Panpsychism
Philip Goff, William Seager, Sean Allen-Hermanson · 2022 · Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Summary
Reference entry on panpsychism — the view that mentality is fundamental and ubiquitous in the natural world.
Why it matters here
Steel-manned version of the panpsychist position, distinct from popular caricatures.
Linked claims
The view that the universe as a whole is conscious — sometimes called cosmopsychism. Distinct from panpsychism (which puts mind in atomic matter) and from idealism (which says reality is mental).
If consciousness is basic, the 'hard problem' dissolves. The cost is a major break with the standard physicalist picture.
If basic matter has a hint of experience, complex brains can build complex minds. The 'combination problem' is the catch.
The view that the universe and God are identical — divinity is not separate from nature but is nature itself, in its totality.
Related evidence hubs
What consciousness is, how it relates to brains, and whether it's basic to reality.
The nature of subjective experience.
Mind–brain relation, qualia, intentionality.
Physics-adjacent worldviews — block universe, many-worlds, simulation, free will.
World religions and traditions, scored as systems.
Many-worlds, simulation, mathematical universe.