Mental State

A Mental State is a psychological condition that encompasses various conditions or modes of thinking and feeling experienced by an individual (a mind).

• AKA: Cognitive Notion, Psychological State, Cognitive Phenomenon, Mind State, Mental Condition, Subjective State.
• Context:
  • It can typically arise from Neural Activity through brain processes and neurochemical interactions.
  • It can typically influence Behavioral Response through neural patterns and motor control systems.
  • It can typically affect Cognitive Processing through mental mechanisms and information flow regulation.
  • It can typically shape Emotional Pattern through psychological processes and affective modulation.
  • It can typically determine Decision Process through thought patterns and value assessment.
  • It can typically transform through State Transitions during cognitive shifts and emotional changes.
  • It can typically vary in Temporal Duration from momentary occurrences to extended periods.
  • It can typically manifest in Conscious Awareness through phenomenal experience and subjective quality.
  • It can typically involve Representational Content about internal conditions or external environments.
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  • It can often be influenced by External Stimuli through sensory input and perceptual processing.
  • It can often be shaped by Internal Processes through thought generation and memory activation.
  • It can often modulate Social Interaction through behavioral expressions and communicative signals.
  • It can often guide Information Processing through attention patterns and cognitive resource allocation.
  • It can often influence Memory Formation through encoding processes and consolidation mechanisms.
  • It can often reflect Physical States through interoceptive awareness and bodily feedback.
  • It can often be altered by Pharmacological Agents through neurotransmitter modulation and receptor interaction.
  • It can often fluctuate with Circadian Rhythms through biological cycles and hormonal variations.
  • It can often change during Development Stages through neural maturation and cognitive advancement.
  • It can often be regulated through Mental Control Processes during cognitive restructuring and emotional management.
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  • It can range from being a Transient Mental State to being a Persistent Mental State, depending on its mental state duration.
  • It can range from being a Simple Mental State to being a Complex Mental State, depending on its mental state cognitive complexity.
  • It can range from being a Conscious Mental State to being an Unconscious Mental State, depending on its mental state awareness level.
  • It can range from being a Discrete Mental State to being a Continuous Mental State, depending on its mental state boundary clarity.
  • It can range from being a Positive Mental State to being a Negative Mental State, depending on its mental state valence quality.
  • It can range from being a Calm Mental State to being an Aroused Mental State, depending on its mental state activation level.
  • It can range from being a Cognitively-Dominated Mental State to being an Emotionally-Dominated Mental State, depending on its mental state content emphasis.
  • It can range from being a Self-Generated Mental State to being an Environmentally-Induced Mental State, depending on its mental state causal origin.
  • It can range from being a Rational Mental State to being an Irrational Mental State, depending on its mental state logical coherence.
  • It can range from being a Reflective Mental State to being a Pre-Reflective Mental State, depending on its mental state metacognitive quality.
  • It can range from being a Shared Mental State to being a Private Mental State, depending on its mental state social distribution.
  • It can range from being a Verbal Mental State to being a Non-Verbal Mental State, depending on its mental state linguistic expressibility.
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  • It can be measured by a Mental State Measure through psychological assessment and neuroscientific methods.
  • It can interact with Environmental Conditions during situational contexts and ecological settings.
  • It can correlate with Physical States during bodily processes and physiological functions.
  • It can integrate with Social States during interpersonal interactions and group dynamics.
  • It can be represented in Neural Patterns through brain activation signatures and connectivity structures.
  • It can be communicated through Expressive Behaviors during nonverbal communication and verbal reports.
  • It can be influenced by Cultural Frameworks through meaning systems and interpretive schemas.
  • It can be altered through Intentional Practices such as meditation techniques and cognitive exercises.
  • It can be disrupted by Pathological Processes during mental disorders and neurological conditions.
  • It can change during Developmental Transitions from childhood through adolescence to adulthood.
  • It can be synchronized during Social Coordination through emotional contagion and behavioral mimicry.
  • It can be simulated during Mental Time Travel through future projection and memory reconstruction.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Consciousness-Related Mental States, such as:
    • Wakefulness Mental States, such as:
      • Alert Mental State during vigilant monitoring for environmental change detection.
      • Relaxed Waking Mental State during rest periods for energy conservation.
      • Hyperfocused Mental State during intense concentration for task completion.
      • Dispersed Attention Mental State during open awareness for broad monitoring.
    • Sleep-Related Mental States, such as:
      • NREM Sleep Mental State during slow-wave sleep for memory consolidation.
