How the Stab of Conscience Made Us Really Conscious

The starting assumption is that consciousness (subjective experience), rather than being an epiphenomenon, has a causal role in the optimization of certain human behaviors. After briefl y outlining some of the critical properties of consciousness, this chapter reviews empirical studies that demonstrate how much can be achieved in the way of action and decision making in the absence of relevant conscious experience. Thereafter, it considers, in detail, the experience of action and suggests that this has two key components: the experience of being an agent, which causes events in the world, and the belief that we could have done otherwise. Such experiences enable us to justify our behavior to ourselves and to others and, in the longer term, to create a cultural narrative about responsibility. Finally, the experience of regret is explored (i.e., the recognition that one could and should have acted otherwise). Regret is a powerful, negative emotion that is suggested to integrate group norms and preferences with those of the individual. The transparent and embodied nature of the experience of regret ensures that cultural norms become an inescapable part of the self-narrative. The conclusion is that conscious experience is necessary for optimizing fl exible intrapersonal interactions and for the emergence of cumulative culture. From “The Pragmatic Turn: Toward Action-Oriented Views in Cognitive Science,” Andreas K. Engel, Karl J. Friston, and Danica Kragic, eds. 2016. Strüngmann Forum Reports, vol. 18, series ed. J. Lupp. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. ISBN 978-0-262-03432-6. 194 C. D. Frith and T. Metzinger