The evolutionary functions of consciousness

<i>Why</i> did consciousness evolve? Assuming that some species (e.g. humans) have consciousness and others (e.g. redwoods or mushrooms) do not, what problem(s) did consciousness evolve to solve? From a biological and evolutionary viewpoint, and regardless of which species have consciousness (or to what degree), this question of the adaptive function(s) of consciousness is central. Nonetheless, the growing discipline of consciousness studies has not yet fully engaged with this issue. The current special issue aims to help fill this important gap in the literature with contributions from 28 noted scholars in the field. In this introduction, we discuss basic terminological issues and potential pitfalls, provide a broad theoretical framework, consider some of the many possible answers to this central question and offer brief summaries of the included papers.This article is part of the theme issue 'Evolutionary functions of consciousness'.