Psychophysical Interpretation of Quantum theory

TL;DR

This paper proposes a psychophysical interpretation of quantum theory, emphasizing the equal roles of subjective and objective aspects, and explaining measurement as an interplay of objective interactions and subjective observation.

Contribution

It introduces a novel psychophysical interpretation of quantum mechanics, linking subjective and objective aspects through complex conjugates and explaining measurement as a two-step process.

Findings

Subjective and objective aspects are represented by conjugate quantities in quantum formalism.

Measurement involves objective interaction via retarded waves and subjective observation through advanced waves.

The interpretation unifies various existing quantum interpretations within a psychophysical framework.

Abstract

It is shown that the formalism of quantum theory naturally incorporates the psychophysical parallelism and thereby interprets itself, if the subjective aspects are taken as equal partners alongside the objective aspects as determinants of Reality as a Whole. The inevitable interplay of the subject (observer) and the object (observed) in making up Reality is brought out succinctly through a comprehensive psychophysical interpretation which includes in its bosom the truths of many of the major interpretations proposed so far as essential ingredients. At the heart of this novel approach lies the interpretation of the complex conjugate quantities such as the conjugate wave function {\Psi}*(r, t), the bra vector <{\Psi}|, and the adjoint operator A{\dag} etc. as representing the subjective counterparts of the corresponding objective aspects represented by the wave function {\Psi}(r, t), the ket vector |{\Psi}>, and the observable A etc. respectively. This brings out the psycho-physical parallelism lying hidden in the quantum mechanical formalism in a quite straightforward manner. The measurement process is shown to be a two-step process comprising objective interaction through the retarded waves and subjective observation leading to rise of knowledge through the advanced waves.