Tracking the evolution of causal cognition in humans
(2017) In Journal of Anthropological Sciences 95. p.219-234- Abstract
We suggest a seven-grade model for the evolution of causal cognition as a framework that can be used to gauge variation in the complexity of causal reasoning from the panin-hominin split until the appearance of cognitively modern hunter-gatherer communities. The intention is to put forward a cohesive model for the evolution of causal cognition in humans, which can be assessed against increasingly finegrained empirical data from the palaeoanthropological and archaeological records. We propose that the tracking behaviour (i.e., the ability to interpret and follow external, inanimate, visual clues of hominins) provides a rich case study for tracing the evolution of causal cognition in our lineage. The grades of causal cognition are... (More)
We suggest a seven-grade model for the evolution of causal cognition as a framework that can be used to gauge variation in the complexity of causal reasoning from the panin-hominin split until the appearance of cognitively modern hunter-gatherer communities. The intention is to put forward a cohesive model for the evolution of causal cognition in humans, which can be assessed against increasingly finegrained empirical data from the palaeoanthropological and archaeological records. We propose that the tracking behaviour (i.e., the ability to interpret and follow external, inanimate, visual clues of hominins) provides a rich case study for tracing the evolution of causal cognition in our lineage. The grades of causal cognition are tentatively linked to aspects of the Stone Age/Palaeolithic archaeological record. Our model can also be applied to current work in evolutionary psychology and research on causal cognition, so that an inter-disciplinary understanding and correlation of processes becomes increasingly possible.
(Less)
- author
- Lombard, Marlize and Gärdenfors, Peter LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2017
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Causal cognition, Causal grammar, Cognitive evolution, Mindreading, Panin-hominin split, Tracking behaviour
- in
- Journal of Anthropological Sciences
- volume
- 95
- pages
- 16 pages
- publisher
- Istituto Italiano di Antropologia
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:28489015
- wos:000412925800009
- scopus:85031736082
- ISSN
- 1827-4765
- DOI
- 10.4436/JASS.95006
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- dab29f91-bbf8-4c44-a389-64f5b69dbfd5
- date added to LUP
- 2017-10-31 10:27:39
- date last changed
- 2024-03-17 23:49:22
@article{dab29f91-bbf8-4c44-a389-64f5b69dbfd5,
abstract = {{<p>We suggest a seven-grade model for the evolution of causal cognition as a framework that can be used to gauge variation in the complexity of causal reasoning from the panin-hominin split until the appearance of cognitively modern hunter-gatherer communities. The intention is to put forward a cohesive model for the evolution of causal cognition in humans, which can be assessed against increasingly finegrained empirical data from the palaeoanthropological and archaeological records. We propose that the tracking behaviour (i.e., the ability to interpret and follow external, inanimate, visual clues of hominins) provides a rich case study for tracing the evolution of causal cognition in our lineage. The grades of causal cognition are tentatively linked to aspects of the Stone Age/Palaeolithic archaeological record. Our model can also be applied to current work in evolutionary psychology and research on causal cognition, so that an inter-disciplinary understanding and correlation of processes becomes increasingly possible.</p>}},
author = {{Lombard, Marlize and Gärdenfors, Peter}},
issn = {{1827-4765}},
keywords = {{Causal cognition; Causal grammar; Cognitive evolution; Mindreading; Panin-hominin split; Tracking behaviour}},
language = {{eng}},
pages = {{219--234}},
publisher = {{Istituto Italiano di Antropologia}},
series = {{Journal of Anthropological Sciences}},
title = {{Tracking the evolution of causal cognition in humans}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.4436/JASS.95006}},
doi = {{10.4436/JASS.95006}},
volume = {{95}},
year = {{2017}},
}