Many of the core research topics of the Berlin School of Mind and Brain belong to a strong philosophical tradition. Philosophers have long been concerned with questions regarding perception, consciousness, the self, the relationship between language and thought, or moral responsibility. It is important to take into account this tradition and the conceptual progress that has been made when thinking about the relationship between mind and brain today.

Thus philosophy plays an important role in the School’s research program. It provides theoretical frameworks and conceptual tools that help to integrate and focus empirical work. Philosophy also helps to assess the implications of empirical results for theories of the relationship between mind and brain. For many of the philosophical projects it is, therefore, important to be empirically informed.

At the Berlin School of Mind and Brain a number of people are engaged in research in philosophy. They are predominantly interested in philosophy of mind, but also in ethical questions related to mind and brain research.

Currently (Summer 2010), the School is home to four doctoral students and six postdocs who are persuing philosophical projects. Their main topics are: free will, phenomenal consciousness, self and self-consciousness, autonomy, and moral responsibility (see links to: students; alumni; associated research groups; associated researchers).

If you are working on these or related issues (see below), the School could be of great interest to you, especially if you are interested in giving close attention to empirical data from neurobiology and psychology.

Possible research topics

Free will, phenomenal consciousness, self and self-consciousness, autonomy, intentionality, metaphysics of mind, physicalism, perception, memory, emotions, decision making, mental causation, other minds, artificial intelligence, (neuro)ethics, philosophy of language, moral responsibility, mind–body problem

The following faculty members may be addressed to give advice on research project proposals in philosophy:

• Professor Michael Pauen (E-mail)
• Professor Thomas Schmidt (E-mail)
• Professor Ralf Stoecker (E-mail)

Special Newsletter issue on consciousness research

(download in section Newsletter)

Key publications on this topic:

Schmidt, T. (2007) Reasons for Actions without Metaphysics? Commentary on Frederick Stoutland, ‚Reasons for Action and Psychological States’. In: A. Leist (Hg.), Action in Context, Berlin/New York: de Gruyter 2007, S. 95-102.

Perler, D. (2004) Inside and Outside the Mind. Cartesian Representations Reconsidered, in: Perception and Reality. From Descartes to the Present, ed. by R. Schumacher, Paderborn: Mentis, 69-87.

Pauen, M. (2003) Does Free Will Arise Freely? Scientific American. Special Edition: Mind.

Pauen, M. (2003) Is type identity incompatible with multiple realization? Grazer Philosophischen Studien 65.

Müller, O. (2002) From Within and From Without: Two Perspectives on Analytic Sentences. In Hinzen, Rott (Eds.), Belief and Meaning-Essays at the Interface (pp. 229-247). Deutsche Bibliothek der Wissenschaften.

Perler, D. (2001) Ancient and Medieval Theories of Intentionality. Leiden.

Stoecker, R. (2001) How individual are intentional states really?, Language & Communication 21 (2): 167-175

Stoecker, R. (2001) Agents in Action, Grazer Philosophische Studien 61: 21-42A

Pauen, M. (2000) Painless Pain. Property-Dualism and the Causal Role of Phenomenal Consciousness. American Philosophical Quarterly 37, 2000 p. 51-64.

Schmidt, T. (2000) Structural Reasons in Rational Interaction.
In: J. Nida-Rümelin/W. Spohn (Hg.), Rationality, Rules, and Structure, Dordrecht: Kluwer 2000, S. 131-146