A model of the hierarchy of behaviour, cognition, and consciousness

Processes comparable in important respects to those underlying human conscious and non-conscious processing can be identified in a range of species and it is argued that these reflect evolutionary precursors of the human processes. A distinction is drawn between two types of processing: (1) stimulus...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Consciousness and cognition 2006-03, Vol.15 (1), p.75-118
Main Author: Toates, Frederick
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Affect
Anatomical correlates of behavior
Attention
Automaticity
Automatism
Basal Ganglia - physiology
Behavior
Behavioral psychophysiology
Behavioural hierarchy
Biological and medical sciences
Cognition
Cognition & reasoning
Cognition - physiology
Consciousness
Consciousness - physiology
Determinism
Development
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Goal
Habit
Habits
Hippocampus
Hippocampus - physiology
Humans
Modal action pattern
Motivation
Pain - physiopathology
Prefrontal cortex
Prefrontal Cortex - physiology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Reflex
Social Behavior
Vision, Ocular - physiology
Will
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Summary:Processes comparable in important respects to those underlying human conscious and non-conscious processing can be identified in a range of species and it is argued that these reflect evolutionary precursors of the human processes. A distinction is drawn between two types of processing: (1) stimulus-based and (2) higher-order. For ‘higher-order,’ in humans the operations of processing are themselves associated with conscious awareness. Conscious awareness sets the context for stimulus-based processing and its end-point is accessible to conscious awareness. However, the mechanics of the translation between stimulus and response proceeds without conscious control. The paper argues that higher-order processing is an evolutionary addition to stimulus-based processing. The model’s value is shown for gaining insight into a range of phenomena and their link with consciousness. These include brain damage, learning, memory, development, vision, emotion, motor control, reasoning, the voluntary versus involuntary debate, and mental disorder.
ISSN:1053-8100
1090-2376
DOI:10.1016/j.concog.2005.04.008