The hierarchically mechanistic mind: A free-energy formulation of the human psyche

Highlights

• We present an interdisciplinary theory of the embodied, situated human brain called the Hierarchically Mechanistic Mind (HMM).

• We describe the HMM as a model of neural architecture.

• We explore how the HMM synthesises the free-energy principle in neuroscience with an evolutionary systems theory of psychology.

• We translate our model into a new heuristic for theorising and research in neuroscience and psychology.

Abstract

This article presents a unifying theory of the embodied, situated human brain called the Hierarchically Mechanistic Mind (HMM). The HMM describes the brain as a complex adaptive system that actively minimises the decay of our sensory and physical states by producing self-fulfilling action-perception cycles via dynamical interactions between hierarchically organised neurocognitive mechanisms. This theory synthesises the free-energy principle (FEP) in neuroscience with an evolutionary systems theory of psychology that explains our brains, minds, and behaviour by appealing to Tinbergen's four questions: adaptation, phylogeny, ontogeny, and mechanism. After leveraging the FEP to formally define the HMM across different spatiotemporal scales, we conclude by exploring its implications for theorising and research in the sciences of the mind and behaviour.