¡Descarga Behavior & Psychology in Evolutionary Context: Emotions, Cognition & Intelligence - Prof. y más Apuntes en PDF de Psicobiología solo en Docsity! UNIT 13: BEHAVIOUR AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES IN EVOLUTIONARY CONTEXT (key concepts) 1. Contrast between the associative versus inferential accounts (slide 2) There are two alternative, opposing ways to explain behavior: • Associative/non-representational/non-mentalist processes: identify relationships between events that can be learned. A relationship of contiguity between two or more events. This non-mentalist account claims that individuals can understand and reason, but their reasoning is only about observable objects, events or behaviors. • Inferential/representational/mentalist account: tend to articulate their proposals in terms of mental states (desires, beliefs, plans…). Mentalist explanations assume that individuals are capable not only learn contingency relationships between events, but to understand its underlying causal structure. Is assumes that individuals attribute mental states to others in order to interpret their behaviors. 2. Lloyd Morgan’s canon (slide 3) 6. Defining features of facial expressions linked to basic emotions (slide 13) Our facial expressions are universally recognized by all cultures and occur in response to specific universal antecedent events. These expressions are involuntary and innate, as evidenced by their occurrence in infants or young children and in adults who have been blind since birth and lacked the opportunity to learn by observation. The facial muscles critical for expression are specialized for the rapid movements by possessing a high fraction of fast twitch fibers, and they are under strong selection to be present and symmetrical in all individuals. Each emotional facial pattern is associated with a prescribed set of physiological manifestations, vocalizations, acoustic patterns of speech and whole-body gestures. Emotional expressions are characterized by quick onset and brief duration. This feature distinguishes emotions from moods, which persist longer and have less specific intentional antecedents. Receiver recognition of facial expressions and some of the key vocalization (screams and cries) is hard-wired in the brain and exceptionally rapid, implying the presence of specialized emotion-detecting systems. 8. Defining features of cognitions and cognitive processes (slides 15-17) There are two key defining characteristics of cognition and cognitive processes generally: ▲ Behavioral flexibility: the individual is capable to make decisions and choose between several possible courses of action based on an assessment of the current situation in relation to its current goals. Flexibility is a prerequisite ingredient for generating behavioral innovations ▲ Mental representation: in the decision making process that leads to a given behavioral output the individual relies on information from sources other than direct perception. In many situation, the individual appears to assess the current situation by manipulating the elements of some internal mental model of the problem and observing the imagined consequences in that model. This notion of mental representation implies that the individual can go beyond direct perception and show insight or even foresight. It does not necessarily endorse the narrow sense of symbolic representation. 9. Defining intelligence and its typology (slides 18-20) Conclusion: 15. Imitation in apes and humans (slide 30) 17. Animal communication systems and intentional systems theory. Levels of intentionality (slides 34-35) 19. Theory of Mind (ToM): concept and components (slides 40-44) An individual has a theory of mind if he imputes mental states to himself and others. A system of inferences of this kind is properly viewed as a theory because such states are not directly observable, and the system can be used to make predictions about the behavior of others. As to the mental states the chimpanzees may infer, consider those inferred by our own species, for example, purpose of intention, as well as knowledge, belief, thinking, doubt, guessing, pretending, liking and so forth. 20. The rational actor model or selfish axiom (slide 45) Brains are ineluctably designed to make, on balance, welfare-enhancing decisions, at a proximate level, and fitness-enhancing decisions, at an ultimate level. The rational actor model or selfish axiom claims that the decisions made by individuals should reflect the fact that they have been designed to maximize individual gains and, therefore, selfish interests. 21. Decision-making: economic games and the study of egoism, egalitarianism and altruism (slides 46-50)
