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Dual-Aspect Theory

In philosophy of mind, dual-aspect [also known as double-aspect or dual-attribute] theory holds that the mental and the physical are different aspects of the same substance. Originally postulated by Spinoza, dual-aspect is also theorized by Schopenhaur, Lewes, Nagel and Chalmers. The theory holds that physical and mental states are phases of a single phenomenon, and that neither phase is reducible to the other.

Dual-aspect theory is sometimes considered a version of property dualism in addressing the mind-body problem. Dual-aspect theory avoids objections that arise from reductionist approaches which either automatically preclude the veracity of one part of a two-part preposition, or descend entirely into logical contradiction related to causality. Physical and mental are in dual-aspect theory different aspects of a single brain process, viewed from different cognitive perspectives and thus causally describable from those perspectives. Each approach is valid for normative use depending upon the level of description at issue.

Web Resources On Dual-Aspect Theory

A Dual-Aspect Approach to the Mind-Body Problem
Double-aspect theory

Book Resources On Dual-Aspect Theory

The Nature of Consciousness: The Structure of Reality: Theory of Everything Equation Revealed by Jerry Davidson Wheatley
The Buddhist Theory of Self-Cognition by Zhihua Yao
Physics and Metaphysics: Theories of Space and Time by Jennifer Trusted

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