      • REM Sleep Mental State during dream experience for emotional processing.
      • Hypnagogic Mental State during sleep onset for consciousness transition.
      • Hypnopompic Mental State during sleep exit for waking consciousness return.
    • Altered Consciousness Mental States, such as:
      • Meditative Mental State during contemplative practice for attentional training.
      • Hypnotic Mental State during suggestion receptivity for belief modification.
      • Flow Mental State during optimal challenge for immersive performance.
      • Dissociative Mental State during identity detachment for psychological protection.
  • Cognitive Mental States, such as:
    • Attention-Related Mental States, such as:
      • Focused Attention Mental State during concentration periods for detail processing.
      • Divided Attention Mental State during multitasking for parallel processing.
      • Selective Attention Mental State during target selection for distractor filtering.
      • Sustained Attention Mental State during vigilance tasks for prolonged monitoring.
    • Understanding-Related Mental States, such as:
      • Insight Mental State during comprehension moments for problem solution.
      • Confusion Mental State during information overload for cognitive dissonance.
      • Curiosity Mental State during knowledge gap awareness for exploration motivation.
      • Certainty Mental State during conviction experience for decision commitment.
    • Memory-Related Mental States, such as:
      • Recall Mental State during memory retrieval for past experience access.
      • Recognition Mental State during familiarity detection for stimulus identification.
      • Prospective Memory Mental State during future intention maintenance for planned action.
      • Nostalgia Mental State during autobiographical reflection for past idealization.
    • Problem-Solving Mental States, such as:
      • Analytical Mental State during systematic evaluation for logical inference.
      • Creative Mental State during divergent thinking for novel solution generation.
      • Incubation Mental State during unconscious processing for insight preparation.
      • Critical Mental State during evaluation process for solution assessment.
  • Emotional Mental States, such as:
    • Positive Emotional Mental States, such as:
      • Joy Mental State during positive events for happiness experience.
      • Contentment Mental State during need satisfaction for peaceful experience.
      • Pride Mental State during achievement recognition for self-worth enhancement.
      • Love Mental State during attachment activation for bonding facilitation.
      • Awe Mental State during vastness perception for schema accommodation.
      • Gratitude Mental State during benefit recognition for prosocial motivation.
    • Negative Emotional Mental States, such as:
      • Fear Mental State during threat detection for avoidance motivation.
      • Anxiety Mental State during uncertainty response for preparation increase.
      • Grief Mental State during loss processing for attachment reorganization.
      • Anger Mental State during boundary violation for defense mobilization.
      • Shame Mental State during social transgression for status reduction.
      • Guilt Mental State during moral violation for relationship repair.
    • Complex Emotional Mental States, such as:
      • Ambivalence Mental State during mixed feeling experience for evaluation complexity.
      • Schadenfreude Mental State during competitor misfortune for relative status enhancement.
      • Jealousy Mental State during relationship threat for possession protection.
      • Compassion Mental State during suffering witness for helping behavior motivation.
    • Mood-Based Mental States, such as:
      • Depressive Mood Mental State during prolonged negativity for behavioral suppression.
      • Elevated Mood Mental State during extended positivity for behavioral activation.
      • Irritable Mood Mental State during threat sensitivity increase for defensive readiness.
      • Apathetic Mood Mental State during motivation reduction for engagement decrease.
  • Motivational Mental States, such as:
    • Approach-Related Mental States, such as:
      • Desire Mental State during reward anticipation for goal pursuit.
      • Hope Mental State during positive outcome expectation for persistence enhancement.
      • Curiosity Mental State during information gap awareness for exploratory behavior.
      • Enthusiasm Mental State during energy mobilization for engaged pursuit.
    • Avoidance-Related Mental States, such as:
      • Aversion Mental State during negative stimulus detection for withdrawal behavior.
      • Disgust Mental State during contamination perception for rejection response.
      • Dread Mental State during negative outcome anticipation for preparatory vigilance.
      • Disinterest Mental State during value absence for attention reallocation.
    • Self-Regulatory Mental States, such as:
      • Willpower Mental State during temptation resistance for goal alignment.
      • Restraint Mental State during impulse control for delayed gratification.
      • Determination Mental State during obstacle encounter for effort mobilization.
      • Resignation Mental State during uncontrollability perception for effort conservation.
  • Social-Cognitive Mental States, such as:
    • Theory of Mind Mental States, such as:
      • Belief Attribution Mental State during mental content inference for behavior prediction.
      • Intention Reading Mental State during goal inference for action anticipation.
      • Empathic Mental State during emotional resonance for perspective taking.
      • Mind-Reading Mental State during social cognition for mental state inference.
    • Social Emotion Mental States, such as:
      • Embarrassment Mental State during social norm violation for impression management.
