Carolyn Dicey Jennings, a philosophy professor at UC Merced, dives deep into the nature of attention and mental control. She distinguishes between self-control and mental control, using the ping pong metaphor to illustrate their differences. The discussion highlights the dynamics of attention, from voluntary focus to the complexities of ADHD. Jennings also explores the benefits of hyperfocus, the role of dopamine in memory, and how meditation and mind wandering can coexist as forms of cognitive regulation. Her insights weave together philosophy, psychology, and neuroscience, making for a captivating conversation.
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insights INSIGHT
Mental Control
Mental control is the control of the mind by the mind, closely linked to attention.
It's broader than self-control, encompassing more than just inhibition.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Ping Pong Metaphor
Carolyn Dicey Jennings uses ping pong as a metaphor for mental control.
Playing ping pong involves tracking the ball, demonstrating attentional selectivity.
insights INSIGHT
Attention as Prioritization
Attention involves prioritizing one thing over another, a selective activity.
Carolyn Dicey Jennings prefers "prioritization" to "selection" to emphasize the active process.
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EMERGENCE OF EVERYTHING: HOW THE WORLD BECAME COMPLEX
HAROLD J. MOROWITZ
This book explores the concept of emergence, detailing the various stages of complexity that led to the world as we know it, culminating in a discussion of spirituality.
Attention and Mental Control
Carolyn Dicey Jennings
This book, part of the Cambridge Elements series on Philosophy of Mind, provides an in-depth exploration of mental control and its relationship with attention. It covers topics such as the phenomena of meditation and mind-wandering, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and emergence-based accounts of mental control. The work integrates insights from philosophy, neuroscience, and psychology to offer a comprehensive understanding of how we control our minds and the role of attention in this process.
Jim talks with philosopher and cognitive scientist Carolyn Dicey Jennings about her book Attention and Mental Control. They discuss mental control vs self-control, the ping pong metaphor, prioritization vs single-threaded focus, voluntary vs automatic attention, perceptual processing & conscious attention, 3 forms of interest, meditation & mind wandering, hyperfocus as a superpower, ADHD & neurodiversity, the emergence of control, wave activity in the brain, local vs global brain activity, and much more.
Episode Transcript
Attention and Mental Control, by Carolyn Dicey Jennings
"I Attend, Therefore I Am," by Carolyn Dicey Jennings (Aeon Magazine)
More Videos and Papers
The Emergence of Everything: How the World Became Complex, by Harold J. Morowitz
Carolyn Dicey Jennings explores whether it is possible for us to direct our own minds through attention and, if so, what impact this has on other functions of the mind. She has training in philosophy, psychology, and neuroscience and combines these fields to approach fundamental questions about the nature of the mind, including the existence of the self, the foundation of consciousness, and the possibility of a free will. She has published three books, two monographs with Cambridge University Press (The Attending Mind, 2020 and Attention and Mental Control, 2022) and an edited volume (Mind, Cognition, and Neuroscience: A Philosophical Introduction, 2022 with Ben Young). She is currently working on a new project, on “collective attention,” which intersects with recent digital technologies.
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