On Subjective Back-Referral and How Long It Takes to Become Conscious of a Stimulus: A Reinterpretation of Libet's Data

Author: Pockett S.

Source: Consciousness and Cognition, Volume 11, Number 2, June 2002 , pp. 144-161(18)

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Abstract:

The original data reported by Benjamin Libet and colleagues are reinterpreted, taking into account the facilitation which is experimentally demonstrated in the first of their series of articles. It is shown that the original data equally well or better support a quite different set of conclusions from those drawn by Libet. The new conclusions are that it takes only 80 ms (rather than 500 ms) for stimuli to come to consciousness and that “subjective back-referral of sensations in time” to the time of the stimulus does not occur (contrary to Libet's original interpretation of his results). Copyright 2002 Elsevier Science (USA).

Language: English

Document Type: Research article

Affiliations: Department of Physics, University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland, 92019, New Zealand

Publication date: 2002-06-01