      • Admiration Mental State during excellence perception for aspiration formation.
      • Contempt Mental State during value violation witness for social distance increase.
      • Trust Mental State during positive expectation formation for vulnerability allowance.
    • Social Signaling Mental States, such as:
      • Dominance Mental State during status display for resource access.
      • Submission Mental State during hierarchical acknowledgment for conflict reduction.
      • Affiliation Mental State during social bonding for group inclusion.
      • Courtship Mental State during mate attraction for reproductive opportunity.
  • Clinical Mental States, such as:
    • Disordered Thinking Mental States, such as:
      • Delusion Mental State during false belief fixation despite contradictory evidence.
      • Paranoia Mental State during threat overperception for defensive hypervigilance.
      • Racing Thoughts Mental State during accelerated cognition with topic jumping.
      • Thought Blocking Mental State during cognitive interruption with processing cessation.
    • Disordered Affect Mental States, such as:
      • Panic Mental State during acute fear response with catastrophic interpretation.
      • Anhedonia Mental State during pleasure capacity reduction with reward insensitivity.
      • Emotional Numbing Mental State during affective blunting with response diminishment.
      • Dysphoria Mental State during persistent negative affect with discomfort experience.
    • Disordered Perception Mental States, such as:
      • Hallucination Mental State during false perception without external stimulus.
      • Illusion Mental State during perceptual distortion of actual stimulus.
      • Derealization Mental State during external reality distortion with unfamiliarity feeling.
      • Depersonalization Mental State during self-experience detachment with unreality sense.
  • Developmental Mental States, such as:
    • Childhood Mental States, such as:
      • Magical Thinking Mental State during causal misattribution with fantasy-reality confusion.
      • Egocentric Mental State during perspective limitation with self-centered processing.
      • Play Mental State during simulated scenario for skill development.
      • Attachment Mental State during caregiver interaction for security establishment.
    • Adolescent Mental States, such as:
      • Identity Exploration Mental State during self-definition search for personal continuity.
      • Social Comparison Mental State during peer reference for self-evaluation.
      • Risk Assessment Mental State during novelty approach with consequence consideration.
      • Autonomy Seeking Mental State during independence striving with authority negotiation.
    • Adult Mental States, such as:
      • Career Focus Mental State during occupational development for competence expression.
      • Intimacy Mental State during close relationship for interpersonal vulnerability.
      • Generativity Mental State during next generation nurturing for legacy creation.
      • Life Review Mental State during biographical assessment for meaning integration.
  • Technology-Mediated Mental States, such as:
    • Digital Interaction Mental States, such as:
      • Online Presence Mental State during virtual environment navigation with digital identity management.
      • Information Overload Mental State during excessive content exposure with cognitive capacity strain.
      • Divided Attention Mental State during device multitasking with partial presence.
      • Virtual Immersion Mental State during digital world engagement with physical context diminishment.
    • Human-AI Interaction Mental States, such as:
      • Anthropomorphic Attribution Mental State during AI system interaction with agency projection.
      • Algorithmic Trust Mental State during automated recommendation acceptance with critical evaluation suspension.
      • AI-Augmented Cognition Mental State during intelligent system collaboration with cognitive extension.
      • Automation Anxiety Mental State during AI capability advancement with human relevance concern.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Psychophysiological Response, which represents physical reactions rather than mental processes.
  • Physical State, which reflects bodily conditions rather than cognitive states.
  • Environmental State, which describes external conditions rather than internal states.
  • Behavioral Output, which constitutes observable actions rather than subjective experiences.
  • Dispositional Trait, which represents enduring characteristics rather than temporary conditions.
  • Social Role, which defines interpersonal positions rather than individual experiences.
  • Neural Structure, which involves physical brain organization rather than experiential content.
  • Cognitive Ability, which reflects capacity for performance rather than current experiential quality.
  • Cultural Construct, which exists at the collective level rather than the individual psychological level.
  • Material Artifact, which possesses physical existence rather than phenomenal quality.
  • Software State, which represents computational conditions rather than conscious experiences.
  • Group Dynamic, which emerges from collective interactions rather than individual minds.
• See: Belief, Interest, Mental Process, Conscious State, Mind, Dream, Artificial Intelligence, Mind-Body Problem, Consciousness, Qualia, Cognitive Architecture, Affective Science, Intentionality, Metacognition, Phenomenology, Psychological Function, Emotion Theory, Cognitive Psychology, Neuroscience of Consciousness, Mental Representation, Embodied Cognition, Extended Mind Theory, Neural Correlates, Information Processing, Decision Theory, Social Cognition, Developmental Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Philosophy of Mind, Cognitive Neuroscience, Computational Theory of Mind.

