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Global (neuronal) workspace theory

Bernard BaarsStanislas DehaeneLionel NaccacheJean-Pierre Changeux

This page delivers no verdict; it presents claims and evidence with their sources. No theory in science is absolute. Method

For everyone

According to this theory many specialised processes run in the brain at the same time and outside awareness. Information becomes conscious when it is broadcast to wide areas of the brain at once, that is, when it enters a shared "workspace". Baars proposed the theory in 1988 using a theatre metaphor. Dehaene and colleagues turned it into a model based on long-range neurons linking frontal and parietal regions in particular.

For specialists

The global neuronal workspace model links conscious perception to a sudden, non-linear "ignition" event. Subliminal stimuli create only local activity in sensory areas, while supraliminal stimuli activate a wide network together with the P3b wave and fronto-parietal activity. On this theory, consciousness is information being available to many processes such as report, memory and decision.

Claims

Evidence

Supporting

Experiment

In experiments with visible and masked (unconscious) words, only the seen stimuli produced a widespread, sudden rise in activity in fronto-parietal regions.[2]

Challenging

Experiment

In a preregistered adversarial experiment, the frontal re-ignition at stimulus offset predicted by the theory was not observed, and some dimensions of conscious content were only weakly represented in frontal cortex.[3]

Connections

Parent

Consciousness (open question)

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Sources

  1. BookBaars, B. J. (1988). A Cognitive Theory of Consciousness. Cambridge University Press
  2. ArticleDehaene, S.; Naccache, L. (2001). Towards a cognitive neuroscience of consciousness: basic evidence and a workspace framework. Cognition 79(1–2), 1–37DOI 10.1016/S0010-0277(00)00123-2archive
  3. ArticleCogitate Consortium et al. (2025). Adversarial testing of global neuronal workspace and integrated information theories of consciousness. Nature 642, 133–142DOI 10.1038/s41586-025-08888-1archive

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Cite this page

APA

Athena contributors. (2026). Global (neuronal) workspace theory. Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Retrieved November 1, 2026, from https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/kuresel-calisma-alani/

BibTeX
@misc{athena_kuresel_calisma_alani,
  title        = {Global (neuronal) workspace theory},
  author       = {{Athena contributors}},
  year         = {2026},
  howpublished = {\url{https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/kuresel-calisma-alani/}},
  note         = {Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Accessed: 2026-11-01}
}

Added: September 28, 2026 · Last changed: September 28, 2026 · Page history

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