Consciousness and Intentional Relations: A Developmental Perspective

(Presented at the Jean Piaget Society Meeting, Philadelphia, June 8, 2002)

John Barresi & Chris Moore

Dalhousie University

Consciousness: Types 1 and 2

Type 1 Intentional Consciousness
Awareness directed at objects
Problem of how matter can yield awareness
Type 2 Reflective Consciousness
Intentional consciousness as an object of consciousness
Problem of how mind can be aware of itself

Type 1: Intentional Consciousness

"Minimal," "primary," or "core" consciousness (cf. Zelazo)
Intentional consciousness exists in virtue of organisms’ sensorimotor capacities
Produces intentional ("aboutness") awareness of objects
Self is "implicit" not "explicit"

Type 2: Reflective Consciousness

Reflects on intentional consciousness
Shifts attention toward the agent of intentional consciousness
Multifaceted
Shared-consciousness
Self-consciousness
Awareness of self and/or other’s mental state
Awareness of self and/or other extended in time

Intentional Relations Theory

Intentional relations (IRs)

First person and third person information

Representational or imaginative capacity

(Barresi & Moore, "Intentional relations and social understanding," Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 1996, 19: 107-54.) Intentional Relations

Intentional Relations (IRs) connect an agent to an object through a relation existing in virtue of agent’s sensorimotor and emotional capacities
Various types of IRs, including epistemic, affective, action
Equally attributable to self, other, or unit of self & other

Intentional Relations

Jamie chases the cat (action)
Mackenzie fears the dog (emotion)
Columbus sees land (epistemic)
Fiona wants to get her degree ( self-reflective and temporally extended)
John thinks Mary thinks the Ice Cream Van is at the park (reflect on other’s mind)

Intentional Relations Theory

Intentional relations

First person and third person information

Representational or imaginative capacity

First Person Information

Information directly available to an agent about his/her own IRs (an "inner" perspective of the IR)
Emphasizes object of IR and agent’s intentional orientation to it
Deemphasizes information about agent

E.g., "I see picture."

Third Person Information

Information directly available to an agent about another agent’s IRs (an "outer" perspective of the IR)
Emphasizes agent of IR and agent’s behavior
Deemphasizes information about object

E.g., "Mum looks at picture."

Intentional Relations Theory

Intentional relations

First person and third person information

Representational or imaginative capacity

Representational or Imaginative Capacity

Capacity to hold in mind information in the absence of that information in perception
Essentially equivalent to working memory?
Relations between imagined and perceived information can be constructed
Imaginative capacity changes with age

Three Developmental Steps in
Reflective Consciousness

Awareness of shared intentional relations (shared or "several bodied" agent)

Awareness of individual intentional relations (intentional or "bodied" agent)

Awareness of intentional relations across time (mental or "embodied" agent)

Awareness of Shared IRs
(9 months)

Infant starts to engage in object-centered interactions with others, thus shared IRs
E.g., Joint attention and social referencing
When engaged in such shared IRs, infant is aware of 1^st person info from self and 3^rd person info from partner
When integrated together these informational components yield IRs with "inner" and "outer" aspects

Awareness of Shared IRs
(9 months)

3^rd person "outer"

(Mum looks at picture

I see picture)

1^st person "inner"

Three Developmental Steps in
Reflective Consciousness

Awareness of shared intentional relations (shared or "several bodied" agent)

Awareness of individual intentional relations (intentional or "bodied" agent)

Awareness of intentional relations across time (mental or "embodied" agent)

Awareness of Individual IRs
(18 months)

IR now attributable to an individual "bodied" agent, either self or other
Uniform code for representing IRs of self and other with 1^st person ("inner") and 3^rd person ("outer") aspects
Depends on imaginative advance such that link between perceived and imagined information can be constructed

Awareness of Individual IRs
(18 months)

For IRs of self, 3^rd person info is imagined
e.g. "I see" picture
For IRs of other, 1^st person info is imagined
e.g. Mum "sees picture"
Evidence
Self-recognition & self-conscious emotions (Lewis) which require imagined 3^rd person info of self
Empathy & Level 1 perspective-taking which require imagined 1^st person info of other

Three Developmental Steps in
Reflective Consciousness

Awareness of shared intentional relations (shared or "several bodied" agent)

Awareness of individual intentional relations (intentional or "bodied" agent)

Awareness of intentional relations across time (mental or "embodied" agent)

Awareness of IRs Across Time
(Age-4 transition)

IRs can now be connected across time
Depends on a further imaginative advance, whereby both 1^st and 3^rd person info of IRs can be imagined simultaneously
Current IR now can be held in mind along with IR in past or future (or in another)
Autonoetic consciousness (Tulving) or reflexive awareness of current mental state

Awareness of IRs Across Time
(Age-4 transition)

Temporally extended self
Memory of mental states
Delayed self-recognition (Povinelli)
Future-oriented decision making (delay of gratification)
Theory of mind: Concept of "mental" agent
Understand present difference in mental perspective (IR to imagined object rather than to actual object) between self and other

Conclusion

Reflective consciousness is intrinsically social yet through development yields individualistic forms
Reflective consciousness always requires the integration of 1^st and 3^rd person information to yield "inner" and "outer" aspects of IRs:
initially through sharing IRs with others
later through the use of imagination