Methodological problems (phenomenology and other sciences studying consciousness)

Abstract

This article addresses the methodological problems of interdisciplinary research in the field of consciousness. It focuses on the relation between phenomenology and other sciences studying consciousness such as developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, neurosciences etc. In the first part of this article the author demonstrates main points of Husserl`s critiques of psychological sciences. In the second part the author shows that this critiques need to be re-considered. The main reason for this is significant changes in contemporary researches on mind in both methodological attitudes and a subject matter of research. As a result contemporary psychological and neuro-sciences are sometimes completely irrelevant to their predecessors of 19th century. Finally, some of the contemporary interdisciplinary projects are presented including those of Sh. Gallagher, F. Varela, E. Thompson and D. Zahavi, in which possible interrelation between phenomenology and others sciences is revealed.

Keywords:

phenomenology, experience, mind, phenomenon, consciousness, psychology.