Resonance Theory

• Resonance is a non-engineerable (i.e., orig. “unverfügbar”, not readily available; natural, spontaneous, unforced) relationship to the world (“Weltbeziehung”, world relationship); a relational mode.
• Resonance is characterized by af←fect (lat. afficere = to affect) and e→motion (lat. emovere = to excite, to set in motion), intrinsic interest (genuine, from within), and perceived self-efficacy (belief in own competence), in which subject and world are mutually affected and transformed.
• Resonance has several axes: horizontal (with other beings), diagonal (with objects/things), vertical (with surrounding or abstract entities such as nature, art, “divine forces”).
• Resonance is more likely in certain contexts (resonance spaces). A good life is one that is rich in resonant experiences and has stable axes of resonance at its disposal (see Rosa, 2016).

Operationalized Resonance

4E Cognition as an Underlying Mechanism for Resonance

• Resonance can be understood as a socio-philosophical term but originates from physics (lat. resonare = to resound). The term resonance can be operationalized through manifest indicators.
• Psychophysiology, the interplay of the physical body in its environment and the emerging psyche, allows resonance to occur. Cognition (information processing) in humans is embodied (results from the brain being situated in the body), embedded (happens in an environment, a universe or, in general, a context), enactive (results from interaction with other entities), and extended (can be assisted by or ‘outsourced’ to other entities, such as technology).

Systemic Resonance

Plurality

• “Social philosophy that recognizes and fosters the flourishing of and cooperation between a diversity of sociocultural groups/systems” (Weyl, 2022).
• “Set of principled mathematical techniques [to] design social, political, and economic mechanisms treating not just individuals, but also connections between individuals as a first-class object.”

Applied Resonance

Bewusstseinskultur (BK) / Culture of Consciousness

• “Adoption of an ethical attitude toward one’s mental states;
• Systematic cultivation of states classified as valuable;
• Continuous process of rational, evidence-based enculturation, i.e., the active embedding of such states of consciousness in culture and society” (Metzinger, 2023) – embedding them in resonance spaces => BK can be fostered by engaging in practices in social and physical contexts (again: resonance spaces)