Head to head
Kastrup’s Analytic Idealism vs Strawson’s Panpsychism
Analytic Idealism and Strawson’s Panpsychism Theory, compared field by field from their entries in the Atlas.
At a glance
- Kastrup’s Analytic Idealism belongs to the Idealism family in Kuhn's Landscape of Consciousness, Strawson’s Panpsychism to Panpsychism.
- Both treat consciousness as fundamental.
- On AI consciousness, Kastrup’s Analytic Idealism says “No” and Strawson’s Panpsychism says “Likely”.
- On life after death, Kastrup’s Analytic Idealism says “Likely” and Strawson’s Panpsychism says “Unlikely”.
- On mind uploading, Kastrup’s Analytic Idealism says “No” and Strawson’s Panpsychism says “Likely”.
- On meaning and purpose, Kastrup’s Analytic Idealism says “Cosmic/Ultimate” and Strawson’s Panpsychism says “Uncertain”.
Add more theories to this comparisonCompare other theories
The claim
In brief
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismAnalytic Idealism is a consciousness-only ontology asserting that phenomenal consciousness is fundamental, the singular primitive of reality. Everything else in nature, including the physical world and individual minds, is grounded in patterns of excitation or expressions of this spatially unbound cosmic consciousness.
Strawson’s PanpsychismStrawson argues that any philosopher taking a realistic view of physicalism must accept that all physical phenomena are intrinsically experiential or phenomenal, leading to panpsychism (or panexperientialism) as a necessary conclusion of 'Real Materialism'. The existence of conscious experience, being the most certain fact, cannot be denied by genuine physicalism .
What consciousness is
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismConsciousness is identified as the singular, spatially unbound, fundamental ontological primitive (cosmic consciousness).
Strawson’s PanpsychismConsciousness (experience) is identified as an intrinsic, non-reducible phenomenal property of all fundamental physical stuff or energy (panexperientialism).
Big questions
Can AI be conscious?Differ
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismNoKastrup suggests conscious AI is a fantasy, arguing that consciousness is not reducible to computation or information processing that current computers perform. Consciousness is tied to fundamental phenomenal reality, not hardware function.
Strawson’s PanpsychismLikelyIf consciousness is an irreducible property of every elementary physical entity, then AI, being composed of physical matter, should also have inner awareness, provided the combination problem can be solved and micropsychic aspects can be manipulated by advanced technology .
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismLikelyBodily death is predicted to result in the cessation of the local boundary (dissociated alter), causing conscious inner life to expand back into the underlying universal consciousness. This is supported circumstantially by reports of near-death experiences (NDEs).
Strawson’s PanpsychismUnlikelyAlthough the world is infused with consciousness, survival requires reversing the complex process of microscopic elements coalescing into macroscopic consciousness, which seems difficult for first-person survival upon brain dissolution .
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismNoConsciousness is not an algorithm or software program reducible to physical structure; therefore, uploading neural patterns (simulated continuation) would only result in a functional duplication ('deep fake') lacking true subjective experience.
Strawson’s PanpsychismLikelyIf consciousness is an intrinsic, regular property of the fabric of reality, advanced technology could potentially learn the regularities needed to aggregate or manipulate micropsychic forces to duplicate or upload consciousness .
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismCosmic/UltimateAs consciousness is ultimate reality, existence is fundamentally grounded in mind/awareness, intrinsically providing meaning and purpose rooted in the singular, fundamental consciousness.
Strawson’s PanpsychismUncertainPanpsychism is positioned between Materialism (no ultimate purpose) and Dualism/Idealism (ultimate purpose), suggesting possible ultimate meaning/purpose/value .
Nature of mind
Ontology
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismIdealism (Modern analytic metaphysics)
Strawson’s PanpsychismRealistic Monism / Real Materialism
Mind and body
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismIndividual minds are dissociated alters of the cosmic consciousness. The inanimate physical world is the extrinsic view of thoughts and emotions within this universal consciousness, meaning a physical world independent of consciousness is a mistaken intellectual abstraction.
Strawson’s PanpsychismIdentity Theory (Strong Sense). Mental phenomena are considered concrete physical phenomena because real physicalism encompasses all real phenomena, including experience.
Fundamental or emergent
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismPrimitive (Fundamental)
Strawson’s PanpsychismPrimitive/Fundamental
Qualia
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismQualia are intrinsically real and fundamental, constituting patterns of excitation within the fundamental phenomenal consciousness.
Strawson’s PanpsychismQualia are real, concrete, and physical properties of the world; their denial is considered the 'silliest claim ever made'.
How it works
Mechanism
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismThe principle of dissociation, which localizes the unitary cosmic consciousness into seemingly isolated subjects (alters).
Strawson’s PanpsychismThe principle that all concrete phenomena are physical, combined with the fact that experience is a concrete phenomenon and cannot radically emerge, dictates that experience is intrinsic to fundamental physics.
Where it is
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismUbiquitous; consciousness is fundamental and spatially unbound. Individual conscious subjects are localized boundary conditions (dissociated alters).
Strawson’s PanpsychismUbiquitous, associated with every part or aspect of physical reality, akin to fundamental fields and particles .
What it does
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismCausation is grounded in consciousness itself. The inanimate world is the extrinsic manifestation of universal mentation, while the brain serves to constrain or mediate individual consciousness.
Strawson’s PanpsychismConsciousness, being physical, fits unproblematically into the natural world. (The specific causal role of individual experiences is implied through their physical status but not detailed in the sources).
Evidence and criticism
Testability
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismSpeculative/Conceptual. Testable primarily by demonstrating the incoherence or lack of parsimony of rival metaphysical theories and by predicting experiential outcomes in extreme states.
Strawson’s PanpsychismConceptually testable. It is a metaphysical proposal derived from philosophical premises about the nature of the physical world. Nagasawa notes that panpsychism, even if true, may reach a 'cognitive dead end' because it cannot be proven .
Tests so far
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismCites neuroimaging of psychedelic states (rich experience correlating with reduced brain activity) to critique physicalist theories.
Strawson’s PanpsychismNot stated
Criticisms
Kastrup’s Analytic IdealismThe main critical challenge is the 'decomposition problem': explaining how seemingly distinct phenomenal inner lives of subjects can arise within a fundamentally unitary phenomenal field. Also must reconcile the independence of the common external world from personal volition.
Strawson’s PanpsychismWidely held to be 'absurd' by some critics . It suffers from the combination problem, requiring an explanation of how micro-level experiences aggregate to yield macrophenomenal properties.
Sources
Key sources
Kastrup’s Analytic Idealism
- An ontological solution to the mind-body problem (2017)
- The universe in consciousness (2018)
- Analytic Idealism: A Consciousness-Only Ontology, Dissertation (2019)
Strawson’s Panpsychism
- Realistic Monism: Why Physicalism Entails Panpsychism, Galen Strawson (2009)
- Real Materialism and Other Essays, Galen Strawson (2008)
- The Consciousness Deniers, Galen Strawson (2018)