Mind body problem

What is the relationship between

mental states and the physical René Descartes
world? (1596-1650)

Zoltán Dienes, Philosophy of Psychology

 DUALISM
 
substance dualism vs property dualism

Mind can exist independently Some objects, e.g.

brains, can have non-
of any physical object
physical mental
features, but when the
object ceases to exist
so do its mental
features
 Dualism:
epiphenomenalism
The physical world is causally
closed; the mental cannot
influence the physical
vs interactionism
The mental can influence
the physical (e.g.
intending to lift your
arm) and the physical can
influence the mental
(perception)
Arguments for dualism:
 
1) Qualia:
It is like something to have mental states: see colours, feel
happy, etc. Why should it be like anything to be a brain?
 
 
2) parapsychology
 Is there evidence for effects of the mental above and beyond
the laws of physics? But if there seems to be, is that evidence
for dualism or a need to revise the laws of physics?
Arguments against dualism:
 
1) the neural dependence of all known mental phenomena
Take any mental phenomenon – including those most basic to what
it is to be a conscious person – and we can monkey with it by
playing with the brain 

2) explanatory power
What detailed characteristics of mental states have been explained
by a well worked-out dualist theory?

3) evolution
How does gradual natural selection lead to something non-physical
popping into existence?
MONISM:
 
idealism: Only mind exists
 
Physicalism (materialism): Only the physical world exists
Identity theory: mental states are physical states of the brain.
 Argument:
1. Mental states can cause physical events
2. The physical world is causally closed
3. Therefore mental states are physical states
FUNCTIONALISM
 
Mental states are functional states (software compared to hardware).
 
Arguments against:
 
1) Inverted spectra: could not my red quale be like your blue quale
while our red mental states have the same functional roles and our
blue mental states have the same functional roles?
 
2) zombies: Could there not be a system with all the right functional
relationships but just no qualia?