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References

2014

• (Wikipedia, 2014) ⇒ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/mental_event Retrieved:2014-1-12.
  • A mental event is a particular occurrence of something going on in the mind or mind substitute that make up the conscious mind of an individual. It can be a thought, a dream, a feeling, a realization, or any other mental activity. Some believe that mental events are not limited to human thought but can be associated with animal and artificial intelligence as well. The issue of whether mental events are identical with complex physical events, or whether such an identity even makes sense, is central to the mind-body problem.

    Mental events often occur because of physical events, however, physical events do not always occur because of mental events.

    However, some see such a distinction as erroneous, and state that the mental and the physical are the very same property which cause any event(s).

2009

• (Diab et al., 2009) ⇒ Mona T. Diab, Lori Levin, Teruko Mitamura, Owen Rambow, Vinodkumar Prabhakaran, and Weiwei Guo. (2009). “Committed Belief Annotation and Tagging.” In: Proceedings of the Third Linguistic Annotation Workshop. ISBN:978-1-932432-52-7
  • QUOTE: … Our objective is to explore semantic meaning beyond surface propositions. We aim to model people's cognitive states, namely their beliefs as expressed through linguistic means. … We classify predicates into one of three possibilities: committed belief, non committed belief, or not applicable.

1997

• (Pohl, 1997) ⇒ W. Pohl. (1997). “LaboUr – machine learning for user modeling.” In: Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction.
  • ABSTRACT: Traditional user modeling systems are often limited, as far as processing of observations about user behavior and handling of user model dynamics are concerned. In this paper, the LaboUr architecture for user modeling systems is discussed. It realizes user modeling as open learning process, thus overcoming the mentioned limitations.
  • … mental (mentalistic) notions include: knowledge, belief, goals, and interests.

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