Animal Thinking: Contemporary Issues in Comparative Cognition

by Randolf Menzel (Editor), Julia Fischer (Editor)

Overview

Experts from psychology, neuroscience, philosophy, ecology, and evolutionary biology assess the field of animal cognition.

Do animals have cognitive maps? Do they possess knowledge? Do they plan for the future? Do they understand that others have mental lives of their own? This volume provides a state-of-the-art assessment of animal cognition, with experts from psychology, neuroscience, philosophy, ecology, and evolutionary biology addressing these questions in an integrative fashion. It summarizes the latest research, identifies areas where consensus has been reached, and takes on current controversies. Over the last thirty years, the field has shifted from the collection of anecdotes and the pursuit of the subjective experience of animals to a rigorous, hypothesis-driven experimental approach. Taking a skeptical stance, this volume stresses the notion that in many cases relatively simple rules may account for rather complex and flexible behaviors.

The book critically evaluates current concepts and puts a strong focus on the psychological mechanisms that underpin animal behavior. It offers comparative analyses that reveal common principles as well as adaptations that evolved in particular species in response to specific selective pressures. It assesses experimental approaches to the study of animal navigation, decision making, social cognition, and communication and suggests directions for future research. The book promotes a research program that seeks to understand animals' cognitive abilities and behavioral routines as individuals and as members of social groups.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780262551496
Publisher:	MIT Press
Publication date:	03/19/2024
Series:	Strüngmann Forum Reports , #8
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Randolf Menzel is Professor Emeritus at the Free University of Berlin.

Julia Fischer is Professor of Cognitive Ethology at the German Primate Center and the University of Göttingen.

What People are Saying About This

Hubert S. Markl

When two true masters of their fields join some of the most outstanding researchers to sum up their knowledge—e.g. on navigation and communication of insects, or knowledge and planning in primates—we can expect a very competent overview, and this volume does just that! The authors, editors, and the publisher can be congratulated for presenting this. Please, read this book: there remains much to be discovered, and it can be found here.

Endorsement

This excellently edited, important book addresses one of the most vexing questions in the study of animal behavior: Do animals think? The editors bring together an outstanding group of contributors addressing navigation, decision making, communication and knowledge in insects and vertebrates. This book is about concrete empirical results rather than vague concepts and is exquisitely suitable for graduate courses.

—Bert Hölldobler, Professor, University of Würzburg, and Arizona State University, Tempe

From the Publisher

When two true masters of their fields join some of the most outstanding researchers to sum up their knowledge—e.g. on navigation and communication of insects, or knowledge and planning in primates—we can expect a very competent overview, and this volume does just that! The authors, editors, and the publisher can be congratulated for presenting this. Please, read this book: there remains much to be discovered, and it can be found here.

—Hubert S. Markl, Professor of Biology, Emeritus, University of Konstanz; former President, Max Planck Society

This excellently edited, important book addresses one of the most vexing questions in the study of animal behavior: Do animals think? The editors bring together an outstanding group of contributors addressing navigation, decision making, communication and knowledge in insects and vertebrates. This book is about concrete empirical results rather than vague concepts and is exquisitely suitable for graduate courses.

—Bert Hölldobler, Professor, University of Würzburg, and Arizona State University, Tempe