ON THE PSYCHO-PHYSICAL VIEW OF NATURE. 521 



of sensations and perceptions, their associations, finally, 

 the processes of apperception and volition, are accom- 

 panied by physiological nerve -processes. Other bodily 

 processes, such as the simple and complex reflex actions, 

 do not enter directly into consciousness, but they 

 form important auxiliary processes of the phenomena of 

 consciousness." 1 It is, accordingly, quite consistent, 

 from a purely scientific point of view, to test this 

 central conception of exact psychology, and to refrain 

 from introducing any purely psychical conceptions so 

 long as the possibilities of the conception, that mental 

 phenomena are only concomitant occurrences of changes 

 which take place in the nervous system and centres, 

 have not been exhausted. Investigations, with or 

 without this definite purpose, have been very largely 

 prosecuted in the course of the nineteenth century, and 

 have been in part purely anatomical, in part physio- 

 logical, the latter again either referring to pathological 

 or to normal cases. Systematic courses of experiments 

 have been begun at Leipzig and taken up, according to 

 a well-defined special programme, by Dr Miinsterberg at 

 Freiburg, who in the researches of his laboratory has, 

 more distinctly than any other philosopher, adopted the 

 theory as a working hypothesis. 2 



36. 



Minister- 



1 ' Physiologische Psychologic ' (4 

 Aufl.), vol. ii. p. 644. 



2 The principal writings of Dr 

 Miinsterberg, in which his psycho- 

 physical researches are contained, 

 are : 1 , ' Die Willenshandlung, ' 

 Freiburg, 1888; 2, 'Beitrage zur 

 Experimentellen Psychologic,' 4 

 parts, 1889-92 ; 3, ' Ueber Aufgaben 

 und Methoden der Psychologic,' 

 being part 2 of the 'Schriften der 



Gesellschaft fur Psychologische 

 Forschung,' 1891. These writings, 

 although starting from the position 

 prepared by the Leipzig school of 

 psycho-physical research, are largely 

 polemical, and directed against 

 some of Prof. Wundt's principal 

 theories. They have received a 

 considerable amount of attention 

 in Germany and America and in 

 this country, and also a good deal 



