ways
against - functionalism ignores intentionality
what is eliminatiev materialism
an approach that aims to remove mentalist terms
folk psychology is prescientific, therefore we use the wrong concepts to describe mind and body
what does eliminative materialism say about emotion
emotions are folk psychological categories that are not meaningful / useful
everything is a result of a process we don’t understand yet
what are arguments for and against eliminative materialism
for - throughout history there have been examples of this (heat is just mean kinetic energy)
against - logic states that eliminative materialism is a belief, beliefs are mental stalest, therefore either mental states or eliminative materialism exist
