Social Transmission of Mental Skills

Abstract

This chapter explores a major hypothesis about human evolution: uniquely human mental skills are learned, while the way animals learn and decide is essentially hardwired. It surveys the characteristics of human mental skills and leverage findings from developmental psychology in order to argue that the transmission of mental skills is ubiquitous in human development. It also examines the human ability to transmit mental skills socially, in light of the fact that mental processes cannot be directly observed. The chapter proposes that humans solve the problem of indirect observation of mental processes with a variety of approaches, including a significant time investment, the active role of tutors and learners, the widespread use of symbolic language, and the co-development of mental skills. It stresses the centrality of development for human mental skills and cultural evolution.