Why consciousness?

Abstract

Conscious emotions drive all we do, except for automatic tasks like breathing. Specifically, they enable the operation of incentives—like hunger for eating—that motivate us to perform tasks that are vital to our lives. Indeed, we act because we want to act, and desire is an emotion. Next, we want to act because we expect the action to lead to some positive emotion such as pleasure, enjoyment, satisfaction, comfort, fulfillment, …. Finally, to feel this emotion, we must perceive—consciously experience—the outer world. Conscious emotions also operate indirectly, as when driving an automobile: Though most driving is nonconscious, each particular journey is consciously undertaken for some specific reason; also, emotions operated consciously during the period in which driving was being learned, and for some time afterwards. In short, we suggest that the adaptive function of consciousness is to enable conscious emotions to operate.