Earlier stages of my research focused heavily on philosophy of mind. Among contemporary philosophers of mind, physicalism tends to be the dominant view. However, the view has been persistently plagued by the problem of being unable to accommodate the causal powers of the mental. In my research, I have pushed both the importance of that problem and the physicalist's inability to answer it. Another (closely related) issue is how to formulate the physicalist view itself, which I have also addressed in my work.
JOSEPH A. BALTIMORE
In engaging the above issues in the philosophy of mind, I have come to appreciate the need to address underlying metaphysical issues. Consequently, metaphysics occupies a central place in my research program, tackling such matters as the nature of causation and exploring the viability of David Lewis' metaphysical system.
With this ontologically serious approach to the philosophy of mind, I have discovered panpsychism to be fruitful. Indeed, I often find the present state of the philosophy of mind, which is dominated by physicalism and answering problems peculiar to that view, to be frustratingly stagnant. And I think panpsychism, with its commitment to the realism of the mental and historically impressive pedigree of advocates, can be a helpful springboard into fresh approaches to the philosophy of mind. To be clear, I am not necessarily committed to the truth of panpsychism but, rather, using the view to spark novel perspectives on the mind-body problem (whether or not such perspectives turnout to be of a panpsychist variety).
In exploring the nature of causation, I have become attracted to a dispositionalist ontology. By taking properties to be identical with dispositions or powers, one's ontology is primed to develop an account of causation, as the causal "oomph" of the world is grounded in the properties themselves. Still, there are several issues to iron out in pursuing dispositionalism, such as how distinct powers can work together to engage in mutual manifestations and, further, whether or not such interactions can take place within a single substance. These sorts of issues presently occupy the majority of my research efforts.
A list of my publications, as well as abstracts and links to the appropriate journals, can be found here philpapers.