Panpsychism - Wikipedia

In the philosophy of mind, panpsychism (/p æ n ˈ s aɪ k ɪ z əm / ) is the view that the mind or a mind-like aspect is a fundamental and ubiquitous feature of reality.[ 1] It is also described as a theory that "the mind is a fundamental feature of the world which exists throughout the universe".[ 2] It is one of the oldest philosophical theories, and has been ascribed in some form to philosophers including Thales, Plato, Spinoza, Leibniz, Schopenhauer, William James,[ 3] Alfred North Whitehead, and Bertrand Russell.[ 1] In the 19th century, panpsychism was the default philosophy of mind in Western thought, but it saw a decline in the mid-20th century with the rise of logical positivism.[ 3] [ 4] Recent interest in the hard problem of consciousness, and developments in the fields of neuroscience, psychology, and quantum mechanics have revived interest in panpsychism in the 21st century.[ 4] [ 5] [ 6]

The term panpsychism comes from the Greek pan (πᾶν: "all, everything, whole") and psyche (ψυχή: "soul, mind").[ 7] : 1  The use of "psyche" is controversial because it is synonymous with "soul", a term usually taken to refer to something supernatural; more common terms now found in the literature include mind, mental properties, mental aspect, and experience.

Leave a Comment