What is experience? Experience can be defined as acts that produce, create, and invent knowledge for effects upon the future. Experience is an ingredient in many philosophical theories such as: Empiricism, Radical Empiricism, and Pragmatism, just to name a few.
Empiricism connects directly with experience in the case that if we base all knowledge on experience, we can still have knowledge about experience itself. The contents of experience are the "whats" that we experience. The conditions of experience are the "hows" we experience. For example, when a heated iron is touched for the first time by a child, that child automatically jerkes his hand away, and notices a sudden painful experience is associated with his action. Each time this child comes in contact with this iron, he knows not to touch it. The content (or "what") of this situation is pain, and the condition (or "how") was through a heated iron. Therefore pain is directly defined and associated by heat by the way of experience. We can only know and experience how things appear to be, classified as being "phenomenal", and not things contained with in themselves, classified as "noumenal." Noumena are not able to be experienced because we do not have direct access to those things such as other minds, for example.
Radical Empiricism takes "Pure experience" as the only reality in the Universe. Pure experience is linked together within itself (fire-smoke, heat-pain, ice-cold). In other words, one experience leads to other experiences like a "chain-reaction." For example, having experience in one particular job can mean being qualified for another. The experience learned on that job may lead to being qualified for an even higher paid job and so on. In another sense, this can also refer to experience being able to know, believe, doubt, and remember other experiences. In COMMON SENSE REALISM, and MIND AND BODY DUALISM, experience links mind and matter together to form RADICAL EMPIRICISM.
Pragmatism sets up philosophies so they will accomplish things for people. "It seeks the bases for human knowledge and conduct in the practical results of philosophical ideas" (McCarty). Pragmatism links experience to the Scientific Method through "hypothesis" and "experiment." John Dewey presents the nature of experience as being active and passive. He identifies the active part of experience as "experimentation" or "to try." The results of trying affects the passive element. Dewey says that we must act, and see the act with its consequence in order to have experience. In other words, if there is no conscious control of actions that require decision, and the action is a routine, or a sudden reaction, then no true experience occurs. He refers to thinking as (reflective experience) which analyze connections between things we do and consequences that result, or problems with solutions. "Ordinary experience" is simply trial and error.
Experience is such a very broad topic. However it is the basis of all knowledge, wisdom, understanding, and meaning. Experience leads to many issues directly related to sense perception such as theories listed above and many others.
Vaneecia Lark