On returning to consciousness

✍ Scribed by Bernard J Baars; William P Banks

• Book ID: 103997106
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1992
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 129 KB
• Volume: 1
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1053-8100
• DOI: 10.1016/1053-8100(92)90036-a

✦ Synopsis

This is the inaugural issue of Consciousness and Cognition, a journal dedicated to providing a forum for scientific research on the foundation issues of conscious experience, voluntary control, and self.' Ever since the behavioristic revolution early in this century, scientists have been unduly avoidant about consciousness and its sister issues. Today, there is wide agreement in both psychology and neuroscience that behaviorism, in striving after scientific purity, tossed out the baby of consciousness with the bathwater of poor methodology. But consciousness and its companion issues have not gone away-instead, they have tended to become the property of extrascientific thinkers and audiences. These topics continue to pose profound questions, and they belong in the domain of science.

It is not quite true to say that conscious experience, volition, and self have been utterly neglected. A great deal of important work has been done, especially in recent decades, under labels that imply such things as conscious experience. Many researchers realize today how deeply they are alreudy involved in the core issues,