A Panpsychist Interpretation of Evolutionary Theory
Authors: Onur Ferhat 
Published: December 2024

If there is a questionable element in the theory of evolution, it is likely the randomness of mutations, which is seen as the primary source of evolutionary change. The idea that errors in DNA sequences are the source of species change does not seem acceptable to many scientists and philosophers. According to them, adaptive evolution, which suggests that some mutations occur purposefully, is possible. Both views seem scientifically supportable. However, science typically excludes purposes, especially due to their implications of the supernatural. So, the philosophical problem here concerns which metaphysical framework would better explain a natural world in which purposes are at work, assuming that adaptive evolution is real.
In this article, I propose panpsychism as a candidate for such an explanation. Although panpsychism is a well-known metaphysical view, it has rarely been associated with evolution. Panpsychism simply states that all actual natural entities possess some form of mentality that is intrinsic to matter. Mentality must be present at the most fundamental level of existence to manifest in any higher-level form. This idea of panpsychism that mentality develops gradually is already compatible with the traditional view of evolution that species change slowly and incrementally by small steps. Nevertheless the adaptive evolution hypothesis demands more. The idea that organisms can alter their own DNA in response to environmental conditions implies that this process occurs voluntarily in a controlled manner. However, adaptation does not always occur voluntarily, and such an understanding becomes difficult to accept as it attributes higher-level cognitive functions, such as choosing, will, and decision-making, to cells and molecules. Thus, a more naturalistic approach is needed.
Panpsychism can take many forms such as dualistic panpsychism or idealistic panpsychism. I suggest dual-aspect panpsychism as a wholly naturalistic version of this concept. Accordingly, mentality and physicality are two aspects of the same thing or stuff. Just as there is no mental causation from the mental to the physical, there is no physical causation from the physical to the mental. There are processes or events that manifest as physical happenings when observed from the outside and as mental happenings when experienced from the inside. Along with an interpretation of dual-aspect panpsychism that is compatible with physicalism, when we accept that the most plausible way to extend mentality to all actual entities is to think of it as intentionality, it may become even more easier to situate adaptive evolution within a naturalistic framework. Non-random mutations do not occur as mental acts of choice but arise from the organism’s behavior being about or directed towards selective environmental conditions for the purpose of ensuring survival.
The article consists of two main parts. The first part seeks to establish the possibility that some mutations may not be random on a scientific-philosophical basis. The second part aims to show the compatibility of this possibility with dual-aspect panpsychism. As a result, it is hoped that an acceptable interpretation of evolutionary theory, combined with a naturalistic interpretation of panpsychism, will result in a fruitful synthesis that explains the seemingly purposeful actions of cells and organisms.