Comparative Cognition

Abstract

Although its origins can be traced to philosophical speculations of the 16th and 17th centuries, for the past 100 years research in comparative cognition has used the methods of natural science to discover the extent to which our mental functions are similar to those of other animals. Are animals intelligentWhat do we know about animals' cognitive capacitiesWhat forms and aspects of cognition have been studiedWhat methods have been used in this research realmWhat findings have emergedIn this chapter, we will see how animals respond to the passage of time, how they remember the past, how they respond effectively in the present, and how they plan for the future. We will also learn that animals can master abstract and numerical concepts, and even exhibit signs of analogical reasoning as well as many of the precursors to human symbolic language. We will also consider the possibility that animals may monitor their current state of knowledge to control their own behavior in an adaptive way. This sampling of topics, methods, and findings should provide a good introduction to the current state of the science of comparative cognition. Keywords: Comparative psychology; animal cognition; abstract conceptualization