Neurophenomenology in Action: Integrating the First-Person Perspective into the Libet Experiment

Abstract

In this conceptual contribution, we argue that experimental investigations of phenomena in the cognitive sciences and consciousness research may benefit from a thorough integration of data acquired from the first-person perspective. We present a line of research from our lab applying this approach to the Libet task on voluntary action. In this well-known experimental paradigm, participants perform a movement at a moment of their own choice. Previous research has shown that this voluntary decision to perform the action is preceded by a specific pattern in the electroencephalogram, the so-called readiness potential. This finding that the decision is preceded (and presumably determined) by an action-related brain processes puts the neuroscientific account at odds with our subjective intuition and challenges the notion of free will. This discrepancy exemplifies the gap between neuro-cognitive models of the mind and the accounts of our conscious experience. The aim of our theoretical proposal is to enrich the study of volitional action by integrating reports from the first-person perspective with the Libet paradigm to develop a more coherent account. This provides an example of implementing the research program of neurophenomenology developed by Francisco Varela to overcome the gap between scientific accounts of the mind and subjective experience. Specifically, we show how this can be achieved by interweaving three methodological approaches: (i) adapting common neuro-cognitive paradigms (i.e., the Libet task); (ii) employing refined first-person methods such as the micro-phenomenological interview; and (iii) collaborating with experienced meditators as research participants. Our contribution demonstrates how the neurophenomenological framework can be used to shed new light on long-standing and fundamental debates in consciousness research. We show that this approach not only addresses questions of intellectual curiosity but also has concrete ethical implications for the practice of science itself, self-determination, and the accountability of the conscious subject. On the basis of our approach, meditation can be seen as a method for enhancing self-regulation and self-determination, which allows for more deliberate decisions and thus more ethical behavior.