Species of mind : the philosophy and biology of cognitive ethology

Book

Species of mind : the philosophy and biology of cognitive ethology / Colin Allen, Marc Bekoff.

Allen, Colin. (Author). Bekoff, Marc. (Added Author).

Summary:

Colin Allen (a philosopher) and Marc Bekoff (a cognitive ethologist) approach their work from a perspective that considers arguments about evolutionary continuity to be as applicable to the study of animal minds and brains as they are to comparative studies of kidneys, stomachs, and hearts. Cognitive ethologists study the comparative, evolutionary, and ecological aspects of the mental phenomena of animals. Philosophy can provide cognitive ethology with an analytical basis for attributing cognition to nonhuman animals and for studying it, and cognitive ethology can help philosophy to explain mentality in naturalistic terms by providing data on the evolution of cognition. The heart of Allen and Bekoff's book is this reciprocal relationship between philosophical theories of mind and empirical studies of animal cognition. The interdisciplinary approach reveals flaws in common objections to the view that animals have minds.

All the theoretical discussions in the book are carefully tied to case studies - particularly in the areas of antipredatory vigilance and social play, where there are many points of contact with philosophical discussions of intentionality and representation. Allen and Bekoff make specific suggestions about how to use philosophical theories of intentionality as starting points for empirical investigations of animal minds, and they stress the importance of studying animals other than primates.

Record details

ISBN: 0262011638
ISBN: 9780262011631
ISBN: 9780262511087
ISBN: 0262511088
Physical Description: xxi, 209 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Publisher: Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press, ©1997.

Content descriptions

General Note:: "A Bradford book."
Bibliography, etc. Note:: Includes bibliographical references (pages 183-200) and index.
Formatted Contents Note:: 1. Cognitive Ethology and Philosophy of Mind: An Interdisciplinary Approach -- 2. A Brief Historical Account of Classical Ethology and Cognitive Ethology -- 3. What Is Behavior? -- 4. But Is It Science? -- 5. From Folk Psychology to Cognitive Ethology -- 6. Intentionality, Social Play, and Communication -- 7. Antipredatory Behavior: From Vigilance to Recognition to Action -- 8. Consciousness: Essential, or Dispensable? -- 9. Toward an Interdisciplinary Science of Cognitive Ethology: Synthesizing Field, Laboratory, and Armchair Approaches.
Additional Physical Form available Note:: Also available via the World Wide Web.