Abstract
In order to defend mental explanations dualists may appeal to
dispositions (powers). By accepting a powers theory of causation, a dualist
can more plausibly defend mental explanations that are given independently
of physical explanations. Accepting a power-based theory still comes with a
price. Absences and double preventers are not causes in a powers theory, and
solutions based on them can only defend their explanatory relevance in mental
explanations. There is still a chance that such mental explanations can
be causal explanations, though they do not refer to real causes.