Summarize the various proposed answers to the mind-body problem. Include in your answer definitions of the terms monism, dualism, materialism, idealism, emergentism, interactionism, psycho-physical parallelism, epiphenomenalism, preestablished harmony, double aspectism, and occasionalism.
The questions related to the presence of mind and the relation of the mind to the physical body must be addressed with implicitly or explicitly. Various psychologists studied mind-body relationships, which include materialists, idealists and dualists.
The psychologists, who studied mind-body relationships, are as follows:
1. Materialists- Psychologists, who explained everything in physical terms, are called materialists. According to them, mental events are also ultimately chemistry and physics. They are called so because of their belief that in the universe, explanation of everything including behavior and cognition of organisms should be done in terms of matter, since matter is the only reality (matter). Since explanation of everything by them is done in terms of single reality type, they are also known as monists.
2. Idealists- Psychologists, who believed that perceived ideas results in physical reality, are called idealists. Since their explanation of everything is also done in terms of single reality type (consciousness), they are also known as monists.
3. Dualists- Psychologists, who believed that both mental and physical events exist and that different principles govern each, are called dualists.
Dualism can be of various types. Some of which are as follows:
1. Interactionism- This form claims the interaction of body and mind. It states that behavior can be initiated by mind. Descartes, Freud and many others are interactionists, for whom bodily ailments are psychogenic and are a result of mental events, like anxiety, frustration, or conflict.
2. Emergentism- This form claims the emergence of mental states to occur from physical brain states. There can be two forms of emergentism. One of its form claims that after the emergence of mental events from brain activity, subsequent brain activity and behavior can be influenced by mental events. On the other hand, another form called epiphenomenalism claims the cause of mental events to be brain. However, it states that behavior is not a result of mental events.
3. Psychophysical parallelism- This form claims that bodily responses and mental events occur simultaneously due to an environmental experience and that the two are not dependent on each other.
4. Double aspectism- This form claims a person to be a unity and that he cannot be divided into body and mind. This unity simultaneously experiences events mentally and physiologically. Physiological and mental events are two aspects. Body and mind can neither be separated, nor can they interact. They are considered to be different perceptions of each experience that a person have.
5. Some dualists claim that mental and bodily events have a preestablished harmony between them. They considered body and mind to be separate and different; however some external agent, such as God, coordinates them.
6. Occasionalism- This form is the position of Nicolas de Malebranche on the mind-body relationship. According to Malebranche, God causes the body to act in response to a desire occurring in mind. Also, corresponding mental experience to anything happening to body is also caused by God.