Introduction to Theory of Mind

Question 1

TACTICAL DECEPTION

Answer 1

• dishonest signals might derive from operant conditioning
• anecdotes of primate dishonesty
• deception/intention
• understanding intentions of individual to be deceived
• aka. way to study of ToM BUT requires intent

Question 2

THEORY OF MIND: PRIMATES

Answer 2

• 3 evidence levels about animals apparent deceptive acts:
  LVL 0 = unintentional (windfall gain result)
  LVL 1 = activities apparently directed towards goal; only achievable if receiver = deceived (but learned not understood)
  LVL 2 = mindreading; involving intentions attribution to another animal

Question 3

“MINDREADING”

Answer 3

• ability to infer what other animal can/cannot see
• attributes mental states to others
• acquired by age 5 in most kids

Question 4

THEORY OF MIND

Answer 4

• typical TOM problem (Sally problem); 2 observers; 1 knows box content; who should kid select to find out what’s in box?
• correct answer = awareness of differing mental states between other observer/the kid
• can be applied to animals too

Question 5

SELF-CONCEPTS: PRIMATES

Answer 5

• theories of others minds -> theory of their own mind -> concept of self
• mirror self-recognition experiment
• chimps/gorillas = pass
• dolphins = pass
• parrots = not demonstrated so far

Question 6

GALLUP’S MIRROR TEST (1970)

Answer 6

• studied reactions of chimps/macaques to mirror reflections; 8h per day for 10-14 days
• over time chimps showed increase in self-directed beh number that relied on mirror use ie:
  1. grooming parts of body would otherwise be visually inaccessible
  2. picking food bits from teeth
• BUT macaques treated mirror socially as conspecific; chimps did this upon exposure; given enough time they also perform grooming

Question 7

THE MARK TEST

Answer 7

• all pps anesthetised post exposure period
• bright red marks placed on visually inaccessible locations on body ie. eyebrow ridge/opposite ear
• chimps touched mark more than other body parts upon re-exposure to mirror
• monkeys didn’t touch marks any more than other body parts

Question 8

MSR: OTHER SPECIES

Answer 8

EPSTEIN, LANZA & SKINNER (1981)
- trained pigeon to peck mark on breast using mirror
GALLUP (1982)
- criticised experiment for training artificiality/lack of other self-recognition evidence
THOMSON & CONTIE (1994)
- reported difficulty replicating result
- aka. maybe chimps are faster learners > monkeys

Question 9

MSR: DOLPHINS

Answer 9

REISS & MARINO (2001)
- exposed 2 dolphins to reflective surfaces
- used mark test procedure
- claimed dolphins show clear evidence of mirroring to investigate marker body parts

Question 10

SUMMARY

Answer 10

• mark test yields interesting results across dif species BUT is it true self-awareness index?
• learning to control one’s actions on mirror feedback basis = skill (ie. shaving) BUT really self-awareness?
• do you have to go through process of “that’s me” when shaving?
• may be better off discovering why some species pass mark test easily while others bog down w/awareness/self-concept issues
• little TOM evidence beyond humans