Philosophy A-Level
Qualia
What Qualia means in Philosophy A-Level, as defined for AQA.
Definitions of Qualia
Exam boards and our study guides word this term in slightly different ways. Learn the version your board uses.
The subjective, first-person 'what it is like' quality of conscious experience, often cited as a challenge to physicalism.
The subjective, phenomenal qualities of experience, such as the 'redness' of a rose or the 'hurtfulness' of pain.
The internal and subjective component of sense perceptions, arising from stimulation of the senses by phenomena.
Intrinsic, non-intentional, phenomenal properties that are introspectively accessible.
Topics that use Qualia
- Metaphysics of mind (AQA A-Level)
Related terms
- Category Mistake
- Eliminative Materialism
- Epiphenomenalism
- Folk Psychology
- Functionalism
- Leibniz's Law
- Multiple Realizability
- Non-reductive Physicalism
Using Qualia in the exam
Definition questions usually carry one or two marks, and examiners look for the precise wording. Write the definition from memory, check it against the version above, and then use the term in a longer answer on the same topic so it sticks.
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